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Washington Commanders News & Rumors

Commanders Sign Matthew Wright To Practice Squad, Elevate K For Week 8

October 27th, 2025 at 6:03pm CST by Sam Robinson

The Commanders will attempt to derail the Chiefs without Jayden Daniels tonight, but their Marcus Mariota-led effort will involve a backup kicker as well. Matt Gay is out for this matchup, leading a former Chief back to Arrowhead Stadium for emergency duty.

Washington added Matthew Wright to its practice squad today, and that move will precede a second transaction involving the nomadic fill-in specialist. Following this practice squad signing, the Commanders announced Wright will be one of their gameday elevations. He will kick for the visitors tonight.

Gay suffered a back injury during practice, being moved to the injury report Saturday. That forced the Commanders into this 11th-hour addition. Wright will join defensive tackle Sheldon Day as gameday elevations, per the team. Day, though, has been on the team’s P-squad throughout the season. This will be Wright’s first game action, though he does have a notable past in Kansas City.

A previous Harrison Butker fill-in, Wright once set the Arrowhead Stadium record for longest field goal by booting a 59-yard try before halftime in a 2022 win over the Raiders. Butker returned the following week and broke the record by hitting a 62-yarder before the half in a loss to the Bills. Wright later circled back to the Chiefs as a 2024 Butker replacement, kicking in two games. This included a 19-17 win over the Chargers, when Wright clanked a field goal off the upright and through for one of the Chiefs’ many close 2024 wins.

Overall, the six-year veteran has kicked for six teams. His only extended work came in a 14-game run with the 2021 Jaguars. Wright has also kicked for the Steelers, Panthers, 49ers and Titans. The Tennessee work has come over the past two seasons. He stopped through as a Joey Slye replacement in one game this season. Last year, he kicked for the Titans, 49ers and Chiefs, making 15 of 16 field goal tries.

Gay, who signed with Washington soon after his Indianapolis release, remains on the team’s active roster. Though, it is not known if the veteran will be ready to return for Week 9.

Commanders WRs Terry McLaurin, Deebo Samuel To Play In Week 8

October 26th, 2025 at 8:56am CST by Ely Allen

OCTOBER 26: For the first time since Week 3, the Commanders will have their top two wideouts on the field at the same time. Head coach Dan Quinn told reporters (including the Washington Post’s Tashan Reed) that McLaurin and Samuel will suit up for the club’s Week 8 battle with the Chiefs on Monday.

Of course, it will be Marcus Mariota, not Daniels, under center as the 3-4 Washington outfit looks to snap its two-game skid.

OCTOBER 18: The Commanders will face some unfortunate challenges as they head to the Lone Star State for a matchup with the division-rival Cowboys. After placing Noah Brown on injured reserve this week, there was still hope that wide receivers Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel could be available for the trip. Unfortunately, Jayden Daniels will be without all three pass catchers Sunday afternoon as Samuel stays in Washington with a heel injury, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.

The Commanders have experience working without Brown, who started the first two games of the year before a groin injury held him out for the last four. After missing that much time, it’s clear that Washington should’ve put him on IR sooner. Doing so at this point only ensures his already extended absence will now be at least half the season.

The team is likely used to being without McLaurin, as well, considering he’s only played one more game than Brown. McLaurin suffered a knee sprain that held him out of the team’s Week 4 game, but Washington opted not to place him on IR, since he didn’t require surgery. It’s since been categorized as a quad injury that held him out two more weeks and will now do as much damage as if he had been placed on IR.

This week, McLaurin will be the second wide receiver taking up a spot on Washington’s 53-man roster for four weeks, when the Commanders could’ve supplemented their roster with more bodies by placing them on IR. It’s a tough line to toe, determining whether or not a player will be able return to the field within four weeks, but between Brown and McLaurin, it’s hit Washington twice this year as they’ve essentially played three weeks with a self-imposed 51-man roster.

Samuel’s been dealing with his heel issue for the past three weeks, but before this week, any absences at practice were categorized as “NIR(Rest)/Heel,” indicating non-injury related rest while still acknowledging some issue with his heel. The injury never held him out, though. The offseason trade acquisition has been Daniels’ most reliable target as he leads the team in every receiving category.

