We all know that Jayden Daniels is hurt.
His dislocated elbow will keep him out for a stretch still yet to be determined as he seeks medical opinions on the best course of action.
There’s some uncertainty there. We know, however, that Marcus Mariota will start a now pivotal Week 3 home game against the Seattle Seahawks.
He’ll probably play more games beyond that, but we’re only dealing with absolutes right now.
We know No. 8 is Sunday’s starter, and that his play will not be a revelation to Commanders fans. Mariota has been around this block before.
He has been in Washington since 2024 and has appeared in burgundy & gold in 15 regular season games now. He started eight games last season and finished a few others, with a not-so-outstanding 2-6 record that wasn’t all on him.
So, in sum, y’all know him well. I generally don’t like to insert my personal voice in stories, but I will in this instance because I know Mariota a little bit.
I worked for the Atlanta Falcons in 2022, when he was the starting quarterback there. I had a few one-on-ones with him, including a long meeting where we went deep about his career to that point and where his confidence lay.
Overall, he’s a great dude and a good locker-room leader. He’s a guy who can get you a series of wins while a starter recovers, but isn’t a guy you want taking you through an entire season.
Mariota has speed. He has arm talent. He is not afraid of big moments. Maybe he chooses to run to soon. That’s a thing, but he sets up protection well and keeps a team out of bad spots.
If you’re expecting a film breakdown, this article isn’t that. We’ll leave that to Jamual Forrest and Mark Tyler. I’ll tell you what I know about the signal caller and the leader that will guide the Commanders through a difficult stretch.
Mariota’s in his 12th NFL season. He is what he is at this point, which is one of the best backups in the league. Everybody else probably knows that already.
He’s tailor-made for Washington in that his playing style is similar enough to Daniels that offensive coordinator David Blough doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel. The same concepts apply to both guys, though JD5 obviously executes them better.
Mariota is a playmaker with some arm talent who isn’t afraid to let it fly or tuck it and run.
His stat line as a Commander isn’t half bad, with a 64% completion rate, 15 touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 94.3 passer rating. Again, not half bad.
The Commanders can be a functional and winning football team with Mariota. As he said after the loss to Dallas, he can work with this scheme.
“With as much experience as I’ve had, I feel comfortable,” Mariota told on-site reporters. “We’ve got a great crew. Those guys didn’t blink at all, and I thought we did a good job of moving the ball in the second half. But yeah, I feel confident. I feel comfortable. I really like what Coach Blough is doing. I believe in this system and we’ll get this thing right.”
Washington needs to stack some victories and do it now after starting 0-2 on the season and within the division.
We’ll see when Daniels can return. The Commanders must hold serve until he does. A lot of the responsibility for that falls on Mariota, someone we all know well and someone we know can be a functional quarterback and produce wins that the Commanders need.
Desperately.
