You wouldn’t be hard-pressed to find clips of Carson Wentz’s new Commanders teammates lauding their QB for his talent. Since the 29-year-old arrived in Ashburn this offseason, it seems as though players on both sides of the ball have been eager to share their excitement that Wentz will be leading the attack this season.
Defensive end James Smith-Williams is the latest in a long line of Washington players to compliment the signal-caller.
“He’s an awesome guy,” Smith-Williams said on Good Morning Football on NFL Network Thursday. “That arm is insane, you know. Watching him at OTAs make all the throws and do it with ease—all the weapons we have on the offense, it’s really been fun to see them come together and kinda gel and mesh.”
Smith-Williams, 24, had something of a breakout season last year in Washington, just his second year in the pros. He tripled his tackle total from the previous season to 30, added five QB hits and a pass defended while he provided much-needed depth on the edge while Chase Young was sidelined with his ACL injury.
He’s not the first person to be wowed by Carson Wentz’s talent this offseason. Six weeks ago during OTAs, linebacker Cole Holcomb commented, “First thing I know, he’s got a cannon. Dude can sling the ball. We got a lot of fast guys, a lot of fast receivers. I think we got a lot of good weapons and he’s gonna extend our offense in terms of the length of the field.”
Smith-Williams, though, mentioned the other offensive weapons Wentz has been able to work with in D.C. thus far, namely rookie wideout Jahan Dotson from Penn State. Seeing Wentz and Dotson connect on the field over the summer has been a positive development in Ashburn.
Dotson himself said, “Catching passes with Carson, I said it was gonna be a dream come true, so honestly it’s a dream come true. I’m looking forward to each and every day.”
But the real crown jewel of Washington’s offense is and has been wide receiver Terry McLaurin. Though he hasn’t been able to hit the field yet with his new quarterback while negotiating a new contract—which got resolved in the form of a three-year, $71 million extension two weeks ago—the pair will have all of training camp and preseason to get comfortable with each other.
Wentz and McLaurin have both shared their eagerness to work together. If James Smith-Williams’ and others’ impression of Wentz holds true, Washington’s offense could put forth a more high-caliber showing in 2022.