5 winners and losers from Commanders triumph at the Browns in Preseason Week 1

Winner No. 3

Cole Turner - Commanders TE

With Logan Thomas still dealing with a calf issue, this was a great opportunity for Cole Turner to prove he can be a key figure with increased responsibilities next season. It's a small sample size and the player missed a lot of time as a rookie, but this was a decent start.

Turner's route-running was crisp and he became a dependable weapon to call upon in the short-to-intermediate range. More importantly, the quarterbacks had no issue giving him the football in key moments.

This was reflected in Turner bringing in his four targets for 31 receiving yards. It might not sound like much, but it's a step in the right direction for the former Nevada stud, who's enjoyed a tremendous camp so far and could become the secondary receiving option within the tight end room behind Thomas if everything continues in a similar manner.

That's the next challenge for Turner. Flashing moments of promise and fading isn't going to cut it anymore - the 2022 fifth-rounder needs to establish himself as a force with more frequency to earn the trust of Eric Bieniemy - but this was a strong sign he's taking everything on board in the hope of additional targets.

Washington needs Thomas healthy and firing as part of Bieniemy's dynamic system. But that's no guarantee these days, which could mean Turner stands to benefit if he keeps up this level of production heading into the campaign.