Credits: Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Is Jayden Daniels Playing Today? All About Jayden Daniels’ Availability for Week 3 Game Against the Raiders

Credits: Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Washington Commanders host the Las Vegas Raiders at Northwest Stadium on Sunday, September 21, for a Week 3 interconference matchup. Both teams enter with 1-1 records. The Commanders defeated the New York Giants 21-6 in Week 1 but lost 27-18 to the Green Bay Packers. The Raiders won 20-13 at home over the New England Patriots in Week 1 before falling 20-9 to the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night.

Raiders quarterback Geno Smith threw three interceptions in the Chargers loss, completing 24 of 43 passes for only 180 yards. Las Vegas allowed 13 points in Week 1 but struggled offensively with nine points in Week 2. Meanwhile, the Commanders have not had the best of starts and now are facing uncertainty with their star QB Jayden Daniels, who sustained an injury last game.

Is Jayden Daniels Playing Today?

Quarterback Jayden Daniels is ruled out for Sunday’s action against the Las Vegas Raiders, due to his injured knee, announced Commanders’ head coach Dan Quinn on Friday.

Daniels sustained a knee sprain against the Packers and was ruled out for the game, with backup Marcus Mariota, set to start in place of Daniels, for the Raiders game.

Jayden Daniels will miss Week 3 with a knee injury

Marcus Mariota will start vs. Raiders pic.twitter.com/MEYXg4bk9J
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) September 19, 2025

How Does Jayden Daniels’ Injury Affect the Commanders?

The Raiders‘ defense ranks fourth in yards per carry allowed at 3.2, which could force Washington into a pass-heavy approach. This means that Mariota may have to force a lot of passes, since the running lanes could be shut off since the very beginning.

#LVvsWAS game status
— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) September 19, 2025

Mariota completed 77.3% of his passes for 364 yards and four touchdowns in three appearances last season. While Mariota’s a proven backup QB, Sunday’s game will be his first start since 2022 with Atlanta.

The Commanders have won four of the five last matchups against the Raiders, and have just met once in the postseason so far. While history suggest that the Commanders have the upper hand, without their QB, it will definitely be a tough task to do so.

Jayden Daniels

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Eric Divakaran

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I cover the National Football League and things cannot get better than that. I always dreamed to play football or basketball professionally since I’m built like a Running Back. But now that I can’t, since I’m technically in the “Unc” age, I thought why not pick a career in sports industry? So here I am, doing what I love, and hoping that the Commanders win the Super Bowl. I give love to players when it’s due, but can be critical about their performances at the same time. Enough about me, now let my articles do all the talking.