ASHBURN, Va. — Strapped to the helmets of quarterbacks Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota are GoPro cameras that record all the sights and incoming sounds from their position under center.The cameras have been fixtures throughout the Commanders’ organized team activities this offseason, giving the quarterbacks and a few of their teammates who also have the cameras additional ways to assess a play.The idea came from David Blough, the team’s first-year offensive coordinator, who thought it would add another tool to help analyze their play. As mandated by the league, every NFL team is required to film practice. But the overhead cameras don’t pick up the sounds on the field. They don’t record the communication at the line of scrimmage or in the huddle, or document how well a quarterback presents the play calls to his teammates Did he speak clearly? Did he sell it well? And they can’t collect the sounds of the quarterbacks’ adjustments before the snap.But the GoPros can.“As a coach, especially when you’re on the sideline, hearing that type of communication back and forth, if it was just the video, that’d be good, but adding the sound with it with the mic, I think that’s another layer to it,” coach Dan Quinn said. “So, we’ll continue to work with it now and through the next week and then we can decide what days and how we want to work with it.”June in the NFL is typically about experimentation, as teams tailor their schemes to their players and begin to create a visual for training camp and beyond.In Ashburn this June, Blough and fellow first-year NFL coordinator Daronte Jones are building out systems to fit the Commanders’ personnel. Players are still learning the schemes and accompanying terminology. Some have already dabbled with new positions, and others have taken on different responsibilities at their spots. Personnel groupings change constantly, drills can change; even the emphasis for each workout changes with every outing.“Right now we’re just kind of throwing everything out there and seeing what kind of sticks and what we’re good at,” Mariota said. “Really, that’s what this part of the offseason is about. And then when we get back to training camp, it’ll be, ‘OK, this is what we are really good at, let’s kind of master these things and see where we can take it.’”The early going of the installs has seemed to energize players on both sides, who have lauded the “balance” of Blough’s offense and style of Jones’ defense. But there are a handful of players in Washington who stand to benefit the most from the changes.Jayden Daniels, QBDaniels spent most of his college career and his first two NFL seasons living in the shotgun with no huddles. It served him well in 2024, when he led the Commanders’ pass game and run game, orchestrated five game-winning drives (including the playoffs) and turned in possibly the best ever rookie season for a quarterback. The offense came unglued in 2025 for a host of reasons — injuries, personnel, a more difficult schedule, an incompetent defense — which prompted a number of changes late in the season.Blough made it clear early on that he believes in having the quarterback mostly under center, where Daniels has spent much of the offseason so far. It has required some adjustment, but the play-action passing game should open up more explosive plays and create more balance with the run game, taking some of the load off Daniels.“He’s incredibly accurate and his mobility is a superpower,” Blough said of Daniels in February. “And as we continue to use his brain to our offense’s benefit, I think you’ll see … all of these skill guys that we’ve talked about a little bit get unlocked and it’s going to be really special to see.”Speaking of those skill guys …Terry McLaurin, WRNo one sounds happier about Blough’s offense than McLaurin. The veteran receiver has played for three other offensive coordinators and with a total of 13 starting quarterbacks during his seven seasons in Washington. In many of those circumstances, similar questions have come up: Why can’t they get McLaurin involved earlier? Why can’t they get him the ball more often? Why do they only line him up on the left side?But in Blough’s offense, McLaurin said, he’ll be used all over, better allowing him to use his versatility.“I think the multitude of formations and route combinations is going to give all of us flexibility to move around the formation, keep the defense on their toes and have a lot of routes that may look similar at the stem but different at the top,” McLaurin said last week. “… I love that because that allows me to present the same stem to these DBs, but they have to respect (that) I can go left, right, I can go vertical because I can still run by you, I could stop or I could go in. Just having those types of variations in your route tree is just an unbelievable weapon to have as a receiver.”Ben Sinnott, TEAfter turning to Zach Ertz the last two seasons, the Commanders signed veteran Chig Okonkwo to lead the room, and he’s impressed so far. He has rare speed and versatility, and his knack for collecting yards after the catch only adds to his appeal. But the Commanders have long lacked a consistent and deep group of pass-catching tight ends. John Bates has dabbled in it, but he’s primarily a blocker, and a very good one at that.Washington drafted Sinnott in the second round in 2024, though he struggled to produce consistently in his two seasons behind Ertz. But Blough’s system provides him with a prime opportunity to be a key contributor.Blough’s offense will be an amalgamation of his own football influences, from Kliff Kingsbury to Kevin O’Connell to Ben Johnson, which means Washington could use a heavy dose of multiple tight end sets. Johnson’s Chicago Bears ranked sixth in the NFL last season with 45.4 percent of plays featuring two or more tight ends, and ninth with 27.5 percent of the team’s catches coming from tight ends.Daron Payne, DTPayne’s power, versatility and elite run-stopping ability make him a great fit for any defense that resembles Brian Flores’ scheme in Minnesota. Payne’s athleticism can’t be overstated, even in Year 9. He can explode off the line to disrupt plays in the backfield, win one-on-one matchups and absorb blockers to keep the linebackers free.Payne’s sack numbers have been inconsistent over the years, but he ranks sixth among defensive linemen with 346 tackles for loss since he entered the league in 2018, according to Pro Football Focus.“I think the versatility will help in some of that. What’s so much fun about coaching Daron is he’s big enough to be a 3-4 end … and he’s got the strength to play inside at nose tackle and (the) quickness to move,” Quinn said in February. “So to see (Javon Kinlaw) and him and Johnny (Newton) and (finding ways to) feature them on the field together some, having the three of those guys together, that excites me, honestly. These are guys that really love to battle and compete. Because they’re versatile, it gives Daronte even more options in how to deploy and how to match up guys. So, it’s a big deal for us.”Mike Sainristil, CBSainristil has the versatility and instincts that Jones covets in his defensive backs. The third-year corner was drafted to play in the slot, but has played the majority of his snaps the last two seasons (63.6 percent) at outside cornerback.Sainristil started to find his groove late in his rookie season, but his development seemed to stall as Washington’s defense struggled last year. A new system that capitalizes on his strengths could put him back on track as a future staple of the D.Sonny Styles, LBLet’s be honest: Washington’s rookie first-round pick is a fit for pretty much any defense because of his physical gifts, intellect and versatility. What makes him especially intriguing for Jones’ system is he can be used in multiple ways. He can stay inside and serve as the “Mike,” or middle linebacker, and be the quarterback of the defense. He can shift outside to the “Will,’ or weakside linebacker, to get after the quarterback. Thanks to his background as a former safety, he can drop in coverage and handle tight ends. Yet he can also chase down backs because of his closing speed and sound tackling.