The Washington Commanders headed into Sunday’s game against the San Francisco 49ers shorthanded on both sides of the ball. Washington was without three of its starting offensive linemen, including both tackles and the secondary was down three starters.
Surprisingly, Washington held up well for three quarters before the 49ers put the game out of reach in the fourth quarter. The Commanders were close to making it a one-score game before quarterback Sam Howell was intercepted on the second play of the fourth quarter. That ended any chance Washington had at pulling the improbable upset. The 49ers walked away with a rather comfortable 27-10 victory.
With all of Washington’s injuries, head coach Ron Rivera was forced to rely on first-round cornerback Emmanuel Forbes and second-round pick Quan Martin. Martin has played a lot recently and has shown promise.
How much did Forbes play? Who played every snap on Sunday?
Here are Washington’s Week 17 snap counts.
Offense
Washington’s new-look offensive line every snap. Cornelius Lucas was making his second consecutive start at left tackle; Nick Gates was making his second consecutive start at center after being benched in Week 8 and Trent Scott filled in for Andrew Wylie at right tackle. The group held up well against San Francisco’s defensive line.
Washington’s offense had just 46 snaps, with Brian Robinson Jr. outpacing Antonio Gibson in the backfield, with 25 snaps to Gibson’s 20.
Defense
Linebacker Cody Barton was the only defensive player to play every snap. However, LB Khaleke Hudson and Forbes played all but one snap. Safety Kam Curl, who usually plays every snap, played 64 of Washington’s 70 defensive snaps.
Martin played 63 snaps, while Terrell Burgess played 35 snaps at safety. Tariq Castro-Fields started at cornerback and saw 21 snaps before he was injured. Christian Holmes came in — and played well — until departing with a concussion after playing 33 snaps on defense. Nick Whiteside, activated from the practice squad, saw his first 15 NFL snaps.
The Commanders went with three linebackers again for a period of time, and David Mayo saw 47 snaps.
Rookie defensive end K.J. Henry played 34 snaps, the same as Casey Toohill, while James Smith-Williams led all DEs with 46 snaps.
