Washington Commanders: Elephants NOT in the room for OTAs

It’s that time of the year again when teams have their OTAs (organized team activities). That means it’s also the time of year again when we get to freak out and overreact to players not attending an optional team event. The Washington Commanders couldn’t help but get a little spicy with some big names skipping town.

There were three extremely noticeable absences at the start of OTAs. Starting left guard Charles Leno Jr. being the first. Head coach Ron Rivera even brushed this off, though. Leno is a long-time NFL veteran and starter. Missing a few optional days won’t be a big deal. And if the head coach is openly excusing you, it’s hard for anyone to find too much fault in it.

Then we get to the duo that really made headlines. Montez Sweat and Chase Young. They are two of the more exciting young pass rushers in football. However, both are entering a contract year. And that’s where the fun begins.

Sweat has been impressive in his four years in Washington. Nothing too dominating, but he’s been a difference-maker at times. That includes eight sacks and a career-high 14 tackles for loss last season.

Young is a different story. After a great rookie campaign, he recorded just 1.5 sacks in nine games in 2021. An injury forced him to miss a chunk of the season, and most of 2022. Young appeared in three games for Washington last season, recording five tackles. He didn’t pick up a sack or a tackle for loss.

The Commanders decided not to pick up Young’s fifth-year option. And now it seems like many are wondering if he’s throwing a tantrum.

We’re going to go with “no” on this one. Young only appeared in three games last season. He likely knows that he needs to prove something. And it wouldn’t be shocking if he had his routine that he wanted to use.

Young and Sweat are in the same boat when it comes to how this will be viewed. Two young defensive ends in a contract year that are hoping for big paydays. Could they be holding out for money?

With Sweat, fans might view it a little more favorably due to his production on the field. Young’s injuries have led to many fans souring on him quickly. The OTA situation probably won’t help his case.

It’s a classic thing to overreact on, though. Players miss OTAs every year for various reasons. If it’s a move to get a new contract or show displeasure, you’d probably hear about it immediately.

Big-name players skipping out on OTAs is great for headlines and to create overreaction stories. Stir up a little spice in the Twitter world and amongst fans. It’s not an issue until the team and the players make it an issue. And it doesn’t look like that’s going to happen.

The Washington Commanders have had a busy offseason. With Dan Snyder selling the team, fans and media might be starved of controversy. Let’s not try to make new ones out of something so small.