3 Key Dates During the Washington Commanders 2024 NFL Season

The new era for the Washington Commanders is officially underway. The whole roster has been pretty much flipped, so has the coaching staff and most of the front office. With OTAs coming to a close and mandatory camp about to start up prior to some time off before training camp begins later in the summer it give us the chance to examine how the team is looking and the upcoming season.

The Commanders 2024 schedule isn’t the easiest, but it also isn’t the hardest either it’s right around the middle of the pack, giving this fresh franchise a chance to make some noise this season.

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The NFC East will once again be competitive and Washington will have some out-of-division games that will surely be tests, but overall there are spots where they could surprise and win a game or two that they aren’t meant to.

When looking at the Commanders’ schedule NFL.com’s Adam Rank broke down the three key dates to look out for once the season does get underway.

“Week 2: vs. New York Giants. The Commanders’ home opener, against the hated Giants, will provide a nice barometer for two teams that have struggled in recent years,” Rank said while also identifying the teams first long road trip as a key date. “Week 4: at Arizona Cardinals. The Kliff Kingsbury REVENGE GAME … I guess? I do kind of wonder if Washington would have been better off holding on to Sam Howell, drafting receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. (who went fourth overall to Arizona) and kicking the quarterback decision down the road for a year. I know most didn’t agree with that approach. We can come back to this in a few seasons. I might just look foolish. (Not to mention, I just blamed Howell for Terry McLaurin’s lack of production, so yeah …)

“Week 8: vs. Chicago Bears. I’m just letting you know, us Bears fans will be insufferable about this matchup between the first two overall picks in the 2024 NFL Draft,” he continued. “That’s it. That’s the statement. Things could be even worse for Washington if Caleb Williams has a great game and ex-Commander Montez Sweat has three sacks. (Bonus points if Jonathan Allen follows in Sweat’s footsteps by being traded to the Bears this season.)”

First on Rank’s list is Washington’s week two matchup vs. the Giants, where the team will play their first home game of the season after opening up in Tampa Bay against the Buccaneers. Washington and New York have struggled together recently and a win here against a division rival would be a great start for the team.

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Rank’s next key date is just two weeks later against the Arizona Cardinals who will be getting QB Kyler Murray back into the fold, and who have improved in several areas since last season. It is indeed the Kliff Kingsbury revenge game as he heads back to the franchise he used to be the head coach of. Winning two out of their first four games would be a nice barometer for how the season will likely play out for the Commanders.

The last key date according to Rank is a week eight matchup vs. the Chicago Bears. There will be plenty of talk and coverage surrounding this matchup as it pits number one overall pick Caleb Williams against number two overall pick Jayden Daniels in a battle of which team perhaps made the better decision.

The Commanders’ season could go one of three ways, they could falter with so much newness, they could exceed expectations and pull off a 2023 Texans-like season, or they could just show progress and go .500 in which there are positives to build upon heading into the following season. Getting off to a positive start will only garner confidence for a team with unknowns; if they can do that, the ceiling will start to rise.

Stick with CommanderGameday and the Locked On Commanders podcast for more coverage of the Washington Commanders throughout the 2024 season.

Follow Caleb on Twitter.