The veteran quarterback will face the Super Bowl champions with Jayden Daniels sidelined.
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The status of Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels remains up in the air.
After Daniels suffered a dislocated left elbow in a loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, he underwent an MRI on Monday and met with specialists across Tuesday and Wednesday. Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Commanders Coach Dan Quinn declined to give additional details.
The only thing that’s definitive at this point is quarterback Marcus Mariota will start against the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday at Northwest Stadium.
X-rays showed that Daniels didn’t suffer any fractures, but his recovery timeline won’t be known until it’s determined whether he suffered significant ligament damage. This is Daniels’s second dislocated left elbow after he went down with the same injury last season against the Seattle Seahawks on Nov. 2. He didn’t suffer any fractures or significant ligament damage and was able to return while wearing a brace on his left arm against the Minnesota Vikings on Dec. 7. He aggravated the injury and missed the final four games of the season.
Mariota started eight games in Daniels’s absence last year, so this is a familiar situation for him. Washington has a new play caller in offensive coordinator David Blough, and there have been changes to the roster. But the veteran feels ready.
“I just try to treat every week like I’m the starter, and I just kind of mentally prepare that way so that if it does happen, the transition’s relatively easy,” Mariota said Wednesday. “So, for me, nothing’s specifically changed. I think we got a great group of guys that just are rallying around and supporting one another. It’s never easy when your starting quarterback goes out, you know? Everyone has to kind of lift up their game. Guys are really believing in each other, and that’s what counts.”
As the Commanders (0-2) continue to evaluate Daniels, here are some other factors to watch in their Week 3 matchup with the Super Bowl champion Seahawks (2-0).
Seattle quarterback Sam Darnold returned to practice Wednesday, but he’s still nursing the glute injury that sidelined him last week. Seahawks Coach Mike Macdonald said Darnold is “on a good track” to play Sunday. Even if he sits out again, Seattle has shown that its passing offense remains a threat.
Backup Drew Lock has completed 72.9 percent of his passes this season for 422 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions. Last week, he helped wide receiver Jaxon Smith-Njigba put together a monster stat line: nine catches for 155 yards and three touchdowns. Smith-Njigba will be due for another big performance if Washington’s pass defense continues to play poorly.
The Commanders’ pass rush has been solid. They’ve pressured opposing quarterbacks on 39.1 percent of their dropbacks (11th in the NFL), according to the stats site NFL Pro. Despite that, Washington’s pass defense has been an issue. The Commanders have allowed opponents to complete 71.4 percent of their passes (27th) while giving up 8.6 yards per attempt (28th).
That makes it clear that the issue has been the Commanders’ secondary. Cornerbacks Mike Sainristil and Rasul Douglas have been unreliable in coverage while the safeties haven’t been able to help limit explosive plays downfield.
Quinn said he feels good about defensive coordinator Daronte Jones’s scheme, but he doesn’t believe the communication among the secondary has been up to par. Jones echoed that sentiment when speaking to reporters Thursday.
“That urgency within the communication,” Jones said. “It was more so, ‘Hey, what are we doing? What’s the call? Where am I? Am I up? Am I down?’ Player-to-player communication. And also, I can be better with that, kind of helping them out in terms of limiting the access of the communication.”
Jones said the staff has simplified some calls to make it easier for players to execute. The goal is to be “more definitive” with the aim for a specific call.
“Rather than giving the guys three options, it’s, ‘Hey, it’s either this or that,’” Jones said. “That’s where schematically we can help with that.”
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Of course, improving communication isn’t enough. Washington’s defensive backs also must be capable of bringing the call to life. Smith-Njigba is effective whether he’s lined up outside or inside, which allows Seattle to move him around to exploit mismatches. More consistent communication will help mitigate that, and the Commanders can also double-team Smith-Njigba. But he’ll still hurt them if their defensive backs don’t step up their play.
Washington has only allowed one sack, but it’s given up a pressure rate of 42.5 percent (29th). That’s made it difficult for the passing offense to get in sync. The Commanders have completed just 59.4 percent of their passes (26th) and are averaging 5.4 yards per attempt (30th).
There are other factors — wide receiver Terry McLaurin’s involvement has been inconsistent, for example — but it’s still been a collective struggle for the offensive line.
Right guard Sam Cosmi had been the lone standout, but he suffered a concussion against the Cowboys and may not be able to play Sunday. The Seahawks’ pass rush hasn’t been anything special through two games, but it’s easy to see it creating problems against the Commanders’ compromised offensive line.
On the surface, it appears the Commanders have been great at running the football. They’re averaging 157 rushing yards per game (third) and 4.9 yards per rush (seventh). When taking a closer look, however, Daniels’s running ability inflates those numbers.
Daniels has rushed for 100 yards and is averaging 8.3 yards per carry. Excluding carries from non-running backs, the Commanders’ rushing average drops to 4.1 yards per carry (14th). That’s solid but not exceptional.
While Mariota is also a mobile quarterback, he’s not as fast or athletic as Daniels and won’t be as big of a threat on the ground. That means Washington will need more from its offensive line and running backs.
Thus far, Rachaad White has been the most effective runner in the backfield. He’s only had 14 carries, but he’s averaging 4.6 yards per attempt. Although Kaytron Allen has only run the ball nine times, he’s next in line at 4.4 yards per carry. Jacory Croskey-Merritt leads the room with 28 carries, but he’s averaging just 3.8 yards. Unless Croskey-Merritt becomes more efficient, he’ll see more of his snaps go to White and Allen.
On first and second downs, the Commanders are averaging just 4.7 yards per play (25th) according to the analytics company TruMedia. Of their 29 third-down attempts, 14 have been third and seven or longer (tied for seventh most in the NFL). Those are obvious passing downs, which puts far more stress on the offensive line.
Washington simply doesn’t have the personnel to consistently find success in those situations. Particularly against the Seahawks, they’ll struggle if they can’t avoid facing so many third and longs.
“We got to bow up, man. We got to give them a good protection plan,” Blough said. “Whether it’s effectively running the football to stay out of known pass downs or keepers and getting Marcus on the move, all those different things, we’ll certainly try to utilize our skill set to the best of our ability.”
Defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw (shoulder) returned to practice Thursday. Left tackle Brandon Coleman (finger) practiced Wednesday in a limited capacity after getting knocked out of the loss to the Cowboys. Barring a setback, he’ll start Sunday.
Safety Nick Cross (internal injury) has been ruled out against the Seahawks. Quinn wouldn’t elaborate on the nature of Cross’s injury, but it required him to be hospitalized Sunday.
Cosmi remains in concussion protocol and didn’t practice Wednesday and Thursday. Tight end Chig Okonkwo (hamstring) and linebacker Frankie Luvu (groin) also didn’t practice Wednesday and Thursday.
I recently started hosting a weekly Commanders podcast called “The Tashan Reed Show,” featuring news, analysis and commentary. In the latest episode, I broke down the ramifications of Daniels’s injury and previewed the matchup with the Seahawks. You can watch on Substack or listen on Apple and Spotify.
Read more Jayden Daniels considered week-to-week after Commanders rule out elbow surgery
