Benjamin St-Juste and 3 Commanders who shouldn't play another snap post-bye
By James Dudko
Phidarian Mathis - Commanders DT
Dan Quinn's decision to make Phidarian Mathis a healthy scratch for the win over the Tennessee Titans before the bye should have put the former Alabama lineman on high alert. It was a clear signal coaches were losing confidence in the player selected No. 47 overall back in 2022.
That's an ominous sign, but so is who the Commanders are willing to trust ahead of Mathis. Namely, two journeymen from NFL practice squads, Sheldon Day and Carl Davis.
Day has been a useful disruptor in the absence of injured linchpin Jonathan Allen. Standing just 6-foot-1, but possessing a thick and powerful 294-pound base, he plays with good natural leverage and knows how to split gaps.
The 30-year-old struggles with occupying double teams and moving the pile with brute force. That's an area where Davis can be an asset.
Experience with both the Baltimore Ravens and New England Patriots taught Davis how to play two-gap techniques. The Ravens and Pats play defenses based less on the relentless activity upfront Quinn and Commanders defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. prefer, and more around handling two blockers, clogging running lanes, and keeping linebackers clean to flow to the ball.
Davis and his hefty 335-pound frame showcased those traits across 14 snaps against the Titans in Week 13. Most of those snaps came over the ball as a traditional nose tackle.
The Commanders need one of those not only to keep blockers off linebackers Frankie Luvu and Bobby Wagner but also to take attention away from Daron Payne. He's still the most imposing force along the interior of Washington's defensive line, but getting help from another source spells more trouble for Mathis.
Just like Benjamin St-Juste, Mathis is being upstaged by a rookie. The player in question is Mike Sainristil's fellow second-rounder, Johnny Newton.
He's still raw, but Newton has the core attributes, including a quick takeoff and natural versatility, to eventually earn a bigger role. Likely at the expense of Mathis.
Change should also be afoot for the Commanders on the other side of the line of scrimmage.