Commanders' Jayden Daniels returns to practice and says he plans to play against the Chargers

ASHBURN, Va. (AP) — Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels was medically cleared by team doctors and practiced on Wednesday after missing two games with an injured left knee, then declared: “I plan on going out there on Sunday.”

Daniels wore a brace on his knee during practice, something he said he doesn't love but will do during a game if needed.

"He’s definitely chomping at the bit to get going," coach Dan Quinn said.

Washington (2-2) plays at the Los Angeles Chargers (3-1) on Sunday.

Asked whether he expects to play, Daniels responded: “I guess we’ll have to see Sunday.”

And when a reporter wanted to know whether Daniels might wear a brace against the Chargers, he broke into a wide smile and replied: "I guess we got to see on Sunday.”

Daniels said he thought he was ready to get back on the field the past two weeks, but it wasn't until this past weekend that Washington's medical staff thought he looked like he was back to being himself.

Another bit of good news for the injury-hit Commanders arrived on Wednesday: Starting right guard Sam Cosmi began his 21-day practice window after starting the season on the physically unable to perform list.

Cosmi tore the ACL in his knee during the playoffs last season, when Daniels led the club to the NFC title game.

Daniels, last season's AP Offensive Rookie of the Year, got hurt in the fourth quarter of Washington's 27-18 loss at the Green Bay Packers on Sept. 11 and has not played since — or even been able to go through everything in practice with teammates.

The QB has been working on his own, including this weekend while the team was in Atlanta for a game, and did return to practicing in a limited fashion last week.

Without him, the Commanders went 1-1 while starting Marcus Mariota at quarterback, beating the Las Vegas Raiders 41-24 in Week 3, then losing to the Atlanta Falcons 34-27 in Week 4.

“As a competitor, you want to go out there and help your teammates any way possible,” Daniels said. “Being sidelined these past couple weeks, it was super tough.”

Quinn declined to offer any sort of specific updates before practice about other injured players, such as wide receivers Terry McLaurin and Noah Brown or tight end John Bates. The three of them sat out the game at Atlanta.

“All are trending up,” Quinn said.

McLaurin, who missed training camp while negotiating a new contract, injured his quadriceps muscle on a catch against Las Vegas and missed every practice last week.

The 2024 second-team All-Pro is Washington's best receiver, and Quinn previously gave McLaurin's status as “week to week.”

In two personnel moves Wednesday, Washington signed wideout Robbie Chosen to its practice squad and put defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste on injured reserve with a torn pectoral muscle that needs surgery.

___

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl