The Washington Commanders are 1-3 the high from a win over last season’s Super Bowl winners quickly faded when Marcus Mariota went down with a knee injury that ended his London game in the 1st quarter. One step forward, and two steps back for a Commanders team that continues to deal with a high number of injuries. Mariota is expected to miss time after reinjuring his MCL and Jaylin Lane is done for the year after a serious injury. The hope lies in the returns of Jayden Daniels, Terry McLaurin, and Sam
Cosmi this week. A much needed injection of starters back into the offense’s starting lineup.
Seventh-round rookie Athan Kaliakmanis made his debut last week after Mariota’s injury, and became the first rookie to throw his first NFL touchdown in an international game. Tress Way will love that little piece of NFL trivia, but if all goes to plan, Jayden Daniels returns this week, and Kaliakmanis doesn’t play another snap this season unless its for kneel down duty in a blowout win. Plans don’t always work out, and the Commanders are currently a bottom of the league team clinging to hope for a miracle run after a rough start to the season.
The NFL Power Rankings consortium doesn’t see that hopeful scenario happening, and has them averaging out as a bottom 8 team in the league. They don’t have a lot of time to change that perception because another loss puts their odds of climbing out of this hole off the board. The Commanders return home for their third division game in the first five weeks off the season. They are 0-2, and face the improbable division leaders, the New York Giants. Win this week and on the road against the 49ers and they’re 3-3 heading into the bye. Lose the next two weeks, and the calls for Dan Quinn’s job might actually reach majority owner Josh Harris’s desk.
The outlook on the season has dramatically increased for a lot of fans, but one win is only one win, and there are 14 more games in the season. Next up is an international matchup against the Indianapolis Colts in London. This is a “home” game for the Commanders, and they are underdogs for the fourth week in a row. This game will be critical for the Commanders’ season with a home game against the Giants and a road game against the 49ers coming up before the Week 7 bye.
Washington ranks as high as #19 from Pro Football Network based on Marcus Mariota’s performance against the NFL’s best defense, and three turnovers from the defense. Walter Football was not impressed with the upset win and brings down the Commanders’ average.
High: 20
Low: 28
Average: 25.4
#20
NFL Trade Rumors (Woodie)
You have to feel for Marcus Mariota. The Commanders offense was humming early with Mariota at the helm, although they failed to score a touchdown in two redzone trips. Then he sprained his MCL on a sack and the wheels fell off. Seventh-round rookie Athan Kaliakmanis had a couple of very impressive throws and big plays, but ultimately Washington was just outmatched without Mariota. The good news is that starting QB Jayden Daniels is hopeful to play in Week 5 after dislocating his elbow in Week 2. Last week: 20
Walter Football
The poor Redskins had to go to Athan Kaliakmanis in London. The good news is that Jayden Daniels will be back this week, which is why Washington has risen so much. The bad news is that this means that Daniels is bound to get hurt again soon, too. Last week: 29
#22
Fox Sports (Vacchiano)
Jayden Daniels’ return can’t come soon enough after the Commanders were stuck relying on third-string QB Athan Kaliakmanis for most of Sunday morning in London.
The Greek Rifle had a moment or two, but not enough to convince anyone he can help the Commanders win. If Daniels does return Sunday against the Giants, there might be time to salvage this season. If not, it’s time to start preparing for the draft, and maybe a coaching search, too.
Stat To Know: The Commanders have allowed 122 points through four weeks, tied for the second most in the entire NFL. Last week: 24
#23
SB Nation
As for the Commanders, this is some course correction. We were bullish on Washington returning to form in 2026, but there’s been nothing to indicate they’re worthy of faith. Moreover, the team is getting worse as time goes on, struggling more against worse opponents — and the injury bug is creeping in. It’s a shame, but this is shaping up to be another lost season for the team. Last week: 17
#24
USA Today (Davis)
Rookie Athan Kaliakmanis became the first NFL quarterback to throw his first career TD pass in an international game. Cool. But this team can’t get Jayden Daniels back fast enough. Last week: 20
Sporting News (Iyer)
The Commanders are having trouble keeping key offensive players such as Jayden Daniels, Terry McLaurin, Laremy Tunsil and Rachaad White healthy. Then they also lost Marcus Mariota to a knee injury, forcing rookie Athan Kaliakmanis into action. Daniels may not be ready to return from his elbow injury in Week 5, either. They have a shot at the Giants next to try to stay in the NFC East race early. Last week: 20
#25
Yahoo Sports (Schwab)
Maybe if Marcus Mariota hadn’t gotten injured, the Commanders might have won and been a promising 2-2. They were about to take an early 6-0 lead on the Colts early in the game when Mariota sprained MCL in his right knee. The Commanders’ defense played pretty well but Washington’s offense couldn’t do much with rookie Athan Kaliakmanis in for Mariota and an inactive Jayden Daniels. And 1-3 is a tough hole to dig out of.
