The Commanders will be without a sizable chunk of their roster in Week 5, and the list starts at quarterback.
Washington officially ruled out six players for its game against the Giants: QB Marcus Mariota, WR Stefon Diggs, DE Charles Omenihu, S Nick Cross, S Tyler Owens, and S Percy Butler.
Mariota’s absence is expected to stretch beyond just one week. Nicki Jhabvala reported this week that he could miss 2-3 weeks because of an MCL sprain, though he will not need injured reserve. Dan Quinn said the Commanders plan to handle Mariota’s recovery the same way they approached the MCL sprain he suffered in the preseason, according to John Keim.
Mariota, 32, entered the league as the No. 2 overall pick by the Titans in 2015. Tennessee signed him to a fully guaranteed four-year, $24.214 million rookie contract, then exercised his fifth-year option for 2019 at $20.922 million. The Titans later moved on after he lost the starting job, and he landed with the Raiders on a two-year deal worth $17.6 million.
After that stint in Las Vegas, Mariota signed a two-year contract with the Falcons in 2022. Atlanta released him, and he then joined the Eagles on a one-year deal worth $5 million.
He came to Washington before the 2024 season and has since returned on one-year contracts in 2025 and 2026. This year, he has played in three games and completed 64.7 percent of his passes for 340 yards and four touchdowns.
Diggs, also 32, has been through a long run of contract moves since Minnesota made him a fifth-round pick in 2015. He was in the final year of his rookie deal when he agreed to a five-year, $72 million extension with the Vikings in 2018. Minnesota traded him to Buffalo in 2020 for a package of draft picks that included a first-rounder.
Buffalo later extended Diggs on a four-year, $104 million deal after he was set to make base salaries of $11.775 million and $11.85 million in 2022 and 2023. The Bills then dealt him to the Texans for a 2025 second-round pick when he was due base salaries of $18.5 million and $18 million over the next two seasons. Houston adjusted his contract to give him a raise and make him an unrestricted free agent in 2025.
Diggs played out that deal and signed a three-year, $60 million contract with the Patriots in 2025. New England released him after one season, and he signed with Washington in August.
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