First-year head coach Dan Quinn has barely settled into his new digs, and he’s already facing a storm with one of the Commanders’ biggest names. Terry McLaurin, the heart of the Burgundy and Gold’s offense, still hasn’t gotten that new deal. And fans across the District are starting to worry. McLaurin skipped voluntary OTAs, then bailed on mandatory minicamp too. Now, with training camp looming, all eyes are on whether he shows up or sends another message. This isn’t the kind of offseason storyline Quinn or the Commanders hoped for.

And this situation isn’t sitting well with Commanders legend Joe Theismann. On the Up and Adams Show, the Super Bowl champ didn’t mince words: “From my perspective, that’s a deal that must get done and must get done soon … you talk about putting a house together and building it with brick and mortar, this is the mortar that keeps the bricks together.” Theismann’s plea underscores the growing frustration. Especially as critics increasingly scrutinized head coach Dan Quinn for his roster management.

Former NFL lineman Marshall Newhouse discussed that strategy on The Mina Kimes Show. In fact, he expressed strongly about Washington’s defense. “I mean, they were just putrid on the backend… they were bottom fourth, um, in EPA for play in passing game.” While Newhouse praised Joe Whitt Jr., he made it clear the secondary was in bad shape last season and hasn’t improved much. Losing key pieces up front didn’t help either. And now it’s Quinn left trying to patch a leaking boat.

Consequently, the plan to blitz their way out of trouble doesn’t sound convincing either. Newhouse doubled down, saying, “This is not a quick fix. And so if you’re going to try to make up for that with just offensive things, this team, I think that’s why I mentioned they’re going to kind of regress.” Even Mina wasn’t sold on the upgrades. The holes in the defense aren’t just about depth—they’re structural.

Ultimately, Newhouse wrapped it up with a reality check for the DMV faithful. He believes Washington can beat the mid-tier teams, even bully the Giants, and sneak one from Dallas. But when it comes to the elite? They’re not close. The defense is dragging this squad down, and unless things change fast, Dan Quinn’s debut season could turn into a struggle-fest.

Marshall Newhouse feels Dan Quinn’s team will struggle

At first glance, things look promising in the District. Jayden Daniels has weapons—Terry McLaurin, Deebo Samuel, Brian Robinson Jr., and Zach Ertz—all primed for Kliff Kingsbury’s up-tempo offense. But that’s just the surface. Once the season slows down and defenses start punching back, that high-flying game plan might hit a wall. After all, no-huddle gimmicks won’t fool NFL coordinators for long, especially when everyone’s watching tape from last year. And with McLaurin’s contract still hanging, the Burgundy and Gold could be banking too much on one star’s shine.

Who steps up when Terry draws double coverage? That’s the real concern for Marshall Newhouse. “Yeah, that’s my narrative with this whole team–I think there’s going to be a little-bit of regression to the mean all across the board.” He even called out fluky moments like that Hail Mary vs. the Bears and the no-kicker Giants’ game as misleading signs of progress.

Then came the real warning. “But eventually, you’re going to have to get into two-tight-end sets… You’re going to have to get third-and-one… This is not college.” Newhouse made it clear—DC’s success can’t ride just on quick plays and explosive throws. “Not only rely on Terry McLaurin for explosive plays, but get the ball in other guys’ hands.”

Even ESPN’s Bill Barnwell doubts it. He ranked the Commanders’ weapons 13th, despite Deebo’s arrival. With Luke McCaffrey still unproven and Ben Sinnott barely seeing the field, the pressure to carry this team is on McLaurin. And right now, he’s not even in the building.