Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Week 5 Waiver Priority List
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Mariota scored 20.2 Fantasy points at Atlanta in Week 4, and he's now reached at least that total in all four appearances with the Commanders over the past two seasons. We don't know if Jayden Daniels (knee) will return in Week 5 at the Chargers, so take that into account, but Mariota will be considered a low-end starter in all leagues if he starts again in Washington. He's worth adding for up to 5 percent of your remaining FAB.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Tosses two TDs in Week 4 loss
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Mariota completed 16 of 27 passes for 156 yards and two touchdowns with one interception in Sunday's 34-27 loss to the Falcons. He added 20 rushing yards on two carries. He also threw a two-point conversion to Zach Ertz.
Making his second straight start in place of Jayden Daniels (knee), Mariota and the Commanders' offense started slowly but eventually caught fire, only for the team's defense to be unable to come up with a stop when it needed one. Mariota tossed a five-yard TD to Luke McCaffrey late in the second quarter and a 24-yard score to Deebo Samuel in the fourth, while also leading three drives that ended in field goals in the second half. Daniels appears to be on track to return in Week 5, but if Mariota needs to take the reins again, he'll get a tough road matchup against the Chargers.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Sleeper QBs
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Jayden Daniels (knee) is out for Week 4 at Atlanta after he missed Week 3 against Las Vegas. With Daniels out against the Raiders, Mariota stepped up with 207 passing yards and a touchdown and 40 rushing yards and a touchdown. He's now scored at least 22 Fantasy points in three appearances with the Commanders over the past two years. This would be the second revenge game in a row for Mariota, who spent 2022 in Atlanta, and hopefully he stays hot with another chance to start for the Commanders this week.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Starting again
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Mariota will start Sunday's game at Atlanta.
Mariota completed 15 of 21 passes for 207 yards and a touchdown in last Sunday's 41-24 win over the Raiders, adding 40 rushing yards and a TD on six carries. He seems comfortable in Kliff Kingsbury's offense and still moves well at age 31, making him far more useful for fantasy than a typical backup QB that's filling in for an injured starter. Mariota will face one of his former teams this Sunday, after Jayden Daniels (knee) missed Friday's practice and was ruled out not long after.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Adds/Streamers (QB Preview)
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For the second straight week Mariota looks like maybe the best streamer of the week but also has the risk of not even starting if Jayden Daniels recovers. If you have Daniels and streamed someone else last week, make sure to add Mariota. He has now scored over 20 Fantasy points in three straight appearances for the Commanders. He is still a very efficient rusher, even at 31 years old, he's averaged 5.8 yards per rush attempt over the last three years.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Week 4 Waiver Priority List
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We don't know when Jayden Daniels (knee) will return, but he missed Week 3 against Las Vegas, which allowed Mariota the chance to excel with 207 passing yards and a touchdown and 40 rushing yards and a touchdown. He's now scored at least 22 Fantasy points in three appearances with the Commanders over the past two years, and he would be a No. 1 quarterback in all leagues if he starts again in Week 4 at Atlanta. Mariota is worth adding for up to 5 percent of your remaining FAB in one-quarterback leagues and up to 20 percent in Superflex and two-quarterback formats.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Produces two TDs in big win
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Mariota completed 15 of 21 passes for 207 yards and a touchdown in Sunday's 41-24 win over the Raiders. He added 40 rushing yards and a TD on six carries.
He did lose a fumble, but otherwise Mariota has a very efficient performance under center in place of Jayden Daniels (knee). Mariota opened the scoring by running in a two-yard TD on the Commanders' first possession, then he iced the big win by connecting with Luke McCaffrey on a 43-yard catch-and-run late in the fourth quarter. Daniels may miss only the one game, but if Mariota is helming the offense again in Week 4, he'll be facing a Falcons defense stinging from a 30-0 loss to the Panthers.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Filling in for Daniels this week
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Mariota will replace Jayden Daniels (knee) as Washington's starting quarterback Sunday against the Raiders, Jonathan Jones of CBSSports.com reports.
Daniel returned to practice Friday as a limited participant, suggesting he may be ready for Week 4 at Atlanta on Sun., Sept. 28. In the meantime, Mariota will try to replicate his level of play from last season, when he completed 34 of 44 passes for 364 yards and four touchdowns, with 92 yards and another TD on the ground. While unlikely to maintain that type of efficiency, Mariota does seem to be a good fit in Kliff Kingsbury's offense, and with enough running ability to offer fantasy value even if his passing stats are merely average.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Week 3 Waiver Priority List
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Jayden Daniels (knee) was injured in Week 2 at Green Bay, and he could be out for Week 3 against Las Vegas. Mariota would start for the Commanders, and he would be a low-end starting option in all leagues. Mariota played the majority of Week 7 in 2024 for an injured Daniels and passed for 205 yards and two touchdowns, and ran four times for 11 yards and scored 23.6 Fantasy points. Mariota is worth 1 percent of your remaining FAB in one-quarterback leagues and at least 10 percent of your remaining FAB in Superflex and two-quarterback leagues.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: May start Sunday
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Mariota may be tasked with leading the Commanders offense Sunday versus the Raiders as Jayden Daniels deals with a knee sprain, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports.
