The Washington Commanders are staring at another quarterback scramble after Marcus Mariota went down with an MCL injury early in their Week 4 loss to the Indianapolis Colts. Head coach Dan Quinn is waiting on more tests, but the expectation is that Mariota will miss time again.
That leaves Washington in a rough spot with Jayden Daniels still working back from a dislocated elbow. Unless the Commanders make a highly unlikely trade for a quarterback, they may need to add a veteran quickly just to stabilize the position.
The internal options are thin. Seventh-round rookie Athan Kaliakmanis is still a development project, and practice squad quarterback Sam Hartman is not viewed as being close to the necessary standard.
If Washington decides it wants another experienced arm, Jeff Driskel looks like the most realistic name to circle. He already knows the organization after spending time with the Commanders over the last two years, and while this would be a new offense to learn under offensive coordinator David Blough, he has enough experience to get up to speed fast.
This would not be a long-term answer. It would be a stopgap, plain and simple, with Mariota’s timeline likely determining how aggressively Washington pursues help. But general manager Adam Peters did sign Driskel off the Arizona Cardinals’ practice squad last year, so bringing him back would not be some far-fetched idea.
At the very least, Driskel could help with game-week preparation. And if Daniels were to get hurt again, he would give Washington a steadier option to lean on.
There is also the question of whether Driskel would even want the job. No team was exactly lining up for him this offseason, and the Commanders did not bring him back. He may also have gotten comfortable being away from the daily grind.
Still, Washington’s situation may leave them little choice but to check.
The bigger problem is how familiar all of this feels. Daniels got hurt.
Mariota stepped in and then got hurt too. Last season followed a similar path, with Washington’s campaign slipping away long before it was officially over.
If that kind of collapse repeats itself, Quinn could find himself under real pressure when the year ends.
Driskel is not going to transform the Commanders. But he is experienced, he knows the people in the building, and he could step in without much drama.
For Washington, that may be enough right now. If Mariota eventually gets cleared, the Commanders can send him back to whatever he was doing this summer. In the meantime, they may decide Kaliakmanis should keep the backup job if they are fully convinced Daniels can return.
Even then, another contingency plan would make sense. Driskel looks like a better bet than most of the quarterbacks still sitting on the proverbial scrap heap this late in the year.
It is not a pleasant place for Washington to be. But after this latest wave of bad luck, it is where they are.
In Other News...
Nationals Have A Max Scherzer Decision Fans Will Feel Deeply
Justin Verlanders final game in Detroit was the kind of send-off that lingers, the sort of career curtain call franchises and fans remember for years. It also has a way of making another familiar name feel newly relevant in Washington, where Max Scherzers Nationals legacy still carries real weight after the ace left in 2021 and kept building a championship resume with stops in Los Angeles, New York, Texas and Toronto, including a World Series title with the Rangers.
For the Nationals, the question is less about whether Scherzer still belongs in the conversation than how they might honor what he meant to the club if there is one more chapter left. A final season in Washington would offer more than nostalgia, giving the organization a chance to reconnect with one of its defining stars while putting a proper finish on a run that never really got the goodbye it deserved. [Read more 🡒]
Luis Garca Jr.'s Next Yankees Decision Could Change How He's Viewed
Luis Garca Jr. has already given the Yankees something to think about since arriving from Washington. He spent most of his time with the Nationals at second base before making the move to first this season, and the change has not slowed him down at the plate. For a New York club that is always juggling bats, gloves and lineup paths, Garcas ability to handle first base while producing offensively has made him a useful piece in a roster mix that also includes Ben Rice, Giancarlo Stanton, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Jos Caballero and Anthony Volpe.
Aaron Boone even left open the possibility of Garca returning to second base down the road, which says plenty about how the Yankees are viewing him. The larger question is where he fits best as the roster continues to evolve, especially with defensive versatility and contractual realities shaping the way the club thinks about the infield. For Garca, the next step in New York may say as much about how the Yankees see him as it does about where he stands on the diamond. [Read more 🡒]
Nationals Face A Bigger Question Than Just Spending More
The Brewers have offered a useful reminder that roster building is not always about chasing the biggest checkbook. They pieced together a 103-win season with a $154 million payroll by leaning on second-tier pitchers, a deep bullpen and a balanced lineup, with Christian Yelich and Brice Turang among the players helping drive the offense. For the Nationals, the comparison lands in an especially relevant way, because the question is not simply whether the front office can spend more, but whether it can build a more complete club.
Washington has already shown it can hang with Milwaukee, which makes the broader lesson from this kind of model even more interesting. The Brewers approach, as discussed in analysis from Wilytics, points to offense that keeps improving and a run-scoring profile supported by complementary pieces rather than one expensive solution. For the Nationals, the bigger issue is whether they can find that same kind of balance, the sort that turns a decent payroll into a playoff-caliber roster. [Read more 🡒]