Dan Quinn is excited to see what key Commanders rookie can do against the Jets during joint practice

Washington Commanders rookie Brandon Coleman has done nothing but turn heads throughout training camp and he has the upcoming opportunity to show it's no fluke against the New York Jets.

Washington travels to New Jersey this week, where it'll practice against Robert Saleh's squad before playing in the first preseason game of the season. However, Thursday's joint practice session will be the highlight of the week, thanks to how things are set up.

"Whether it's their defense, our offense, our offense, their you know, however that goes the balance of it, that's usually what I'm looking for," Commanders head coach Dan Quinn told reporters before Sunday's practice. "In some instances, it's even better than the games, because as coaches, we can script, you know, with their guys, 'Hey I'd like to see this matchup. Yep, good with that. Let's call this.' So, having that type of conversation helps a lot.

"Having the ability to communicate with [Jets head coach] Robert Saleh, [Jets offensive coordinator] Nathaniel Hackett, and [Jets defensive coordinator Jeff Ulbrich] 'Brick', that helps, because then [Commanders offensive coordinator] Kliff [Kingsbury] and [Commanders defensive coordinator] Joe ]Whitt Jr.] and the guys, we could all be on the same page... want to see this, want to see that... and that's how we all get better."

Coleman, the first of two Commanders' third round picks in the 2024 NFL Draft, has been practicing well enough throughout camp to the point where he's been running with the 1s on a regular basis. As far as matchups go, he'll see plenty of action the Jets edge rushers, and maybe even All-Pro defensive tackle Quinnen Williams, who lines up at 5-tech, sometimes.

Quinn is particularly interested in Coleman and even said as much on Sunday.

"One, you get some evaluations against different people in different situations: this rusher, this defense, this front, this look. Those are the things that you like, you know, when you're seeing a matchup. It's not necessarily scheme-related. I'm looking forward to seeing Brandon Coleman, you know, they've got some good rushers on the outside and like, what a good test for him."

This is Coleman's chance to really carve a path toward winning a starting job

Yes, Coleman's play has him on the right track and is certainly a reason why he's running with the 1s, but outside circumstances to his competition have played a role, as well.

Andrew Wylie, the Commanders' incumbent starting right tackle, has been missed some practices with what has been described as "tightness" and Cornelius Lucas, Coleman's main competition for the starting left tackle job, missed a recent practice due to personal reasons.

Again, that's not taking anything away with what Coleman has done on the field - it's simply adding everything up. Coleman has the chance to put all that bed with a strong performance against the Jets later in the week.

It would be a huge win for the Commanders in the short-term and potentially the long-term if Coleman plays well . Ultimately, he'd show that he's on the right path toward starting and if the Commanders can come away with both a franchise QB and LT in the same draft, well, I think we all know what should come next.

But, as with all things NFL, only time will tell. Fortunately, we'll get a good glimpse at what could be, very soon.