With Mariota hurt and the Commanders in danger of having their season slip away further, there has to be tremendous urgency for Daniels to return from a dislocated left elbow.
“That’s the hope for us for sure, Jay coming back,” Commanders coach Dan Quinn said. “He’ll have a full week of practice Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. That’s the goal: that he could get into that space.” Last week: 21
Bleacher Report
The Washington Commanders are in real danger of having their season slip away because of injuries for the second straight season. They managed to beat the defending champion Seattle Seahawks with Marcus Mariota at quarterback in Week 3, but they lost Mariota to a knee injury in London on Sunday.
Rookie quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis had a few bright moments against the Indianapolis Colts, but he made his fair share of rookie mistakes, too. Washington’s defense showed some signs of progress against Indy, too, but it couldn’t stop the ground game late, and the Commanders now sit at 1-3.
Next week’s matchup with the rival New York Giants has become a veritable must-win. Last week: 24
Clutch Sports (Johrendt)
With Jayden Daniels already out, the Washington Commanders lost Marcus Mariota to a first-half injury, forcing them to hand over the keys to Athan Kaliakmanis. The former Rutgers QB found Treylon Burks for a long touchdown, but the WAS offense struggled when Mariota was forced out. It remains to be seen which QB will be Washington’s starter in Week 5. Last week: 23
The Score
Amik Robertson: With the Commanders still waiting for Odafe Oweh and K’Lavon Chaisson to heat up on the edges, Robertson has arguably emerged as the team’s top defensive performer. He’s tied for the league lead with seven pass breakups and ranks among the best in separation allowed. Last week: 20
New York Post (Dunleavy)
Last week: 23
#26
The Athletic (Graff/Kendall)
Concern level: High as Jayden Daniels nears a return
It seems their exciting young quarterback is going to opt against surgery on his elbow, which both breathes hope into this frustrating season and brings a fair amount of risk over the possibility of reinjury. Concern will be high as he returns to the field, possibly as early as next weekend. Last week: 23
Sports Illustrated (Orr)
I enjoy reading updates about Commanders third-string quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis from the perspective of a Greek news outlet. While the return of Jayden Daniels will ultimately deprive us of a Greek Tommy DeVito-like run, we can always hope in silence. Last week: 26
Sharp Football Analysis (Summerlin)
The Commanders continue to have rough injury luck, this time losing Marcus Mariota in the first half against the Colts. Jayden Daniels, Terry McLaurin, Sam Cosmi, and Rachaad White were inactive, and Laremy Tunsil is on injured reserve. Washington could get some of those players back for the Giants this week, but it has been a rough start to a pivotal season. Last week: 25
Pro Football Network (Infante)
The week-after hangover from defeating the Seahawks in Week 3 certainly showed with the Washington Commanders in Week 4. They were utterly dominated by the Colts in a 30-13 defeat in England on Sunday. Even worse, Marcus Mariota went down with a knee injury, leaving Washington down to its third-string quarterback, Athan Kaliakmanis.
It was a questionably called game by the Commanders, and the NFL world let Dan Quinn have it on Sunday. In particular, Washington’s decision to go for it on 4th-and-1, only to hand the ball off for a failed conversion, resulted in the Colts getting into favorable field position and scoring. The rest of the game, the Commanders had to play catch-up. Last week: 19
Pro Football Talk
It’s getting late early for the Commanders and coach Dan Quinn. Last week: 23
Essentially Sports (Hubbard)
London games can be a bit weird, but this was still an ugly loss to Washington. Marcus Mariota went down – they could get Jayden Daniels back this week so it might not matter – and they just looked bad defensively. Another disappointing season is loading in the nation’s capital. Last week: 19
Team Rankings
Last week: 20
Kalshi
Last week: 24
#27
ESPN
Four words to describe the first four weeks: Can’t ever stay healthy.
Injuries, once again, are the major storyline as Washington’s starters have missed a combined 20 games. More specifically, premium positions have taken a hit. The Commanders lost left tackle Laremy Tunsil (triceps) in camp; QB Jayden Daniels (elbow) has missed two games; top cornerback Trey Amos (ankle) remains on IR; receiver Terry McLaurin injured a hamstring during a light practice Friday; backup QB Marcus Mariota hurt his right knee in the first quarter Sunday. Washington has made personnel mistakes along the offensive line and secondary, and like last season (5-12), injuries have been a major issue. — John Keim Last week: 26
Windy City Gridiron (Leming)
Biggest area of concern: Health at quarterback after injuries to their Top 2 quarterbacks on the depth chart.
