Commanders coach Dan Quinn hopeful Jayden Daniels will return for Week 5 against Giants

Amid another spate of injuries for his Commanders, Dan Quinn had one positive update following Washington's 30-13 loss to the Colts in London: He's hoping quarterback Jayden Daniels will be back for Week 5 against the Giants

"That's the hope for us for sure, [Jayden] coming back," Quinn said. "He'll have a full week of practice Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. That's the goal that he could get into that space. Once we see where Marcus [Mariota] is ... we'll have a better understanding. That's the goal for Jayden to throw a full week. He was able to do some limited this week, and this week would be the plan for him to do all the reps."

Mariota is believed to have aggravated a preseason MCL injury in the first quarter of Sunday's contest when he went down awkwardly on a sack. With Daniels already out, Washington had to turn to third-string quarterback Athan Kaliakmanis, a seventh-round rookie out of Rutgers. Though he threw his first NFL touchdown pass, he also had a costly interception, and Washington only scored once across Kaliakmanis' 10 drives.

"Athan came in after 12 plays; that's not the ideal space to begin it, but I thought he also showed a lot of confidence, some fearlessness with that, and made some of the throws to highlight why he is where he is," Quinn said.

Quinn said that Mariota would undergo further testing, but ideally, it'll be Daniels getting the start next week. Daniels dislocated his left elbow — his second such injury in less than a year — in Week 2 against the Cowboys when he got stepped on by left guard Chris Paul and fell awkwardly.

The No. 2 overall pick in 2024 played in just seven games last year, and his injuries, plus Washington's lack of success, have raised questions as to whether Daniels can protect himself and if the team can provide him enough support. Regarding the latter, the Commanders are already in a tough spot: Left tackle Laremy Tunsil tore his triceps in training camp, right guard Sam Cosmi is still recovering from a concussion he suffered in Week 2, and Terry McLaurin (hamstring) was out in Week 4 as well. Furthermore, Commanders running backs had just 49 yards on 18 carries Sunday.

"For us, having run game is going to be a big deal," Quinn said. "Hopefully, Sam's on his way back up too. So, when you're putting those two together, to me, that's the sweet spot where you can balance both of them together. We don't want to make it where he's a dropback player and 'Do all your magic every time.'"

Daniels missed four weeks (three games plus a bye) after suffering his first dislocated elbow in 2025. In his first game back, he re-aggravated (but did not suffer any further damage to) the elbow. With the Commanders out of the playoff picture, Daniels did not return for the rest of the season after the re-aggravation.