In the absence of Brown and McLaurin, it’s been veteran Chris Moore, last year’s third-round pick Luke McCaffrey, and rookie fourth-rounder Jaylin Lane stepping up in Washington. With Samuel out this week, as well, all three will need to step up even more moving forward. In the winning trip to Los Angeles, Samuel saw 11 targets, and no one else saw more than two. Last week, things were a bit more spread out as Samuel and Moore saw five targets apiece and Ertz saw six.

Daniels has done his best to spread out the ball and keep everyone incorporated in the offense so as not to become one-note. While doing so, though, the team’s 2-1 start has been offset by a 1-2 record without McLaurin. Daniels, in his second year of NFL play, has been dealt an ugly hand early in his career, but Washington will count on the roster they’ve built to support him.

It was almost guaranteed that at least one team’s two standard gameday practice squad elevations would be a wide receiver. Among the options were the team’s most recent signee, Treylon Burks, veteran Robbie Chosen, and undrafted rookie Ja’Corey Brooks, who was called up last week. The Commanders landed on Chosen with one elevation, but the other will be used to bring up defensive tackle Sheldon Day. Luckily, it may be a soft test for the youthful offensive crew as they face a Dallas defense that is giving up the most passing yards per game in the NFL.

2025 Injured Reserve Return Tracker

October 25th, 2025 at 8:20pm CST by Sam Robinson

The 2024 offseason brought a change in how teams could construct their 53-man rosters while retaining flexibility with injured players. Clubs were permitted to attach return designations to two players (in total) placed on IR or an NFI list before setting their initial rosters.

In prior years, anyone placed on IR before a team set its initial 53-man roster could not be activated in-season. All August 26 IR- or NFI-return designations, however, already count against teams’ regular-season limit of eight. Teams will be tasked with determining which players injured in-season will factor into activation puzzles as the year progresses.

All players designated for return on August 26 are eligible to be activated beginning in Week 5, though any player placed on IR after a team set its initial 53 has not been designated for return and therefore does not yet count toward a club’s eight-activation limit. Playoff teams will receive two additional injury activations at that point.

Here is how the 32 teams’ activation puzzles look for Week 10:

Arizona Cardinals

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Atlanta Falcons

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Baltimore Ravens

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activations remaining: 6

Buffalo Bills

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Carolina Panthers

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Chicago Bears

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Cincinnati Bengals

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Cleveland Browns

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activations remaining: 7

Dallas Cowboys

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Denver Broncos

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Detroit Lions

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activations remaining: 8

Green Bay Packers

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activations remaining: 6

Houston Texans

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Indianapolis Colts

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Jacksonville Jaguars

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Activations remaining: 7

Kansas City Chiefs

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Activations remaining: 6

Las Vegas Raiders

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 7

Los Angeles Chargers

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

Los Angeles Rams

Eligible for activation:

Activations remaining: 8

Miami Dolphins

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activations remaining: 6

Minnesota Vikings

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 4

New England Patriots

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 7

New Orleans Saints

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

New York Giants

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

New York Jets

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Philadelphia Eagles

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Pittsburgh Steelers

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

San Francisco 49ers

Designated for return:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 5

Seattle Seahawks

Designated for return (Aug. 26):

Activated: 

Activations remaining: 6

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Designated for return:

Eligible for activation:

Activations remaining: 8

Tennessee Titans

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 6

Washington Commanders

Eligible for activation:

Activated:

Activations remaining: 7

Commanders To Start Marcus Mariota In Week 8

October 22nd, 2025 at 11:50am CST by Sam Robinson

Jayden Daniels‘ rocky second season will endure another absence. Due to a hamstring strain suffered in Week 7, the standout Commanders quarterback will take a seat for at least a game. Marcus Mariota will draw the start against the Chiefs on Monday night, NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets.

Daniels missed Weeks 3 and 4 with a knee injury and Washington went 1-1 with Mariota under center. Daniels played well upon his return, but did not finish the Commanders’ Week 7 loss.

In his first start, Mariota led the offense to 41 points against a below-average Raiders defense. His performance dipped in his next game, but the Commanders still put up 27 points against the Falcons, who have allowed the second-fewest yards and eighth-fewest points this season. The Chiefs, Mariota’s next opponent, rank among the top five teams in both categories in another impressive season from Steve Spagnuolo‘s unit. A hot Kansas City offense could also put up a lot of points against a Commanders defense that has allowed at least 24 points in five of their seven games.

