Garafolo: Jayden Daniels expected to start Week 5

Shipley mentions the Commanders and Rams as wideout-desperate teams who might be interested in trading for Thomas before the NFL’s trade deadline. The Jaguars have apparently soured on the one-time burgeoning star in recent weeks; against the Texans in Week 6, Thomas ran a pass route on just 28 percent of the Jags’ drop backs and saw two targets. The Commanders, meanwhile, lost Terry McLaurin to a potentially long-term knee injury on Monday night. Thomas, per Shipley, “is not a trade that would make a ton of sense for a Commanders team that might be losing a ton of games and needs their picks to rebuild ... but it would make sense for a general manager who needs to keep his job to give his quarterback a familiar and talented target. Daniels was Thomas’ quarterback during their final seasons at LSU, and the connection between the two could go a long-way toward solving some of Washington’s long-term issues at the wide receiver position.” BTJ’s fantasy prospects would get a big boost if he were to land in Washington in the coming weeks.

The Commanders gained just 90 yards of total offense and ran just 17 offensive plays in the first half, taking a 20-3 deficit into the break. Two quick touchdown drives to end the third quarter and begin the fourth quarter had the team in position to pull off an improbable comeback but two critical errors from Daniels sank that effort. The first error occurred on fourth down in the red zone with just over two minutes to play, when the team was late to break the huddle and ended up taking their first timeout down by six. They would fail to convert but would get the ball back with no timeouts and 52 seconds left. Daniels then committed an intentional grounding penalty from the San Francisco 28 with 16 seconds left, which incurred a loss of down and a 10-second runoff on the clock. The game would end on the following play. That now makes consecutive contests with late-game clock mismanagement that cost the Commanders potential wins. Rumors continue to swirl about a potential coaching change as the Commanders limp into their bye at a 1-4-1 record.

Daniels turned in one of the best games of his career on the ground on Sunday against the Giants. Daniels broke off an uncontested 38-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to put the Commanders up 19-6, and later broke free for a 26-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to again extend the Commanders’ lead. Both runs came on scrambles where the Giants seemingly forgot Daniels was a threat to run at any moment, and Daniels made the most of his opportunities. With the Commanders in range for a game-winning field goal late in overtime, Daniels inexplicably took a sack with no timeouts left on what appeared to be an attempt to center the ball in time for the game-winning try. We’ll likely get an explanation from both Daniels and head coach Dan Quinn on that final play, but Washington snatched defeat from the jaws of victory to move to 1-3-1 on the season. Despite the late-game gaffe, Daniels looked on-point for most of the afternoon, but struggled at times against the blitz, as the Giants brought pressure in several key spots to force Daniels to get the ball out quick or throw it away. Daniels looked like the elite dual threat fantasy managers want to see, and will be firmly in the QB1 ranks in next week’s game against the 49ers.

Schefter immediately added the caveat that the “overwhelming opinion” among doctors was that playing with a brace was a viable option. Daniels reportedly contemplated surgery after dislocating his elbow for the second time in less than a year. He opted against it and missed two games. Daniels is now set to return for Week 5 against the Giants. The Commanders could scale back his rushing for the time being, but OC David Blough already dismissed the idea that the playbook would be limited because of Daniels’ elbow injury.

Rapoport, typically cheery on the injury front, said that there are still “a lot of questions, going forward, for Jayden Daniels.” The bottom line is that Daniels is still rehabbing the elbow in his non-throwing arm. He should be able to throw and run effectively, putting him squarely in the QB1 tier, but re-injury risk remains a factor.

Daniels appeared to be close to playing in Week 4 against the Colts before ultimately being ruled out. His being upgraded to a full participant in Thursday’s practice suggested he was a virtual lock to start in Week 5, barring any unexpected setbacks. Daniels will wear a brace on his left arm for the rest of the season in hopes of avoiding a three-peat of his dislocated elbow. Daniels will be without Stefon Diggs (hamstring) for Sunday’s game, and rainy/windy conditions are currently in the forecast. We’ll conservatively project him as a mid-to-low-end QB1 in what could be less-than-ideal conditions on Sunday.

Daniels is practicing in full and is expected to return to the lineup this week. He has suffered the same elbow dislocation twice in the past year, but his game-changing running ability is a big part of what makes Daniels a potential superstar quarterback. Blough might be more tactile with how he calls quarterback runs, but they will still be in the playbook this week. Daniels will be a low-end QB1 once he is officially cleared to play.

NFL Network’s Mike Garafolo already reported that Daniels is expected to play in Week 5 and a full practice to open the week all but confirms his update. With Marcus Mariota also banged up, seventh-round rookie Athan Kaliakmanis would have been the next man up. He will back Daniels up as long as the latter doesn’t suffer any setbacks. The Commanders will likely dial back the designed runs for their franchise quarterback, but fantasy managers have to start him as a low-end QB1 as long as he’s on the field.

The Commanders were forced to go to rookie seventh-rounder Athan Kaliakmanis after Mariota went down in yesterday’s game. Mariota sprained the MCL in the same knee during the preseason, and it would be surprising if Mariota was cleared in time for Week 5’s game against the Giants. If he’s unable to play, Kaliakmanis could make his first career start if Jayden Daniels (elbows) isn’t ready to return. Daniels traveled with the team to London for last week’s game and was limited in all three practices. He seemed close to playing against the Colts, and with the Commanders sitting at 1-3 and their season potentially on the line, it wouldn’t be surprising if he did suit up in a pivotal divisional matchup against the Giants.

Daniels practiced in a limited capacity this week, but will ultimately sit out the Week 4 matchup against the Colts. According to Jones, sources in Washington believe Daniels could return in Week 5 against the Giants if he gets in a full week of practice this week. While Daniels is going to play through the same elbow injury he had last year, offseason surgery hasn’t been ruled out. Marcus Mariota will continue to start under center for the Commanders in Daniels’ absence.