Wide receivers Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel returned to practice for the Washington Commanders on Thursday, but coach Dan Quinn confirmed that quarterback Jayden Daniels will miss the team’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
McLaurin sat out the past four games after hurting his quadriceps muscle on a catch in Week 3, while Samuel missed Sunday’s 44-22 loss to the Dallas Cowboys with a heel problem that had bothered him for a while but hadn’t prevented him from playing until now.
After practice, Samuel said the heel was “kind of nagging a little bit last week” but was “not an issue” on Thursday.
Until this prolonged absence, McLaurin had appeared in 72 consecutive regular-season games for the Commanders; he hadn’t missed one since late in the 2020 season. McLaurin, who turned 30 in September, has topped 1,000 yards receiving for each of the past five seasons. Last season, he accumulated 87 catches for 1,096 yards with 13 TDs and added another three scores in the postseason.
He missed training camp in 2025 while negotiating a new deal and eventually signed a three-year extension worth up to $96 million. McLaurin has 10 catches for 149 yards and no touchdowns this season.
In Samuel’s first year with Washington, he leads the club with 34 catches and 315 yards receiving. He has caught three TD passes and run for another score.
With both of them sidelined, and Noah Brown on injured reserve with groin and knee issues, Daniels was without his three top wideouts against Dallas.
Daniels then hurt his right hamstring and left the game in the third quarter, replaced by Marcus Mariota. While Quinn said after an MRI exam on Monday that Daniels’ injury was not significant and would not keep him out for the long term, the coach wasn’t sure at the time whether last season’s AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year would be available to play at Kansas City on Monday night.
With Daniels now set to sit out a third game this season - he was dealing with a bad left knee earlier - Mariota will get the start again. Washington went 1-1 in Mariota’s earlier two starts.
Quinn said he wanted Daniels to be able to focus on rehabilitating the hamstring and not to worry about spending any time at practice this week, with the goal of being ready to return to action in Week 9 against the Seattle Seahawks. After that, Washington faces the Detroit Lions.
The Commanders are 3-4 and have lost two games in a row. The Chiefs are 4-3.
The Chiefs, also struggling with injuries, could be without the starting left side of their offensive line against the Commanders. Left guard Trey Smith is dealing with back spasms and tackle Josh Simmons is handling a family issue.
Smith began having trouble during last week’s win over the Raiders, forcing Mike Caliendo into the lineup. It appears that the veteran backup will start against Washington, which has the league’s 27th-ranked defense and is 25th against the pass this season.
“We’ve always looked at Mike as a starter. I think all the guys do,” Kansas City coach Andy Reid said Thursday. “Everybody has confidence when he comes in, we can pick up and go. That’s how I feel about him, speaking for the gang here.”
Smith has emerged as one of the premier guards in the NFL, and the Chiefs paid him that way this past offseason, giving him a four-year, $94 million extension in July. Caliendo started three games and appeared in all 17 last season.
Simmons has been absent since shortly before the Chiefs’ win over the Lions a couple of weeks ago. Jaylon Moore, who signed a two-year, $30 million contract in free agency, stepped into the lineup on short notice and played admirably, despite getting very little sleep - his wife, Sidney, had given birth to a daughter, Selah, the night before the game.
Moore also played last week against Las Vegas, helping the Kansas City offense roll in a 31-0 rout.
“He’s done a great job. He’s been ready. He comes to work every single day,” quarterback Patrick Mahomes said.
It remains unclear when Simmons, the Chiefs’ first-round draft pick, will be back with the team. They are off next week, and the fact that they have not placed him on the non-football injury list means there is hope that Simmons returns sooner than later.
“My update for you with Josh would just be there’s communication,” Reid said. “I’m not going to get into all of it. Everything is positive. It’s not a negative situation. He’s taking care of family.”
In other injury news, Reid said running back Kareem Hunt would miss practice Thursday because of a bruised bone on his knee. Hunt has been especially good in short-yardage situations this season, and his absence would leave the Chiefs with Isiah Pacheco and rookie Brashard Smith in the backfield against the Commanders.
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