An MRI on Monday revealed that Daniels did not suffer a long-term injury, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter, but it still seems like a multi-game absence is on the table. The Commanders play the Lions and the Seahawks in Weeks 7 and 8 before traveling to Madrid to play the Dolphins. That trip could factor into Washington’s approach to Daniels’ return. If he misses their next two games, the team may not want him to return amid the hassles and hiccups of an overseas game. With a bye the next week, though, Daniels’ would not be able to play until Week 11, giving him enough time to heal but missing two games against NFC contenders and an unpredictable matchup in Spain. Those could all be tough matchups for Mariota.

Injury concerns were one of the pre-draft knocks on Daniels due to his lean build and somewhat reckless running style. He played through multiple injuries as a rookie and started all 17 games, but he will now miss his third game with his second injury of the year. That could do serious damage to the Commanders’ playoff chances, especially with what could be a tough post-bye schedule.

NFL Minor Transactions: 10/21/25

October 21st, 2025 at 8:28pm CST by Ben Levine

Today’s minor moves:

Cleveland Browns

  • Waived from IR: WR Cade McDonald

Kansas City Chiefs

New Orleans Saints

New York Giants

  • Signed to active roster (off Jets practice squad): CB Korie Black

Washington Commanders

The Commanders turned to a familiar face to replace DoranceArmstrong, who is done for the season after suffering a knee injury this past weekend. Washington cut Jalyn Holmes just the other day to make room for guard Sam Cosmi on the active roster, but he quickly found his way back to the active roster. The defensive end has seen time in four games this season, and he collected a pair of sacks in 11 appearances with the franchise in 2024.

Commanders DE Dorance Armstrong Out For Season

October 20th, 2025 at 3:23pm CST by Adam La Rose

The Commanders’ defensive front will be shorthanded for the remainder of the campaign. Dorance Armstrong suffered a knee injury on Sunday, and he will not be able to return in 2025.

Earlier today, The Exhibit’s Josina Anderson reported Armstrong was seeking out a second opinion on his injury. Since then, head coach Dan Quinn has announced the veteran defensive end is out for the year. The news deals a blow to Washington’s defensive front, a unit which Armstrong was leading.

The Commanders rank fifth in the NFL with 19 sacks in 2025. A team-high 5.5 of those have come from Armstrong, so his loss will be acutely felt. The 28-year-old has reached five or more sacks every year since 2021, and he has remained a productive contributor for Washington after his time in Dallas. Following head coach Dan Quinn from one team to the other last spring, Armstrong operated as a full-time starter during his first year in the nation’s capital.

In 2025, the former fourth-rounder’s playing time dropped compared to his career-high workload from last season. Still, it will be challenging for the Commanders to replace Armstrong while looking to take needed steps forward elsewhere on defense. Washington sits just 27th in total defense at the moment, something which has played a crucial role in the team’s 3-4 record and overall struggles compared to last year.

Armstrong is under contract through 2026, although none of his base salary for next season ($8.6MM) is guaranteed. As such, a restructure amounting to a pay cut could be in store based on his missed time to close out the current campaign. Keeping the Kansas product in the fold will no doubt be a priority for the Commanders this offseason, but his value has obviously taken a hit with this news.

In the meantime, Washington will move forward with a pass rush group led by Von Miller, Jacob Martin and hybrid linebacker Frankie Luvu. The Commanders recently signed Drake Jackson, but as planned he was moved to injured reserve shortly after being added. As such, Washington could be in the market for an EDGE addition ahead of the trade deadline.

Commanders QB Jayden Daniels Leaves Game With Hamstring Injury

October 19th, 2025 at 8:25pm CST by Ely Allen

The Commanders were just beginning to enjoy the return of quarterback Jayden Daniels after a two-week absence earlier in the season, but they may be looking at another absence in Daniels’ sophomore campaign. Daniels was knocked out of today’s game in Dallas with a hamstring injury, and there’s a chance the injury could affect him long term.

After playing through fractured ribs in his rookie season, Daniels has spent quite a bit of his sophomore campaign working to get healthy. He first appeared on the injury report in Week 2 with a reported injury to the wrist on his throwing hand. He would play in that game, but he would come away from it with a knee sprain that would cause him to miss the next two games. Daniels was eventually able to return to the field, though, and continued to look like his usual, mobile self.

