Jaylin

Lane

With Terry McLaurin back, Lane won’t be more than a non-gimmick factor against the Broncos. He can be sent to waivers in all but the deepest leagues, as even when McLaurin was out he wasn’t making much of an impact.

In addition to Terry McLaurin, Noah Brown and Treylon Burks were also limited today. It’s tough to say which depth options will suit up this week. With Marcus Mariota expected to make another start, it’s a situation fantasy managers don’t need to get bogged down by. Deebo Samuel is the only game in town until McLaurin returns. Zach Ertz is also in the mix as a volume-based TE1.

Lane was listed as questionable to return after taking a hard hit on his only catch of the day. His absence nearly proved fatal late in the game when backup punt returner Mike Sainristil muffed a punt in the fourth quarter. Miami recovered it and made its way to the one-yard line on the ensuing drive. Washington mounted a goal line stand and the game made its way to overtime. Lane hasn’t done much on offense as a rookie but has been an elite punt returner. Losing him would be a notable blow to Washington’s special teams unit.

Burks astonishingly led the Commanders in receiving yards this week. His performance was highlighted by hauling in a deep, contested catch along the left sideline for 38 yards. Across two 2025 appearances, he has now caught 4-of-4 targets for 75 yards. Boasting tight end-esque size and athleticism, Burks is sauntering toward waiver wire consideration. Burks notably out-snapped Commanders rookie WR Jaylin Lane 21-15. Lane caught 1-of-1 targets for 41 yards. The Commanders face the Dolphins in Week 11.

He was second amongst Commanders wideouts with 46 snaps, but the Cowboys simply begged someone on the Commanders to actually be worth respecting against man coverage today and nobody stepped up. Lane has no path to FLEX viability if he’s going to give us this little against Dallas’ pass defense, and that means he’s probably a year away from being a real fantasy football factor.

It was an end-zone drop, at least. Moore started and finished second on the team in snaps among wideouts with 35 — well ahead of rookie Jaylin Lane’s 20. Neither player looks fantasy-viable at this point. Frankly, the fact that the Commanders are starting someone who was a foundation piece for the 2021 Texans is a little disturbing. Get well soon, Terry McLaurin.

For the second straight week, a Commanders beat reporter declared an injured player had returned to practice after seeing them trot out to a side field for individual work with the training staff. In this case, it was Samuel. Unfortunately, this does not constitute a return to practice. The Commanders’ No. 2 wide receiver remains sidelined. Nos. 1 and 3 WRs, Terry McLaurin (quad) and Noah Brown (groin/knee), have been ruled out, leaving slot receiver Jaylin Lane and No. 4 WR Luke McCaffrey with a path to potential FLEX-relevance.

ESPN’s Dan Graziano reported yesterday that McLaurin “could need another week or two” before returning. He was right. The Commanders’ receiving corps is in rough shape. No. 2 WR Deebo Samuel (heel) failed to practice on Wednesday and Thursday and No. 3 WR Noah Brown (groin/knee) has been ruled out. Youngsters, WR Jaylin Lane and WR Luke McCaffrey, could creep into FLEX territory before kickoff.

Graziano adds that “the Commanders will know more as the practice week goes along.” Fantasy managers should prepare for McLaurin to sit out in Week 5, if not Week 6. The Commanders are handling this injury with patience, which is an overall good sign for McLaurin’s availability down the stretch. The coaching staff reportedly plans to continue using rookie WR Jaylin Lane in the slot and WR Deebo Samuel out wide while McLaurin is out. Samuel is expected to revert to frequent slot usage once the receiving corps returns to full health, but Lane is at least getting the opportunity to make his mark.

Brown and John Bates (groin) were both ruled out without a practice session this week. No stranger to an IR stint, it would not be surprising if that was in Brown’s future this weekend. Rookie fourth-rounder Jaylin Lane quietly assumed 36 snaps in Week 2 and would be the deeper-league option in Brown’s absence.