“Next man up” is a common refrain in locker rooms across the NFL. The Washington Commanders are leaning hard on that mantra not even a quarter of the way into the season.
“I think that’s the big lesson, knowing that every person here is — the phrase of the day: all hands on deck,” coach Dan Quinn said. “It doesn’t mean every person has to do everything, but it does mean this is your job. Got to be ready to deliver when called upon.”
Another mantra this week will be “embrace the brace.”
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That’s the phrase quarterback Jayden Daniels used after practicing Wednesday while wearing a brace on his injured, non-throwing left elbow.
“I mean, just trying to get used to it. Like I said, it’s kind of a part of me now for the time being while I’m on that field, so just getting used to it. Trying to find the different ways where it’s most comfortable, and I’m not really just thinking about it, just out there playing,” Daniels said.
Daniels didn’t appear any worse for wear, with the rigid-looking brace not appearing to impact his normal motion, but Quinn said at the beginning of the week he needed to see his No. 1 quarterback go though multiple full practices before making a determination on his status for Sunday.
“I’m just gonna go out there and embrace it, embrace the brace, not really worry too much about it, and go out there and just be the best version of myself.”
Quinn noted they’re trying to be more instructive to Daniels on ways to protect the elbow — injured now for the second-straight season — including how he carries it when moving out of the pocket.
“The best way I explained it to him … think of like a running back who clasps the ball, rolling to the ground. So I thought of him as that player, and that’s the way we explained it,” Quinn said. “It’s definitely something we talk about. We’re going to practice it, and this is him moving forward.”
Daniels cast a bit of doubt if that would be effective.
“You can talk about different ways of protecting myself, but I don’t get hit in practice,” he said, “so I wouldn’t know if it’s helpful.”
If Daniels doesn’t go on Sunday, backup QB Marcus Mariota will be unavailable. He avoided going on injured reserve and will continue working off to the side following his MCL sprain last week against the Colts in London, Quinn said, targeting a potential return in two weeks after Washington’s bye.
“We’re optimistic that the injury was similar [to the one Mariota sustained in training camp], that hopefully, they’ll follow the same plan for him, and if we can do that, that would mean sooner than later, meaning another game and a bye,” Quinn said.
Rookie Athan Kaliakmanis could be pressed into his first NFL start after entering in relief of Mariota last week. Quinn suggested that QB Sam Hartman could be activated from the practice squad, though the team also worked out 26-year-old Jack Plummer of the UFL’s Orlando Storm on Wednesday.
Daniels hopes he’ll be ready enough to make either of those options a non-factor.
“I want to play football, so it’s a part of me,” Daniels said, “So gotta go out there and embody and embrace it.”
Sitting at 1-3 and in the cellar of the NFC East, the Commanders don’t need reminding that their chances of staying in the division and playoff hunt will bottom out with a loss to the division-leading New York Giants on Sunday.
“If you walk inside in the halls right now, I think you feel urgency, energy,” Quinn said. “And that’s not opponent driven. That’s us driven. We’re ready to get rolling.”
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