Studs and duds from Commanders' Week 2 loss to Cowboys - Commanders Wire

The Washington Commanders went to Dallas to take on the Cowboys in Week 2.

The team was looking for its first win of the season after falling to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 1. Unfortunately, the Commanders not only lost again, but also suffered another devastating injury.

Jayden Daniels went down with an elbow injury right before the half. The quarterback was taken off the field on a cart with his left arm in a sling. And yes, this is the same elbow that Daniels injured last season.

Of course, Daniels’ injury is the main story. Even if the Commanders struggled this year, the team was at least hoping to get a year of health. Now, we wait to see what the update is on Daniels.

A lot more happened in this game, though, so let’s get into the studs and duds.

There are much worse backup quarterbacks you could have than Marcus Mariota. Mariota came off the bench, not expecting to play, and put forth as good a performance as anyone could have expected.

Mariota completed 11 of 16 passes for 111 yards and one touchdown. Mariota’s numbers would have been even better if not for an egregious call that took away a touchdown pass to Dyami Brown. Mariota did all he could to keep this team in the game.

The Commanders’ run game in general has been disappointing through two weeks. Against the Cowboys, Croskey-Merritt had plenty of chances, but didn’t do much with them.

The second-year back took 12 carries for just 43 yards. Averaging less than four yards per carry is never ideal, and Croskey-Merritt also failed to find the end zone or contribute much in the pass game. We’ve yet to see Croskey-Merritt prove he can be consistent enough to be an RB1.

Stefon Diggs continues to show that he was a hugely important signing. Diggs has now been a favorite target of Daniels and Mariota, and he’s as reliable as it gets.

Against the Cowboys, Diggs caught five passes for 47 yards and two touchdowns. No matter who is playing quarterback, we know Diggs will be a reliable contributor and make plays when his number is called.

For the second week in a row, the Commanders’ pass defense was simply not good enough. Dak Prescott was able to pick apart this defense, and he didn’t have much trouble doing it.

Prescott completed 26 of 31 passes for 279 yards and four touchdowns with no turnovers. That’s way too efficient and shows these defensive backs aren't doing enough. CeeDee Lamb had a vintage performance, with 153 yards and two scores, while tight end Jake Ferguson added two scores of his own. It’s hard to win games when your pass defense is this easy to exploit.

For the most part, the offensive line did a fine job in pass protection. Commanders quarterbacks weren’t sacked at all, which is a definite improvement over some performances from 2025.

Of course, it helped that Daniels evaded pressure with a few nice runs, but still, it was a performance you can build on. Unfortunately, Brandon Coleman went down, so let’s hope his injury isn’t too serious.

Sonny Styles has high expectations as a top draft pick. The linebacker also plays an important position as the leader of the middle of the defense, so the Commanders need a lot from him. Against the Cowboys, the rookie was clearly not good enough.

Styles only ended with three tackles on the night- no pass breakups, tackles for loss, or sacks. The Commanders’ defense was gashed over the middle all game, and while not all on Styles, he had opportunities to make an impact.