Ahead of their Week 7 game against the Philadelphia Eagles, the Washington Commanders brought in former NFL head coach and longtime defensive coordinator Steve Wilks to serve as a defensive assistant. Safety Quan Martin recently described Wilks’ impact on Washington’s defense in the 17-point win over the Eagles.

“It was great just having him out there, having that presence, having that knowledge, having that experience out there with us. So, it was great,” Martin said. “He talked to us throughout the game, let us know what he was seeing and how we could have played it better and just coaching.”

Wilks’ experience should really be useful for the Commanders in their upcoming game against the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday. During his coaching career, Wilks served as the head coach of one of the Rams’ division rivals, the Arizona Cardinals, in 2018. He also served as the defensive coordinator for another of their division rivals, the San Francisco 49ers, in 2023.

Washington’s defense must play a key role in this game if the Commanders are going to win. In the Commanders’ two wins this season, they generated five takeaways. They also had five takeaways in their four losses and the tie to the New York Giants, showing how important takeaways are for Washington when they win. 

However, the Rams have not been turning the ball over. In fact, they only have eight turnovers in their first eight games of the season, all of which have been interceptions by quarterback Matthew Stafford. He only had eight interceptions all of last season when he was the league’s MVP.