8 biggest surprises and disappointments for Commanders so far in 2022

Disappointment: William Jackson III

The only reason Jackson doesn’t rank higher as a disappointment is because of how inconsistent he was last season. If you told us in 2021 that Jackson wouldn’t finish 2022 in Washington, you wouldn’t have called us crazy. That’s how poor the player’s fit has been in the team’s zone defense.

A lot of that is on the front office for signing a man corner (to a lucrative contract at that) to play zone, but you’d also expect Jackson to make some adjustments or improvements after his first season and he’s somehow gotten worse.

The Commanders need to find a trade partner for Jackson, because this relationship has run its course after just 16 games. Not even a full season!

Surprise: Benjamin St-Juste

What if we told you before the season St-Juste would be the defense’s top-performing cornerback after six games? The Commanders experimented with St-Juste in the nickel this offseason, but shifted him back out wide with Jackson and Fuller getting cooked on a weekly basis and the results have been encouraging.

St-Juste has struggled defending the run at times (he missed a tackle on Khalil Herbert’s big run against the Bears), but he’s been a revelation in coverage, allowing just a 48.1% completion rate, 198 yards, one touchdown and a 79.8 passer rating when targeted.

St-Juste also saved the day for Washington vs the Bears by breaking up Darnell Mooney’s attempted game-winning TD catch. Mooney bobbled the ball at first and would’ve completed the catch in bounds had St-Juste not been there to push him out of the end zone.

The arrow is pointing up on the second-year defensive back.

Surprise honorable mention: Curtis Samuel, Brian Robinson, Rachad Wildgoose