3 Commanders players who must get more involved down the 2024 stretch

Luke McCaffrey - Commanders WR

The Washington Commanders still need another wide receiver to become dependable in the passing game alongside Pro Bowl pass-catcher Terry McLaurin. Noah Brown has flashed promise since joining after final cuts around the league, but it's nowhere near consistent enough just yet.

Kliff Kingsbury cannot become overly reliant on McLaurin despite his outstanding credentials. The Commanders have stuttered versus top-level defenses over the last fortnight. This trend cannot continue if they want to reach lofty expectations and make the postseason.

Washington's offensive coordinator does have one more ace to play provided he is ready. That is third-round pick Luke McCaffrey.

Advanced metrics suggest McCaffrey is getting open consistently when on the field. Despite this, there's been a real reluctance to get him the football consistently.

The former Rice star has 17 targets on the season, bringing in 13 catches for 134 receiving yards and six first downs. McCaffrey's played just 43 percent of offensive snaps so far. Now would be a good time to increase this as the stakes get higher.

This could be a daunting prospect for most rookies. However, McCaffrey comes from good stock and is more than ready for the moment. He's a hard worker and a model professional, which was always going to get rewarded at some stage.

McCaffrey getting more involved seems feasible when one considers how much Dyami Brown and Olamide Zaccheaus are struggling to make an impression. Individual errors on offense haven't helped the Commanders over their mini-slump. The first-year pro looks like he could be dependable if Kingsbury schemes things up effectively.

Couple this with the encouraging chemistry developed between McCaffrey and rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels throughout the offseason, and it's not hard to see why more involvement would benefit the offense.

Nobody is asking the wideout to be a legitimate No. 1 option. But if McCaffrey can become a solid chain mover over short-to-intermediate routes, that'll make a huge difference down the stretch.

McCaffrey's had enough time to adjust. The shackles must come off.

More Commanders news and analysis