Dan Quinn isn't looking for excuses. He knows that the Washington Commanders have not met expectations over the first seven weeks of the campaign, but the head coach has been quick to point out that injuries haven't been the primary reason behind their demise.
That's debatable. The Commanders have suffered some crushing setbacks throughout the campaign. This was evident once again in Week 7 against the Dallas Cowboys, with superstar quarterback Jayden Daniels sustaining a hamstring injury and defensive end Dorance Armstroong Jr. being placed on season-ending injured reserve with a serious knee issue.
Every team deals with injuries throughout the season. Nobody is having to cope with more key personnel absences than the Commanders right now.
Quinn has to make the best out of a bad situation. There is no time to wallow in self-pity. The Commanders are 3-4 with a brutal stretch of games upcoming. This begins with a daunting trip to take on the Kansas City Chiefs on Monday Night Football.
Commanders are hopeful that Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel can feature in Week 8
Daniels' status for the game is unclear. However, Quinn offered a much more promising prognosis for two influential figures before preparations gathered pace for the team's Week 8 showdown.
The coach revealed during an appearance on SiriusXM NFL Radio that the plan is for Terry McLaurin and Deebo Samuel Sr. to get a whole week of practice before possibly featuring versus the Chiefs. Quinn sounded hopeful, but fans have heard it all before.
Commanders coach Dan Quinn said on @SiriusXMNFL earlier today that WRs Deebo Samuel (heel) and Terry McLaurin (quad) are "both trending right and the plan is to have full weeks of practice for them leading up to Monday night" in Kansas City.
— Nicki Jhabvala (@NickiJhabvala) October 22, 2025
McLaurin was expected to practice last week. He did almost nothing and was ruled out for the fourth-straight contest. Samuel toughed out his heel problem, but the Commanders opted not to risk it against the Cowboys. Until fans see both on the practice field getting their workload ramped up, they will remain skeptical.
The Commanders are trying to latch onto anything positive. Their slump is deeply concerning. A season that promised a great deal is falling by the wayside, so getting McLaurin and Samuel back into the fold will be a significant boost, regardless of who is under center at Arrowhead Stadium.
Washington's passing attack was anemic during its embarrassing loss to the Cowboys. They didn't have enough to keep pace, especially considering the defensive frailties and Daniels' injury in the third quarter. McLaurin and Samuel won't solve every problem the Commanders are dealing with, but it'll get them closer.
Obviously, this is a wait-and-see scenario. Quinn has given fans fool's gold before with McLaurin's progress, and it's amounted to nothing. Seeing is believing, so all eyes will be on practice this week.