Commanders News: Ron Rivera, Montez Sweat, trade talk and Sam Howell

Which Washington Commanders news stories are hitting the headlines after their narrow home loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 8?

It was a valiant effort from the Washington Commanders in Week 8. Improvements were made across the board - which wasn't exactly difficult after their previous outing at the New York Giants - but it wasn't enough to prevent a second loss to the Philadelphia Eagles this season after faltering late.

An interesting couple of days await before the 2023 trade deadline with the Commanders at 3-5, that's for sure. Until then, the stories causing conversation include Ron Rivera's assessment, the prospect of moving some established stars before the all-important October 31 cut-off point, Sam Howell's reflection, and Montez Sweat on the speculation surrounding his future.

Let's delve into each topic in more detail.

Commanders at a crossroads

With a fifth loss in six games, the Washington Commanders have some important decisions to make. The trade deadline gives them a chance to potentially secure decent draft assets to build a long-term plan for sustainable success, which seems almost inevitable after falling just short against the Philadelphia Eagles.

This was a sentiment echoed by Adam Schefter of ESPN prior to Sunday afternoon's clash. The respected insider suggested that any trade decisions would be dependent on how Washington fared versus the Eagles, which was a decent performance without mustering enough from an execution standpoint to get the job done.

"A loss against their division rivals would drop the Commanders' record to 3-5, including 0-3 against NFC East opponents, and leave them as potentially looking to unload players as soon as Monday morning.

Washington is not expected to be able to retain both pass-rushers, and at least one team already has inquired about [Montez] Sweat, according to sources. The Commanders are proceeding patiently, waiting to see where their season is going as well as what a team might be willing to offer. So before losing Young or Sweat in free agency, Washington first could decide to trade one to maximize compensation in the 2024 draft instead of getting a compensatory pick in the 2025 NFL draft."

Adam Schefter, ESPN

And now, we wait…

Commanders DE Montez Sweat on his future

If the Washington Commanders pull the trigger on potential trades before the deadline, this all starts and ends with the defensive end duo of Montez Sweat and Chase Young. While the franchise does boast $91.54 million in salary-cap space next spring with 40 players under contract, the money tied up in Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne suggests it might be difficult to keep both around.

Sweat is the name who's drawn interest more than Young currently, although teams could start coming to the fore following their Week 8 loss against the Philadelphia Eagles. According to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, the Atlanta Falcons have offered a third-round selection for the former Mississippi State star, which might not be enough to get any deal over the line.

"That’s not yet enough to get the Commanders to do the deal. And whether he’s traded before Tuesday will depend in part on whether the Commanders win or lose on Sunday against the Eagles. Even with a loss, it will be difficult for the current football operation to give up Sweat and/or Young, as they try to win games. If they can get the kind of a return that will be impressive to new owner Josh Harris, maybe they will."

Mike Florio, Pro Football Talk

This is clearly something on Sweat's mind based on his post-game thoughts via Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post. But the defensive end's stance hasn't changed - he's just waiting to see what develops in the coming days and take it from there.

The Commanders would miss Sweat if he departed. But at the end of the day, they are going nowhere fast in 2023, it's also worth remembering that this is a business.

Commanders HC Ron Rivera's reasoning

There was another contentious issue where Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera was concerned in Week 8 against the Philadelphia Eagles. This centered on not challenging the fourth-down catch made by wide receiver DeVonta Smith.

Many fans looked on in bemusement as Rivera kept the red flag in his pocket and allowed the Eagles to get a snap-off. Something that came in for criticism and only piled more pressure on the figurehead that could have been avoided.

When discussing the clear incompletion and his indecision when it came to challenging the call, Rivera stated via USA Today Sports that he didn't see the replay in time. Philadelphia was all too aware, getting to the line of scrimmage quickly and moving on.

"I didn’t see it on the screen. I was looking up at the screen to see if there was something that could help me with it. Then I was waiting to hear somebody upstairs on if they had seen it or not. We hadn’t seen the replay, so we weren’t sure. [The Eagles] did their hurry-up, ran up to the line, and snapped the ball. You almost think that in that amount of time, somebody else could have looked at it and saw if it was complete."

Ron Rivera via USA Today Sports

This is yet another grave error in judgment from Rivera and one that doesn't do his chances of lasting beyond the current campaign any good whatsoever. Getting some help from the booth would also help, but this had a huge impact on the overall outcome.

Commanders QB Sam Howell's reflection

It was another outstanding performance overall from quarterback Sam Howell. But two critical errors in the fourth quarter tipped the scales and something that condemned the Washington Commanders to their fifth loss of the 2023 campaign.

Howell threw a costly interception and also missed Terry McLaurin which would have resulted in a first down. The wide receiver had a chance to catch it, but the distribution made things more difficult than needed.

This was at the center of Howell's mind when speaking to the media after practice. Despite throwing for almost 400 yards, gaining four touchdowns, and securing a passer rating of 114.0, the signal-caller clearly regretted what happened down the stretch - something that took the shine off what turned out to be another decent effort from the former fifth-round selection out of North Carolina.

There is no room for moral victories with the Commanders at 3-5 and seemingly looking to trade off assets before the deadline. Howell is doing more than most to turn things around, but there is a lot of uncertainty elsewhere that could change expectations over the second half of 2023.

Howell benefitted from improved protection and schematic concepts that played to his strengths. The loss will sting given how close the Commanders were yet again, but the gunslinger can hold his head high despite the outcome not going Washington's way.