Quarterback Marcus Mariota is preparing to start for the Commanders on Sunday with Jayden Daniels unavailable for Wednesday’s practice.
Daniels threw on the field early Wednesday morning, but coach Dan Quinn said there is a return-to-play checklist he must work through before he’s in the conversation about starting against the Las Vegas Raiders on Sunday.
“He won’t practice today. As we get into Friday, I’ll give you a sense of where we’re at,” Quinn said. “We recognize the importance of the person, the player, what he means to the franchise. We’re also going to be smart, not just fast, in the assessment.
“We’ve talked a little bit about returning to play, but there are position-specific skills for each one.”
Quinn said the Commanders are being cautious with Daniels’ knee because he wants to do “everything all the time.” Quinn said Daniels would need to get back on the field in a team setting — meaning complete one practice — before he’s comfortable playing him Sunday.
Quinn said he would expect Mariota to deliver at the standard he’s set with the franchise as an “elite player and leader.”
The Commanders are comfortable asking Mariota, 31, to make his 75th career regular-season NFL start and first since 2022 with the Falcons. He played in three games for the Commanders last season in relief of Daniels, completing 77.3 percent of his passes for 364 yards with four touchdowns and zero interceptions.
“My routine stays the same,” said Mariota, who is in his second season with Washington. “It just kind of creates that normal procedure for me, and it allows me just to go out there and play and not have to worry about, OK, I got to do this extra, I got to do that. I just kind (of) stick to my process and allow that process to work.”
Mariota prepared to start in place of Daniels in Week 8 of last season, but Daniels (ribs) recovered in time to play. So he’s well aware that Daniels might again be ready by kickoff.
“It comes down to, if you feel like you can do what you normally do, then go ahead,” Mariota said of Daniels. “I’ve been in situations like this where you try to fight through it and maybe you’re not playing like yourself and it is hard. You want to be out there for your team and tough it out. We understand Jayden is going to do everything in his power to play.
“We always tell him, just be you, and if you feel through the course of the week you get back to that point, great. We’ll support you to be ready to roll. If you need a week, that’s OK, I’ll be ready to go, too.”
Daniels appeared to be limping near the end of Washington’s 27-18 loss at Green Bay last Thursday. Despite the ailment, he played the entire game, completing 24 of 42 passes for 200 yards and two touchdowns while being sacked four times.
Daniels, 24, was the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year last season after he was selected second overall by the Commanders. Counting the postseason, he started all 20 games, completing 68.4 percent of his passes for 4,390 yards, 30 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while leading his team to the NFC Championship Game.
In two games this season, Daniels connected on 59.7 percent of his passes for 433 yards and three TDs with no interceptions as the Commanders have gone 1-1.
