Terry McLaurin just said what every Commanders fan wanted to hear
Terry McLaurin is gearing up to make his triumphant return for the Washington Commanders in Week 8 against the Kansas City Chiefs. The wide receiver has been sorely missed, and he needs to hit the ground running for this offense to stay competitive versus a team expected to go deep into the playoffs once again.
There will be no Jayden Daniels for McLaurin to depend upon on Monday Night Football. The superstar quarterback has been ruled out with a low-grade hamstring strain, but Marcus Mariota is a capable understudy. And the signal-caller won't be complaining when he sees Washington's No. 1 wideout, together with versatile weapon Deebo Samuel Sr., lining up alongside him.
McLaurin's been an innocent bystander in the last four games, which has been deeply frustrating. This is even more significant given that he missed the entire summer due to a contract standoff. He got his money, but only when the extension worked for general manager Adam Peters.
Terry McLaurin confident he'll have no restrictions in long-awaited Commanders return
But after false hope from Dan Quinn over the last couple of weeks, things look much more promising now. McLaurin and Samuel have both been full participants in practice, and based on the former Ohio State star's comments during his first media appearance since his quad/hip problem, he'll have no limitations whatsoever.
I think if there’s one thing that you kind of got to keep in mind during the rehab process, like, it’s a very controlled environment, which is great for anybody that’s hurt. But when you go out there and the guardrails are off, you know there’s a lot of unexpected things that can happen. And so, to be able to just be myself without any hindrance and pain is extremely important.Terry McLaurin via The Athletic
This is precisely what Commanders fans wanted to hear. It's been an arduous process, not helped by Washington's on-field inconsistencies. At the same time, desperately throwing McLaurin back into the lineup at less than 100 percent would only increase the risk of further complications.
It's the most positive injury update so far, and the fact that it comes from McLaurin himself makes it even better. Expecting miracles right away might be pushing it, especially without Daniels. However, his presence alone should be enough to give everyone in the locker room a massive lift at a time when morale is probably dwindling.
McLaurin is one of the league's most consistent receivers when fit and firing on all cylinders. The Commanders still have a monumental challenge awaiting them, but their chances improve exponentially with the second-team All-Pro returning from his lengthy absence.
Patriots Backup QB Making Most of Limited Opportunities
When the New England Patriots signed Joshua Dobbs in March, the idea scenario would have the free agent be a valuable mentor for young quarterback Drake Maye. On paper, the best-case scenario wouldn’t involve Dobbs on the field, unless it’s in mop up duty in a blowout win. In the team’s victory against the Tennessee Titans in Week 7, Dobbs was thrust into action after Maye was evaluated for a concussion.
On his lone passing attempt, Dobbs made an immediate impact, avoiding numerous tackles in the backfield before firing a strike to DeMario Douglas across his body for a first down. That conversion, along with how he’s handled himself in the facility, has won over his head coach.
“I've enjoyed being around him,” Mike Vrabel said this week. “He's a professional, he understands, I think he's good for the quarterback, good for Drake (Maye), good for Tommy (DeVito), and he's prepared. As much as we've talked about those practices on Thursday or our red zone on Friday, that those are competitive reps for everybody, I think that those have been great reps for Josh and Tommy to get during the season.”
Maye agrees, saying this week that having Dobbs complete that play on third down was electric — even though he could only hear it from inside the blue medical tent.
"He Made The Play Of The Day"
“Credit to Dobbs,” Maye said. “He made the play of the day. He came in, evaded a sack, and threw a dime. It was good to see that. From the blue tent, I was looking through the top of the blue tent and saw it."
“I heard a reaction, a cheer,” Maye added. “What a catch. I saw it on the Jumbotron after. That was a sweet play.”
Dobbs’ first year in New England comes just as Maye crescendos into one of the league’s top signal callers. That doesn’t mean that Dobbs is pouting on the sideline. Instead, Vrabel says their backup has only helped himself in how he conducts himself on the practice field.
“You just don't get a whole lot of reps, and so you have to use those as your preparation reps and your game reps to read it out,” Vrabel said. “That's why we're not highlighting somebody and saying, ‘Throw the ball here.’ Throw the ball to the guy that's open and play quarterback. We don't want to practice like that and say this is what they're going to do. We don't know what they're going to do. So, I think those reps that he has in practice really help him. And again, it's good to see that he was prepared last week to go in, execute and help us.”
