The Washington Commanders have a lot to get through during their bye week. It may be a time to rest for the players, but head coach Dan Quinn and his staff will work tirelessly to figure out what's going wrong.
And changes could be on the immediate horizon.
Quinn is far from pleased. Pressure is growing, and uncertainty is building around his job status. The time for half-measures is over, and he hinted at alterations when the Commanders return in Week 8.
Just what they will look like is debatable. One notable shift has already happened: Steve Wilks has been hired to help with defensive game-planning. That was apparently always in the works, though the timing is peculiar.
Either way, Quinn is doing what he believes is best for the team. The players are still fighting for him, and not losing the locker room is his one saving grace right now.
That won't last, not when the Commanders are 3-13-1 over their last 17 games.
Performances have not been good enough. Weak links have emerged, and ongoing frustrations are evident. Aside from a few franchise cornerstones and players outperforming expectations, nobody is safe. And Quinn won't be afraid to wield the axe if he thinks it's necessary.
With that in mind, here are five Commanders players who could be benched after the bye week.
Washington Commanders players who could be benched as changes loom after the bye week
Tim Settle Jr. - Commanders DL
Believe it or not, this has been quietly happening in front of our eyes, and nobody is really talking about it.
Tim Settle Jr. was a popular signing for the Washington Commanders this offseason. He returned to the team that drafted him, and he was projected to be the starting nose tackle in Daronte Jones' 3-4 system alongside Javon Kinlaw and Daron Payne.
Settle's start has been underwhelming. He hasn't firmly established himself as a focal point, even though the Commanders have improved significantly against the run. And with consistency lacking, Washington has begun to split his reps with veteran Shy Tuttle, who wasn't a sure thing to make the 53-man roster at the start of training camp.
One could even argue that Tuttle is making more of an impression. He hasn't been perfect by any stretch, but he is holding his ground and generating some surprising push while also absorbing enough double teams for the second level to wreak havoc.
Settle will still have a role to play. The Commanders believed enough in the player to pay him, but they may need a nose tackle committee from here on.
Not exactly what Tuttle and the Commanders had in mind. But it's the situation he now finds himself in without a monumental surge forward.
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