Commanders' undrafted roster hopeful is becoming impossible to leave behind

The Washington Commanders fell to the Detroit Lions in their second of three preseason outings, and starting quarterback Jayden Daniels only played one series with zero pass completions.

Still, there were a few positives to take away as the roster bubble battle whittles down to one final week.

The highlight of the game for Washington was an impressive one-handed snag by undrafted free agent wide receiver Jaden Bradley in the third quarter. The UNLV product had two catches for 42 receiving yards on the day, which adds to his impressive efforts at training camp.

Jaden Bradley is making his Commanders' roster case hard to dismiss

It's begging a question that will be answered by the end of the month. Is there room for Bradley to make the final 53-man squad?

The common belief has been that Washington will keep either six or seven wide receivers. Terry McLaurin, Stefon Diggs, and third-round rookie Antonio Williams are roster locks, as are Luke McCaffrey and Jaylin Lane for their return specialist roles.

Then, it's been expected that the Commanders will keep either one or two of Treylon Burks, Dyami Brown, and Van Jefferson Jr., with everybody else on the outside looking in. But a few of the camp bodies are making matters a bit more challenging, especially Bradley.

At this point, Bradley has to be considered firmly in the race for one of those final roster spots.

Bradley offers more long-term upside than Jefferson and Burks, and he can also play on special teams. The Commanders have been impressed with him all summer, and now he's showing he can make plays against real NFL competition.

The only problem Bradley faces is that after the addition of Diggs, the Commanders have a deep receiver room that can only afford to keep so many wideouts. Much of his competition has also made a strong impression this offseason, and head coach Dan Quinn has been known to choose experience over youth when it comes to the crunch.

Bradley entered camp facing an uphill battle, and it's going to take a lot for him to surpass those ahead of him on the depth chart.

He has done all he can to separate himself. But next week when the Commanders take on the Baltimore Ravens in their annual preseason Beltway battle, Bradley will need to make another statement just to be sure.

If he does, it could leave Washington's coaching staff with no choice but to save a spot for him. And they would be running a big risk by waiving him with a view to bringing the receiver back onto the practice squad to continue his development.

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