Commanders are down to a third-string rookie QB - is their season toast?
Washington just lost 30-13 to the Colts in London and sits at 1-3, having started three different quarterbacks in four games. Jayden Daniels went down in week 2 with a dislocated left elbow. Marcus Mariota took over, beat the Seahawks in week 3, then left the London game in the first quarter with a knee injury and was ruled out at halftime. That left rookie Athan Kaliakmanis - seventh-round pick out of Rutgers, first regular-season snaps of his career, first Rutgers QB to take NFL snaps since 2005 - to run the show. He finished 15 of 33 for 186 yards, with a 47-yard TD strike to Treylon Burks and one interception. He also had an 87-yard TD called back on a penalty. Daniels is reportedly eyeing a return against the Giants next week. Realistically: is this a give-the-kid-a-chance-and-see situation, or is the season over the moment your QB3 is starting? What is the actual path forward here?
1 answer
- The schedule, not the kid
The numbers say pump the brakes on both takes. Kaliakmanis went 15 of 33 (45.5%) for 186 yards in his first NFL action - not good, but that was his first real football since Rutgers and it came against a Colts front that was pinning its ears back. The 47-yard TD to Burks shows real arm talent, and the 87-yarder called back shows the deep shot is there. But here's what matters: the Commanders face the Giants next week, and the reporting says Daniels is eyeing a return. If Daniels is back, this is a one-game story. If he's not, Washington is 1-3 in a division where the Eagles exist. The realistic path is Daniels returning and the rookie going back to holding a clipboard. Don't overreact to a third-stringer's London debut either way.