Things took a turn in today’s loss to the Cowboys, though, when linebacker Shemar James strip-sacked him, and Daniels was left on the ground grabbing at the back of his leg. The team took Daniels straight to the blue medical tent to be evaluated, and he was eventually seen jogging to the locker room. While seeing him put active weight on his leg seemed a good sign, he was soon diagnosed with a hamstring injury and listed as questionable to return, getting ruled out for the rest of the game 30 minutes later.

There may be nothing to fret about yet, but the team has scheduled an MRI for Monday in order to determine the severity of Daniels’ injury, per JP Finlay of NBC Sports. The fact that they find an MRI necessary at all could be cause for concern. If bad enough, hamstring injuries can easily require multi-week recoveries, which means Daniels could be in danger of missing even more time this year.

If the MRI brings back unfortunate results, Washington does employ one of the league’s more formidable backup quarterbacks. By the time Marcus Mariota entered today’s game, a 41-15 deficit was too much to overcome. Earlier in the season, though, Mariota split his two spot starts, winning big against the Raiders at home but losing by a touchdown in Atlanta. In those two starts, he completed just under 65 percent of his pass attempts for three touchdowns and an interception. He added another touchdown on the ground, along with 60 yards on eight carries.

Washington will hope for the best news to come out of tomorrow’s MRI, but either way, they will have a quarterback who can give them a chance to win games. With a 3-4 record and a daunting three-game stretch on the horizon, there’s very little room for error if the Commanders want to make the playoffs. We’ll likely find out over the next couple of days whether or not it will be Daniels behind center for a Monday night trip to Kansas City followed by back-to-back home games against the Seahawks and Lions.

Bengals Considered Long List Of QBs Before Joe Flacco Trade

October 18th, 2025 at 11:06pm CST by Connor Byrne

After a Week 5 loss to the Lions, their third straight lopsided defeat under backup signal-caller Jake Browning, the Bengals aggressively began searching for a different Joe Burrow fill-in. Led by director of player personnel Duke Tobin, the Bengals put together an extensive list of potential upgrades over Browning, Albert Breer of SI.com details.

Before swinging a trade with the division-rival Browns for Joe Flacco, the Bengals considered Anthony Richardson (Colts); Kirk Cousins (Falcons); the Giants’ backup duo of Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston; the Rams’ Jimmy Garoppolo and Stetson Bennett; Tanner McKee (Eagles); and Josh Johnson (Commanders). They joined the previously reported Derek Carr (Saints), Sam Howell (Eagles), Drew Lock (Seahawks), and Davis Mills (Texans) in Cincinnati’s exhaustive search.

The Bengals narrowed the list down to five before choosing Flacco as the best option, according to Breer. It’s unclear who joined the 40-year-old in the group of finalists or whether the Bengals even made calls on all of those QBs.

In the end, Flacco won out as a result of a few factors. Flacco is affordable ($1.26MM base salary) and only cost a fifth-round pick. The well-traveled Super Bowl XLVII MVP also has plenty of AFC North experience, and coordinator Dan Pitcher identified him as a clear fit based on similarities between Cincinnati’s offense and Cleveland’s in terms of “spacing the field and progressing pass concepts,” Breer writes.

Two weeks into what will be a short-lived run as the Bengals’ starter, Flacco has looked like a shrewd acquisition. The Bengals lost his first start to the Packers, but they bounced back with an upset over the division-rival Steelers on Thursday.

Flacco outdueled fellow 40-something Aaron Rodgers in Week 7, going 31 for 47 for 342 yards and three touchdowns in a 33-31 thriller. He made superstar wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase the focal point of the offense, targeting him on a jaw-dropping 23 throws and hitting him 16 times for 161 yards and a score. Chase has already hauled in 26 passes and two of Flacco’s five TDs as a Bengal. Flacco has yet to throw a pick with the team after tossing six in four games with the Browns.

The goal in acquiring Flacco was to hang around long enough to make a potential Burrow return worthwhile in 2025. Burrow, who underwent toe surgery on Sept. 19, is expected to miss at least three months. That means the Bengals will have to stay in the race into December under Flacco. At 3-4, they trail the division-leading Steelers (4-2) and sit in ninth place in the AFC. While the Bengals are still facing an uphill climb, Flacco has at least given them a more credible option than Browning under center.

