Team news: Washington Commanders | Page 2

A rare in-division trade: Washington is sending former first-round pick Jahan Dotson and a fifth-round pick to the Eagles in exchange for a 2025 third-round pick and two seventh-round picks.

Related Players: Terry McLaurin, Luke McCaffrey, Dyami Brown, Johnny Wilson

On paper, Dotson is now downgraded from a team's WR2 to a WR3, though we could see a similar amount of spike weeks in the Eagles passing attack.

One of McCaffrey or Brown should now have a shot at lining up in 2WR sets, which makes them interesting late-round dart throws in drafts. Zach Ertz and Ben Sinnott also both get slight boosts, as they may be more involved in the receiving game, while rookie Johnny Wilson's bid for a WR3 designation definitely seems out the window.

Now official: The Commanders are rolling with No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels as their starting QB, coach Dan Quinn said.

Last year, Derrick Klassen of Reception Perception identified C.J. Stroud as the most accurate passer in last year's draft class. Guess who charted the best this year? That's right, the so-called "running quarterback" Daniels. Klassen does have some reservations about Daniels' willingness to throw over the middle of the field, but two things are true: 1) Daniels is an accurate passer, and 2) he's going to rack up the rushing yards. John Paulsen's rookie quarterback model predicts 43.9 rushing yards per game for Daniels, which is the third-highest expectation in the 97-player sample behind only Lamar Jackson and Cam Newton. Jackson didn't start until Week 11 of his rookie season, but he was the fantasy QB8 the rest of the way. Newton was the QB3 as a rookie. Rounding out the top five in expected rushing yards were Jalen Hurts (QB8 in his first season as the starter) and Vince Young (QB9 as a rookie). See where this is headed?

Commanders head coach Dan Quinn announced rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels will play in Washington’s preseason opener Saturday against the Jets.

This was more of a formal announcement. As a rookie, Daniels needs all the early reps he can get. Washington has just the three preseason games compared to the four for the Chicago Bears, which was why Caleb Williams did not play in the Hall of Fame Game. Daniels is currently our QB12.

Former Eagles QB Marcus Mariota is signing with the Washington Commanders on a 1-year deal with a base value of $6 million and upside to $10 million, per source.

Related Players: Sam Howell

The Commanders sign further insurance for the quarterback room, in case their eventual rookie signal-caller has problems getting up to speed.

Veteran RB Austin Ekeler is signing with the Commanders on a two-year deal worth up to $11.43 million.

Related Players: Brian Robinson, Chris Rodriguez

The Brian Robinson bellcow role lasted about two hours, but the Commanders backs have company now. Ekeler had clearly lost a step last season, but a veteran pass-catching presence in the backfield will be an obvious plus. Ekeler should carve out a role that puts him in RB2 conversation, while Robinson holds onto a goal-line role that makes him almost as fantasy viable.

Former Commanders' running back Antonio Gibson is expected to join the Patriots.

Related Players: Rhamondre Stevenson, Ezekiel Eliott, Brian Robinson, Chris Rodriguez

The Patriots backfield looks like it's going to be an absolute nightmare for fantasy purposes, as part of one of the worst offenses in the league. Gibson shouldn't be more than a late-round dart.

This should leave Brian Robinson as the bellcow in Washington.

The Commanders placed RB Chris Rodriguez Jr (ankle) on IR. Ends his season early.

Related Players: Brian Robinson, Antonio Gibson, Derrick Gore

After a key injury to Brian Robinson, we got to see a little bit more of the rookie, including a two-touchdown in Week 16, which was nice for dynasty owners who took a stab in rookie drafts. There's a chance that Antonio Gibson gets a huge workload ahead of a touch matchup against the 49ers in Week 17.

Commanders ruled out RB Brian Robinson for Sunday’s game vs. the Jets.

Related Players: Antonio Gibson, Chris Rodriguez

Chris Rodriguez took a surprising amount of early-down work last week, and should have a decent RB3 role, particularly in Standard or point-per-carry leagues. Gibson should maintain the pass-catching role and be an asset in half-PPR leagues as an RB3 in his own right.

DeVonta Smith hadn’t been practicing in full because of a knee injury. This latest inclusion on the report is for a new knee injury he suffered in the game.

Related Players: A.J. Brown, Julio Jones, Quez Watkins, Olamide Zaccheaus

A.J. Brown could me in for a monster workload as the Eagles begin the easiest stretch of their season. None of the receiving options behind him should be trusted if Smith were to miss this week.

John Metchie III (illness), Brevin Jordan (illness), Nico Collins (calf), Shaq Mason (calf), and Jimmie Ward (concussion) returned to practice.

Related Players: Noah Brown, Robert Woods, Dalton Schultz, Xavier Hutchinson

The passing attack didn't look great with Case Keenum under center, but Noah Brown saw a huge target share, turning 11 into 8-82-1. If Nico Collins is good to go for Week 16, he should slide back into the No. 1 role, which should offer a fantasy WR2 with limited upside if C.J. Stroud misses, which looks like the strongest possibility.