After two days of joint practices earlier this week, the Washington Commanders opened their preseason campaign against the New England Patriots on Friday night. Things didn’t go too well for the Commanders, though, as they got clobbered by the Patriots, suffering an embarrassing 48-18 blowout defeat.
It’s important not to put too much weight into one preseason game, especially since Washington did not play their starters, while New England did. However, their struggles throughout this game cannot be ignored, and after the final whistle sounded, one team insider sent a strong message to the Commanders and their fans that quickly turned some heads.
Commanders Insider Issues Strong Message After Loss vs. Patriots
Washington is entering the 2025 campaign with some heightened expectations, which is typically what happens when you make an unexpected run to the NFC Championship Game like they did last season. However, training camp has been plagued by some unexpected drama surrounding star wide receiver Terry McLaurin and his recent trade request.
The preseason is for ironing out the kinks and figuring out which players will make their team’s initial 53-man roster. However, when you get beaten as thoroughly as the Commanders did on Friday night, some alarm bells are going to sound. Washington was the more undisciplined, mistake-prone team from the get-go, and even when New England pulled their starters, their backups were still enjoying quite a bit of success on the field.
Again, it’s only one preseason game, but it was a slap in the face for a Commanders team that is entering the season expecting to be one of the top teams in the league. If you ask Scott Abraham of 7News DC, this was exactly the sort of game Washington needed, as he’s hoping it will serve as a wake-up call for the Commanders moving forward.
“Commanders fans, last night was the best thing that could have happened to your team,” Abraham wrote in a post on X. “It’s a wake up call everybody in that building needed. Sure the starters didn’t play, but this is a team sport all the way down to roster spot 53. Learn from it, fix it and grow from it.”
Commanders Have Some Work to do After Preseason Opener
GettyASHBURN, VA – MAY 28: Washington Commanders corner back Trey Amos (23) during the first day of OTA’s at Commanders Park in Ashburn, VA on May 28, 2025. (Photo by John McDonnell/For The Washington Post via Getty Images)
If the Commanders intend to achieve their goals in 2025, they are going to have to use this loss as fuel. In the grand scheme of things, losing a preseason game means very little. However, it won’t be long before the team is playing games that actually matter, and they are going to have to be better than they were on Friday night once the regular season rolls around.
Washington’s blowout loss was an eye-opening defeat, but the team still has a lot of time to get itself ready for the start of the season. Things will certainly be different once the starters are on the field, but football is a team sport, and the team as a whole played poorly against the Patriots. They will look to put some good tape together at practice moving forward before they take the field for their next preseason game on Aug. 18 against the Cincinnati Bengals.
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