Daniels was seen limping in the final minutes of Thursday's loss in Green Bay, and an MRI revealed the sprain. DNPs from the starting QB could signal that Mariota is in line for a Week 3 spot start, but Daniels' injury isn't thought to be too serious. In parts of three games last season with the Commanders, Mariota completed 34 of 44 passes for 364 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions and had 18 carries for 92 yards and one TD.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Practices fully
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Mariota (Achilles) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice, Adam Caplan of SiriusXM NFL Radio reports.
Mariota spent much of training camp and the preseason managing Achilles tendinitis, but as expected, he's ready to rock for Week 1. The veteran signal-caller will operate as Jayden Daniels' backup versus the Giants on Sunday, while Josh Johnson handles emergency quarterback duties.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Managing Achilles tendinitis
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Mariota said Thursday that he's dealing with Achilles tendinitis but expects to be ready for Week 1, JP Finlay of NBC Sports Washington reports.
Mariota made his return to the practice field Wednesday, per Zach Selby of the Commanders' official site, but his activity level still appears to be limited. The veteran backup quarterback has already missed both Washington's preseason affairs to date, and it looks like he could again be held out of Saturday's exhibition finale against Baltimore even if the expectation is that he'll be fully healthy in time for Week 1.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Won't play vs. Cincinnati
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Mariota (lower leg) has been ruled out for Monday's preseason game against the Bengals, Commanders writer Ben Standig reports.
Mariota will miss a second preseason game while working through a lower leg strain. Per Zach Selby of the Commanders' official site, Jayden Daniels and most of the other offensive starters will play "a few series" during Monday's game, but with Mariota sidelined, Josh Johnson and Sam Hartman should handle most of the snaps following Daniels' exit.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Excellent in relief
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Mariota completed 18 of 23 passes for 205 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions in Sunday's 40-7 win over the Panthers. He added 11 rushes for 34 yards.
Mariota was forced into the game after just one offensive possession after Jayden Daniels (ribs) departed. He led the Commanders' offense effectively, highlighted by a pair of touchdown drives to close the first half and begin the second half. On those two possessions, Mariota combined to complete 10 of 11 passes for 119 yards and a pair of touchdown throws. While he benefitted from a very favorable matchup, Mariota showed a surprising command of the offense in relief. However, he'll face a much tougher test if called upon for a Week 8 matchup against the Bears.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Serving as backup QB
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Mariota (pectoral) is active for Sunday's game against the Browns.
Mariota landed on injured reserve just before the season opener due to a chest injury, which was reclassified as a pectoral issue during Week 5 prep after the Commanders designated him for return Wednesday and were required to list him on the practice report. He remained questionable for Sunday even after the team activated him Saturday, but now that he's deemed active, he'll act as the top backup to starting quarterback and rookie sensation Jayden Daniels.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Listed as questionable for Week 5
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Mariota (chest) was a full participant in Friday's practice and is listed as questionable for Sunday's game against the Browns, Mary Kay Cabot of The Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
Mariota opened the season on injured reserve due to a chest injury. The 30-year-old quarterback has been a full participant in all three practices this week after he was designated to return to practice Wednesday. While he does carry a questionable tag into Sunday's game, Mariota appears to be trending towards being activated off IR and serving as Jayden Daniels' backup. If Mariota is activated off IR, that will likely lead to Sam Hartman being cut from the active roster while Jeff Driskel serves as the third/emergency quarterback.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Lands on injured reserve
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Mariota (chest) was placed on injured reserve Saturday.
Mariota suffered a chest injury Wednesday during practice, which will now keep him out at minimum until early October. The Commanders signed rookie Notre Dame product Sam Hartman from the practice squad to operate as the third-string quarterback behind starter Jayden Daniels and new backup Jeff Driskel to open the season.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Won't play Week 1
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Mariota (chest) has been ruled out ahead of Sunday's game against the Buccaneers, John Keim of ESPN.com reports.
Washington's new No. 2 quarterback won't be suiting up for the team's regular-season opener after logging DNPs during practice both Thursday and Friday. With Mariota sidelined, expect Jeff Driskel to back up rookie Jayden Daniels in Week 1.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Won't play Saturday
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Coach Dann Quinn said Thursday that Mariota (groin) is ruled out for Saturday's preseason game against the Dolphins, Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post reports.
Mariota seems entrenched as Washington's backup behind rookie first-round quarterback Jayden Daniels, but for the time being he'll need to focus on getting healthy. During Washington's preseason opener last week, Mariota took the field on the team's second drive, after Daniels left the field. With Mariota and Sam Hartman (shoulder) both dealing with injuries, the Commanders inked Trace McSorley on Thursday.
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Commanders' Marcus Mariota: Likely headed for backup role again
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Mariota will be joined by fellow Heisman winner and No. 2 overall draft pick Jayden Daniels in Washington's QB room.
The incoming rookie was a four-year college starter (five if you count a COVID-shortened season) and is already 23 years old, making him a strong bet to quickly take over as QB1 in Washington. Mariota presumably knew the Commanders were likely to use the No. 2 overall pick on a quarterback when he signed with them in March, but the team at least traded Sam Howell to Seattle, leaving the 30-year-old unchallenged for a backup role. It remains to be seen how the Commanders divide reps between Daniels and Mariota this spring and into summer.
