Commanders rule out Marcus Mariota (knee) Week 5

Mariota will miss his second straight contest and third of the season when the Commanders face the 49ers on Monday Night Football. Athan Kaliakmanis will continue to serve as the primary backup.

Mariota is dealing with an MCL sprain. He went down early in Week 4 and did not return. Luckily for the Commanders, Jayden Daniels appears ready to return to the lineup. Barring a setback, he will start in Week 5 against the Giants. Athan Kaliakmanis will serve as his backup.

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.

Marcus Mariota suffered a knee injury at the end of the Commanders’ second drive. He was later ruled out for the rest of the game, resulting in Kaliakmanis’ first NFL action. He tried to chuck it deep like Mariota has done so far, but the results weren’t nearly as pretty. He averaged 5.3 yards per attempt and completed 45.5 percent of his passes. Kaliakmanis did find Treylon Burks for a 47-yard bomb in the third quarter, so it wasn’t all bad. Mariota is likely out next week, but Jayden Daniels has a good shot at returning. Assuming he does, Kaliakmanis will return to backup duties versus the Giants.

Per head coach Dan Quinn, Mariota re-injured the MCL in his right knee. He initially suffered the MCL injury during the preseason. The fact that he suffered a setback almost two months after the initial injury suggests this could be a long-term absence. It will be seventh-round rookie Athan Kaliakmanis for the rest of this game. The hope is that Jayden Daniels will be back for Week 5.

Colts EDGE Laiatu Latu landed on Mariota’s right ankle while taking him down for a sack in the first quarter. Mariota was slow to get up and immediately made his way to the blue tent. He walked to the locker room after a brief stay in the tent. Seventh-round rookie Athan Kaliakmanis is under center for the Commanders.

Jayden Daniels felt like a long shot to play despite traveling with the team to London and logging back-to-back limited practices to start the week. Now, Quinn has confirmed that Mariota will get at least one more start before Daniels possibly returns in Week 5 to face the Giants. Mariota led the Commanders to an upset win over the Seahawks in Week 3, throwing for 183 yards and three touchdowns, and now faces a Colts defense that was torched in Weeks 1 and 2 by Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes. While we shouldn’t expect Mariota to put up numbers like Jackson and Mahomes, he will be firmly on the streaming radar in 2QB/Superflex leagues.

Daniels was limited in practice on Wednesday and was on the practice field again today, presumably for another limited session. He isn’t expected to play this week, but any amount of practice this soon is a good sign. He told reporters he won’t make a final decision on surgery until after the season. He is, however, at least holding off until the offseason. Marcus Mariota will almost certainly start again this week. Daniels will then have a chance to return in Week 5 against the Giants.

It looks like Daniels will log some practice time ahead of the Commanders’ Week 4 London matchup against the Colts, less than two weeks after suffering yet another elbow injury. ESPN’s Adam Schefter said Tuesday that Daniels will likely require surgery on the elbow after the season. That raises questions about whether he can return and play as he usually does in the coming months. For now it looks like Marcus Mariota will get a second straight start for Washington. He’ll be usable in superflex formats against a middling Colts coverage unit.

Just like we all predicted. Mariota was mostly dinking and dunking — particularly in the first half — but he was able to make plays in the red zone, and found Terry McLaurin for a 30-yard touchdown in the second quarter. There wasn’t much scrambling — the Seahawks simply didn’t pressure him that often. He did briefly leave the field with what appeared to be a leg issue, but he was able to return without missing a snap. Mariota will try and back this up against the Colts in Week 4, with that game taking place in London.