Commanders G Sam Cosmi To Make 2025 Debut

October 18th, 2025 at 3:07pm CST by Ely Allen

The Commanders have added a major asset to their offense today, announcing that guard Sam Cosmi has finally been activated of the reserve/physically unable to perform list. He’ll be joined by cornerback Jonathan Jones, who is being activated off injured reserve.

Last year, the Commanders had one of the more consistent offensive line configurations in the NFL. Between left tackle Brandon Coleman, left guard Nick Allegretti, center Tyler Biadasz, Cosmi, and right tackle Andrew Wylie, no one player missed more than three games between Week 1 and the NFC Championship game. This year’s line has seen similar consistency with Biadasz and new tackles Laremy Tunsil and Josh Conerly, but the guard spots have seen change early on.

With Cosmi on the PUP list, the team started with Coleman shifting inside to left guard and Allegretti moving over to the right side. By Week 3, Chris Paul had stepped into the left guard spot, and Wylie returned to the starting lineup after shifting inside to right guard. Paul and Wylie have manned those starting roles for the last four weeks.

Cosmi was the starting lineman in Washington last year to miss more than two games, and it came at the worst possible moment. After tearing his ACL in the team’s regular season finale, Cosmi missed the Commanders’ entire playoff run. There were hopes in training camp that Cosmi may be able to work his way back for the start of the regular season, but ultimately, he was placed on the PUP list at the roster cut deadline and expectations soon dropped as he was deemed unlikely to even be able return after the mandatory four-week absence.

Ultimately, it wasn’t until October that Cosmi was finally able to return to practice, and with only three days remaining in his 21-day practice window, he’ll finally be able to return to the active roster. It’s unclear if Cosmi will be injected into the starting lineup right away. He’s been a full participant in practice all week, but they may want to ease him in. They also may not put him back at right guard but instead determine which spot needs him most.

Originally brought in to compete for a starting job across from Marshon Lattimore, Jones was beat out by rookie second-rounder Trey Amos. As a result, Jones was seeing his lowest snap shares since his rookie campaign in New England to start this year before getting placed on IR with a hamstring injury. Coming off of IR, Jones will get a chance to earn more opportunities while adding depth to the secondary. Washington released defensive end Jalyn Holmes to make room on the 53-man roster.

Commanders Sign WR Treylon Burks To Practice Squad

October 17th, 2025 at 8:53am CST by Ben Levine

OCTOBER 17: The Burks deal is now official, per a team announcement. In a corresponding move, Martin has been released from Washington’s practice squad. It will be interesting to see if Burks is elevated to the gameday roster in time for Sunday.

OCTOBER 16: As the Commanders navigate a number of injuries to their receivers corps, the team is set to add a former first-round pick. According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the team is expected to sign Treylon Burks to their practice squad.

Per Rapoport, Burks shouldn’t last long on the taxi squad, as the team intends to add him to the active roster as soon as possible. However, it seems unlikely that the player will make his team debut as soon as this Sunday.

Star wideout Terry McLaurin hasn’t played since Week 3 while dealing with a quad injury, and after being downgraded to a non-participant during today’s practice, it seems like he’s facing an uphill battle to play in Week 7. Noah Brown is currently sitting on IR with a groin injury, while Deebo Samuel seems unlikely to play this weekend as he nurses a heel issue.

Thanks to the injuries, the Commanders currently have three healthy receivers on their active roster in Chris Moore, Luke McCaffrey, and fourth-round rookie Jaylin Lane. The team will surely dip into their practice squad options for this weekend, with that grouping featuring Jacoby Jones, Robbie Chosen, Ja’Corey Brooks, and Tay Martin.

While Burks probably won’t be an option for Week 7, he’ll likely soon find himself on the active roster, especially if McLaurin or Samuel still aren’t ready for Week 8. Burks struggled to live up to his first-round billing in Tennessee, as the wideout collected only 765 yards from scrimmage in three years with the organization. He had four catches in five appearances in 2024 before suffering an ACL injury that ended his season.

Burks was back at training camp with the Titans this past summer, but a fractured collarbone resulted in him being waived/injured. He subsequently landed on season-ending IR, but the team cut him earlier this month, allowing him to play elsewhere in 2025. The 25-year-old had an audition with the Broncos before landing in Washington.

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