ASHBURN, Va. — The Washington Commanders ruled out quarterback Jayden Daniels for Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders because of a knee sprain. Marcus Mariota will start in his place, and Josh Johnson will be Mariota’s backup.
The Commanders treated this week much like they handled Week 8 last season, after Daniels suffered a rib injury and was uncertain to suit up against the Chicago Bears. He missed two practices and was listed as limited the Friday before the game, despite not appearing on the field during the media-viewing portion of practice.
Mariota prepared with the first-team offense throughout the week, but hours before kickoff, coach Dan Quinn announced that Daniels would start. He, of course, went on to throw a Hail Mary touchdown pass to Noah Brown for the win.
Daniels suffered his latest injury on a fourth-quarter scramble during Washington’s Week 2 loss in Green Bay. He stayed in for the entirety of the game, but often reached for his knee after getting tackled. He hobbled to the line of scrimmage after one hit, then waved off Washington’s sideline to indicate he wasn’t coming out. He went on to throw two touchdowns after suffering the injury.
In the locker room after the game, Daniels had an ice pack wrapped around his knee and was noticeably limping. When asked how he felt after sustaining 10 hits in the game, Daniels told reporters he was “good.”
An MRI taken the next day, however, confirmed a sprain, and Quinn described the quarterback as “truly day to day.”
He did not practice Wednesday or Thursday, and was not on the field during the media-viewing portion of Friday’s on-field workout. He did throw some on Wednesday, according to Quinn, but was not a participant during the team’s most intense workouts of the week (Fridays are typically shorter, non-padded practices). Mariota took the first-team reps in his absence, while Johnson prepped to potentially be the backup.
Daniels was, however, as involved as usual in team meetings and general game prep, and made multiple appearances in the locker room, wearing a large brace around his left knee.
Quinn has said that Daniels needed to hit “all of his markers” in the return-to-play protocol the coaches and medical staff set out for him to ensure he has the leg strength and ability to change direction as needed, among other things.
Practicing with the team in some capacity was also a requirement.
“We will just kind of go through the whole process with him and we’re not going to miss it either,” Quinn said Monday. “With Jayden, we know how important he is and so we’re just going to kind of take it (slowly). That’s why I truly say it’s day by day to make sure that he can absolutely be himself.”
Despite the uncertainty, Raiders coach Pete Carroll indicated earlier this week that he was expecting Daniels to get the start.
“Well, we have to prepare for him playing, and the bet is probably that he will,” Carroll told Las Vegas media on Wednesday. “They might not practice him until later in the week, but we’re going to count him going. … We have a lot of background about Marcus on the staff and all that, so we know what his capabilities are, we think, and so we’re playing for both guys, but primarily for Jayden.”
This story is developing and will be updated.
(Photo: Patrick McDermott / Getty Images)
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