We’ll know later in the week whether Jayden Daniels can/will start on Sunday. That said, he has dislocated the same elbow twice, and now with Marcus Mariota in the mix, there’s a lot of danger for this group. A 1-3 start is bad enough; couple that with the potential of having to start a seventh-round quarterback for more games, and it gets even uglier. Last week: 26
Arrowhead Pride
I’d be very nervous to see Jaylen Daniels back on the field so soon if I were a Commanders fan. It’s just not possible for that elbow to be fully right. Last week: 27
The Big Lead (Giangrande)
Jayden Daniels may return this week for the Commanders, and not a moment too soon, with Marcus Mariota going down last week in London. At 1-3, they face a must-win game at home against the first-place Giants. The Giants certainly aren’t world beaters at this point and could lose a divisional road game, and since no team ever seems to run away in the NFC East, expect a rousing victory by the Commanders. If they start 1-4, expect rumblings to start to swirl around HC Dan Quinn. Last week: 25
NFL Spin Zone (Scataglia)
It’s never a good thing when your QB1 and QB2 are hurt. Washington had to turn to third-string QB Athan Kaliakmanis in Week 4. He finished with 186 yards, one touchdown, and one interception on 15/33 passing.
Washington is in a bad spot. They’re now 1-3 on the season but at least could get Jayden Daniels back soon. The thing with the Commanders, though, is that this team doesn’t scare you much of anywhere, and the starting QB has now been hurt quite a bit since the 2025 season.
Despite this current regime only being in year three, you have a feeling that, outside of a major season turnaround, some changes could come. The Commanders’ roster is average, at best, and the QB can’t seem to stay on the field consistently.
This franchise could have something special in Daniels, but he simply needs to stay on the field. Without a solid infrastructure around him, though, health is always going to come into question. Anyway, the Commanders got blown out in London in Week 4 and are close to spiraling if you ask me.
Fansided (La Canfora)
The good news is that Jayden Daniels should be back soon. The bad news is that Marcus Mariota is out now, Daniels’s ability to stay healthy is in question and this team doesn’t seem capable of stringing much together, does it? Last week: 24
#28
NFL.com (Shook)
Things went from bad to worse for Washington when Marcus Mariota exited Sunday’s game overseas, leaving the Commanders with rookie third-stringer Athan Kaliakmanis as their last hope. The ensuing results didn’t surprise anyone, but I’d like to give Washington’s defense credit for continuing to exceed expectations, even after giving up 30 points. This team’s better than that number suggests; hopefully its starting quarterback can return soon. Last week: 21
CBS Sports (Prisco)
They better hope Jayden Daniels can play this week with that elbow brace. Or they might be forced to start rookie Athan Kaliakmanis against the Giants. Last week: 28
Cowboys Wire (Drummond)
Last week: 25
Where should the Commanders be ranked? Let us know in the comments.
#18
Stadium Rant (North)
The Washington Commanders defeated the Seahawks with backup QB Marcus Mariota starting. Their first win of the season bumps them up to 1-2 in 2026. Last week: 18
#20
Big Blue View (Falato)
Washington pulled off one of the season’s more impressive wins, defeating the Super Bowl champions 33-31 at home. Perhaps it was Sam Darnold jitters, or the dreaded one-o-clock start for a West Coast team — I’m not sure — but it does seem like Washington’s defense has improved, and Marcus Mariota did enough against Mike Macdonald’s talented defense Last week: 20
#22
FTN Fantasy (Kelley)
Credit to Marcus Mariota, who has looked ready in relief of Jayden Daniels several times now the last three years. Last week: 22
#26
Bleeding Green Nation
The Commanders are the first team to two division losses. With Jayden Daniels injured and a game against the Seahawks up next, they’re staring an 0-3 start in the face. Dan Quinn’s seat is getting very warm very fast. Last week: 26
#27
Pro Football Focus (Locker)
The Commanders’ 2026 season is starting to eerily mirror 2025, with another elbow dislocation for Jayden Daniels (77.0 overall PFF grade) and a lackluster defense clouding the year-long outlook. Other worries for Washington are a stagnant rushing game and the efficacy of Terry McLaurin (48.1 PFF receiving grade). Unless Marcus Mariota performs at a very high level, this year is shaping up to be another arduous one for the Commanders — which could mean a change from Dan Quinn at head coach. Last week: 27
