Commanders' Marcus Mariota Aggravates Right MCL Sprain, Likely to Miss Week 5

Q: Could an emergency tight end really be forced to play quarterback for Washington after their devastating string of overseas injuries?

Yes. If Athan Kaliakmanis had also been hurt in London, Washington really could have been forced to use a tight end at quarterback. That is because the Commanders entered the Colts game with only two true quarterbacks available on the active game-day roster: Marcus Mariota and rookie Athan Kaliakmanis. Jayden Daniels was inactive with an elbow injury, and Washington did not have a fourth quarterback active. Multiple reports identified tight end Colson Yankoff as the club’s emergency non-quarterback option, especially with Luke McCaffrey inactive. Yankoff is not just a random tight end in that scenario. He played quarterback earlier in his career, including in high school and at the start of college before moving positions. That background is why he was viewed as the fallback if Washington lost Kaliakmanis too. However, this is different from the NFL’s formal emergency-third-quarterback rule. That rule applies only to a bona fide quarterback who is on the 53-man roster and designated inactive for game day. A tight end cannot be activated under that special QB rule. So if Washington had reached Yankoff, it would not have been because of the emergency-QB exemption; it would have been because the team had run out of healthy active quarterbacks and had no choice but to line up a non-quarterback under center. In short, yes: after Mariota’s injury, one more quarterback injury could have left Washington using Yankoff at quarterback as a last-resort survival plan.

3 articles · Updated · CBS Sports · Oct 4

Marcus Mariota was ruled out in the first quarter against Indianapolis after aggravating the right MCL sprain he originally suffered in Washington's second preseason game.
Further tests are planned, and the setback is expected to cost the 32-year-old quarterback additional time after he had recovered enough to open the regular season.
Mariota had made his second straight start for Jayden Daniels, completing 3 of 4 passes for 46 yards and adding a 35-yard run before Athan Kaliakmanis replaced him.
Week 5 now hinges on Daniels' recovery from a dislocated left elbow; after limited practice in Week 4, he could reclaim the starting job against the Giants if cleared.