Terry McLaurin is in his sixth NFL season and having the time of his life. After playing through numerous coaching changes, lots of losing, and countless quarterback changes, the Washington Commanders are finally winning.
The Commanders have also found a franchise quarterback. Jayden Daniels has finally ended Washington’s longtime search for a quarterback.
On Sunday, the Commanders improved to 5-2 after defeating the Carolina Panthers 40-7, remaining in first place in the NFC East. But, Washington didn’t leave Sunday without some concerns.
Daniels was injured on the Commanders’ first drive when he landed awkwardly after a 46-yard run. While he finished the drive, Washington wisely removed him from the game and sent him into the locker room for X-rays. Daniels injured his rib and was questionable to return.
Enter Marcus Mariota. The 10-year veteran took over under center and led the Commanders to scores on every one of his drives except one. With Washington so far ahead, Daniels was ruled out and finished the game on the sideline.
McLaurin, who caught six passes for 98 yards, spoke about Daniels’ injury after the game.
“Yeah, you know, he’s a tough player, so if he’s going down and going into the locker room, it’s, you know, fairly serious,” McLaurin said. “I’m not going to, like, speculate on his injury, but he’s a tough guy and I know he’s going to do whatever it takes to try to be ready for next week.”
McLaurin then praised Mariota for stepping in and delivering.
Finally, McLaurin revealed what he was most proud of coming out of Sunday’s game.
“So, I think my favorite part of the game was us to go down and score in a two-minute drive,” McLaurin said. “When you don’t have your starting quarterback, but you still execute at a high level, I think that’s a standard that we’re set for our offense. No matter who’s in there, the expectation and the production doesn’t drop. So, I’m happy to see that he came in here and did what he did, but I didn’t expect anything different.”
Gone are the days of the Commanders struggling to score 20 points. This is currently the NFL’s highest-scoring team, and they didn’t panic or fold when they lost their star quarterback. It was a business-as-usual approach with Mariota under center.
Coaching, scheme, and talent are all a part of the Commanders’ current offensive success. But so is mindset. And there is no better player than McLaurin to help Washington set a new standard of excellence each week where there are no excuses if that standard isn’t met.