The Washington Commanders' new era became official once the team drafted Jayden Daniels with the second overall pick, but even that wasn't enough to put the franchise on the NFL's radar.
The Commanders were given a total of just two primetime games on their 2024 schedule, with one being the Thursday Night Football matchup every team receives. The lone game outside of TNF was Washington's thrilling 38-33 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football.
Right now, Jayden Daniels and the Commanders are must-see TV. He has the NFL world on fire and rightfully so. The kid's been everything as advertised, plus more, and it has him in the early lead for Offensive Rookie of the Year.
The only problem is unless you live in the DMV area or are paying for NFL Sunday Ticket, you're probably not catching any Commanders games. And the NFL has to be kicking itself pretty hard when thinking about the potential ratings its missing out on. Because not only is Daniels the talk of the league - the Commanders fan base is one of the NFL's biggest fanbases and that would certainly show up in the numbers.
The NFL obviously doesn't have a crystal ball and it's not like the Commanders had an electric roster during the schedule-making process. But at the same time, the Chicago Bears were given four primetime games and it's not like Caleb Williams and co. actually did anything on the football field to warrant the exposure: it's all about what the league saw on paper.
Fortunately, the NFL can rectify its mistake and flex the Commanders into a primetime slot, or slots, if it wants. This could actually happen as early as Week 6 against the Baltimore Ravens, as well, and it would make a lot of sense to flex Washington-Baltimore into Sunday Night Football and kick the initially-scheduled Bengals-Giants matchup back into the afternoon slate.
According to league rules, the decision would have to be made by tomorrow, at the latest. For SNF flexing during Weeks 5-13, the league has to give teams at least 12 days notice in order to pull off the move. The Commanders are currently scheduled to play the Ravens in Baltimore on October 13. Both teams are less than an hour away from each other, so it's not like there would be any crazy changes to travel plans.
If that doesn't work, another potential target would be Week 8 against the aforementioned Bears. A rookie showdown between the top-2 picks of the 2024 NFL Draft would be must-see TV, especially if both teams keep winning. The biggest obstacle for the Commanders to overcome that week, however, is the fact the Cowboys and 9ers are playing on SNF that week and it's very, very unlikely the NFL boots that kind of matchup off its calendar. Even if the Commanders and Bears fanbases are just as storied and deep as the Cowboys and 9ers fanbases.
Either way, the NFL has plenty of time to make amends for its decision to keep the Commanders off the primetime slate, for the most part. We'll see if it happens.
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