Jayden Daniels is the Commanders’ starting quarterback for the foreseeable future.
Who takes snaps behind him became an open question after backup Marcus Mariota was diagnosed with a sprained MCL, the team confirmed Sunday.
Mariota, 32, suffered the injury during Friday’s preseason opener against the Miami Dolphins. MCL sprains typically sideline NFL players for about a month, which would require the veteran signal-caller to miss the remainder of the preseason.
“[We’re] optimistic that he’ll be ready for the start of the regular season,” Quinn said on Sunday.
Mariota left the exhibition after just four snaps. The 2014 Heisman Trophy winner was not hit on the final play — a handoff to rookie running back Kaytron Allen. But after the snap, he immediately sat down on the field and was escorted to the locker room by athletic trainers.
Third-year passer Sam Hartman, 27, took the field after Mariota. He struggled, as he has throughout his brief NFL career. The Notre Dame product completed eight of his 15 passes for 80 yards and an interception. A second would-be interception by Hartman was dropped by Dolphins rookie cornerback Chris Johnson.
Seventh-round rookie Athan Kaliakmanis took over for Hartman in the third quarter. The 22-year-old from Rutgers threw for 87 yards while completing 60% of his passes without any turnovers or interceptions.
Through training camp, Kaliakmanis has outperformed Hartman in the battle to become Washington’s third quarterback. Friday’s solid, if unflashy, performance only boosted that case.
“One thing I learned is that it’s never as good as you think it is, and it’s never as bad as you think it is. It’s always staying level-minded, going back and watching the tape,” Kaliakamanis said on Friday night. “All I’m thinking about now is my bad plays right now. … I can’t wait for next week.”
It’s unclear if either of them has shown enough to make the 53-man roster before the regular-season opener. The final two preseason games — and the intervening training camp practices — will serve as a proving ground.
“It allowed more reps over the next couple of weeks with Sam and Athan in that spot,” Quinn said.
The first-team practice snaps still belong to Daniels. The quarterback and his coach have said the signal-caller has been “locked in” throughout training camp as he masters the new playbook authored by first-year coordinator David Blough.
“Man, is he throwing a great camp,” Quinn said. “For him, the things that I see are just quintessential Jayden in terms of the camp, what it looks like and where he’s at.”
Daniels sat out the preseason opener. He’ll likely see limited playing time next weekend before sitting out the final exhibition, as is customary for most NFL starters.
The bulk of Saturday’s game against the Detroit Lions and the Aug. 28 exhibition with the Baltimore Ravens will instead feature Kaliakmanis and Hartman.
Quinn and general manager Adam Peters could still sign a more seasoned passer to serve as Daniels’ primary backup until Mariota returns. In 2024, journeyman Jeff Driskel worked as Washington’s third quarterback in front of Hartman. Josh Johnson, who signed with the Cincinnati Bengals this offseason, served in that role last year and started two games for the Commanders.
Washington did not add to the quarterback competition over the weekend. Quinn mentioned that the team had no plans to change that approach in the coming weeks.
“We don’t anticipate anybody else coming in,” he said.
There are options available if more injuries strike, though.
Driskel is currently a free agent. Other unsigned quarterbacks include John Wolford, who started three games for the Los Angeles Rams in 2022, and Jimmy Garoppolo, the former starter for the San Francisco 49ers, who spent the last two seasons as Matthew Stafford’s understudy with the Rams.
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