What does QB Carson Wentz bring to the Washington Commanders?

Taking a closer look at what the Commanders are getting with their new quarterback.

After missing out on Russell Wilson, the Washington Commanders pivoted to their back up plan by trading for Colts quarterback Carson Wentz. Wentz was of course originally drafted by the Eagles in 2016 after they traded up for second overall pick and he enjoyed a promising start to his career before getting injured. Things fell apart in Philadelphia which resulted in the Eagles trading him to the Colts last offseason. A year later, the Colts have decided to move on by trading Wentz to the Commanders. 

Analysis of the deal itself has already been covered by many people, but a brief summary of my opinion is that I didn't like the deal. Washington gave up significant compensation and took on a sizable contract for a quarterback the Colts had decided they were going to move on from no matter what this offseason. Yes it’s true that if Washington had waited for Wentz to be cut, he might have picked a different team in free agency, but to give up the picks they did as well as taking on the entire contract felt unnecessary. 

As for the player the Commanders are getting in this deal, Wentz is clearly a talented but flawed quarterback. It’s never a good sign that the Eagles were willing to move on from him two years into the big extension they had signed him to and that the Colts wanted rid of him after just one season despite giving up a first-round pick for him. However, there was clearly a level of talent there that caused the Eagles to trade up to draft him and then sign him to a big contract. The Colts clearly agreed when they traded a first-round pick for him. So what exactly are Washington getting here? Let's take a closer look.

The first thing that stands out when watching Wentz is his arm talent. Perhaps part of that is having spent the last season watching Heinicke, who struggled with arm strength, but Wentz’ arm jumps off the screen when watching him. 

On this play against the Ravens, the Colts align to receivers to the left of the formation. The slot receiver runs a through route designed to grab the attention of the deep safety while the outside receiver runs a blaze out. This route is made to look like a post route before breaking back outside to the sideline. The routes are run well and the outside receiver breaks wide open as he turns his defender around. But the real purpose of showing this play is the arm strength from Wentz. Wentz doesn’t really fully step into the throw, but he still drives the ball from the far hashmark of his own 16 yard line to the sideline at the 46 yard line. It doesn’t float and hang in the air, it’s thrown on a rope to the receiver and arrives in a hurry, giving him the chance to secure the catch and turn up the field for a few additional yards after the catch.

Arm strength can be an overrated trait for a quarterback and it’s certainly not the most important part of football, but it can also be a big weapon if a quarterback has the arm talent and uses it well. Wentz certainly makes use of his arm to attack down the field and make throws not many quarterbacks can make.

Here, the Colts set up a deep shot with a receiver running a deep hook as bait to hold the safety and create a one-on-one matchup on a double move outside. Off the snap, Wentz initially looks to his right but also spots the rotation of the safeties while doing so. This enables him to hold the safety rotating to the middle of the field in that position instead of leading him to his real intended target. Wentz then feels pressure and calmly shuffles around and steps up in the pocket to avoid the pressure before then quickly unloading the deep shot. He delivers a ball the best part of 60 yards down the field and drops it over the shoulder of his receiver for a huge gain.

If we’re being picky, the throw was maybe a yard or two underthrown, but it was still a strong throw and shows off Wentz’ ability to attack down the field. But Wentz isn’t just a deep ball thrower, he has other good quarterback traits too. He’s displayed the ability to throw with timing and anticipation, even in key situations.

This play comes on fourth and 11 at the end of the first half against the Ravens. The Colts are just outside of field goal range, but with so little time left it was pointless to punt the ball. So they call deep curls on the outside with a crossing route from the slot receiver. Wentz drops back and tries to keep his eyes in the middle of the field to hide his intention, but then he sets himself to throw to the curl to his left. He delivers the ball before the receiver makes the break, trusting him to break at the right time and get to the right spot. He also has the added pressure of a pass rusher breaking free off the right side of the line and landing a big hit just after he delivers the throw. But despite the situation and the pressure in his face, Wentz delivers a great throw that hits his receiver to pick up the first down, which allowed the Colts to get into field goal range and kick a field goal just before the clock expired.