The 2026 NFL season is on the horizon while the 32 teams are focusing heavily on training camps. Several teams like the Buffalo Bills, Houston Texans, Carolina Panthers and the Miami Dolphins are reporting to camp today, July 21. Whereas the Dallas Cowboys will report to the Oxnard training camp on July 29.
This is expected to be the Cowboys’ resurgence season by many analysts. The head coach of the Cowboys, Brian Schottenheimer, is also fired to work for the Super Bowl 61 on Feb. 14, 2027.
But before their squad took sessions from July 29 to August 18 in Oxnard, California, the Cowboys’ NFC East rival, the Washington Commanders and quarterback Jayden Daniels, received a major push from former Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Manti Te’o before the team hit training camp.
Te’o was on the Good Morning Football show when the panel was discussing, “Who is the most important player in the NFC East?” And his reply was Daniels.
“Because when you look at the Commanders, I don’t know what I’m getting out of the Commanders,” Te’o started explaining why he thinks so. “You know, you look at the running back room, you got Jacory Croskey-Merritt. You got Rachaad White, who was RB2 over there for Tampa for a long time. You have a very thin quarterback room, and you have a very young defense.”
He also added, “Now, I know Dan Quinn is a head coach. I know what I’m getting in there. But then you also have an offensive coordinator that has the same amount of coaching experience in the NFL as Daniels has playing experience in the NFL. But this is what history will tell you. You don’t sleep on the Washington Commanders when Daniels is at the helm. We were sleeping on them in 2024, at least I was.”
Te’o added, “And now all of a sudden, they’re playing in the NFC Championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles. If Daniels is healthy, which I’ll report out of minicamp and OTAs, he looked like his old self, if not better. Do not sleep on the Washington Commanders, because if this guy is on his Ps and Qs, he is the most important player in the NFC East because he does move the needle that much.”
Former NFL star gives Cowboys rival major vote of confidence
Now, with this analysis by a former defender like Te’o about the Commanders and Daniels, the Cowboys need to pull up and be careful. Why? Let’s look at the stats and how big the risk is of sleeping on the Washington team.
Since quarterback Daniels has entered the QB room, he first of all advocated greatness, leading the Commanders to the playoffs since 1990. Yes, with his 3,568 passing yards, 25 touchdowns and 69% completion rate, he did successfully manage to lead the Commanders to the conference round after 34 years. But they lost the games against the then-potential Super Bowl contenders, the Philadelphia Eagles.
As a Cowboys fan and a reporter, I can’t figure out what the main reason is behind the Cowboys not even appearing in the conference round for 31 years. But we can hope for the best at least this year. If the Commanders could do it after 34 years, why not the Cowboys with an elite offensive team laden with stars like Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens? Notably, Pickens and Lamb were recently ranked 6th and 7th, respectively, by ESPN in its Top 10 Wide Receivers ranking for the 2026 season. Also, the advanced stats show that Prescott is 10th in helping the Cowboys win the game when the team trails in the 2nd half of the games.
The Cowboys have talent, resources, the best fans in the world, yet they lack in some important spots like defense. As former ESPN analyst Ryan Clark mentioned a day ago (before getting fired), the Cowboys need to improve their defense and continue having the top-class offense, as it is, for the upcoming season and Super Bowl 61 is not far away. Maybe the Cowboys know this and that’s why the front office made sure to pick former National champion and Ohio State Buckeyes defender, Caleb Downs, in the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft, who has earned Prescott’s respect even before the camp starts.
So to make sure they fulfill their dream of winning the division and eventually the conference, the Cowboys can’t ignore 25-year-old Daniels, who can land a Hail Mary when the game is on the line. A recent example of such a touchdown was the Commanders’ matchup against the Chicago Bears in 2024. When the game came to a crucial point with the Commanders trailing by 15-12, he landed an electric 52-yard Hail Mary touchdown, which made the whole team super happy as it was a game-winning throw. So, that’s the reason the Cowboys need to beware.