Heading into Week 4's London matchup against the Indianapolis Colts, the Washington Commanders were riding a surprising high after backup quarterback Marcus Mariota led the franchise to a surprising 33-31 win over the reigning Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.
However, a knee injury in the first half cut his day short as the Commanders were forced to turn to rookie seventh-round pick Athan Kaliakmanis, who became the first quarterback drafted out of Rutgers to attempt an NFL pass since Mike McMahon in 2005. With Washington losing yet another starter so early in the season, the NFL world couldn't help but react to the news.
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NFL World Reacts to Washington Commanders QB Athan Kaliakmanis Coming Into Week 4 London Game
The Commanders were already down starting quarterback Jayden Daniels after he suffered a dislocated elbow in Week 2 against the Dallas Cowboys.
However, backup and longtime veteran Mariota also went down in Washington's Week 4 London matchup against the Colts, forcing the Commanders to turn to seventh-round rookie Kaliakmanis.
According to a physical therapist and injury analyst, Jeff Mueller posted a video of the injury, explaining
, "Better view here on Marcus Mariota's right leg. Ouch. Ankle pinned by defender and knee bent inwards. Might get X-Rays to rule out fibula injury. Probably mostly concerned on an MCL injury and/or high ankle. Good thing Jayden Daniels might play Week 5."
At halftime, Mariota was ruled out for the remainder of the game with a knee injury, with Underdog posting
, "Status alert: Marcus Mariota (knee) won't return Sunday."
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Barstool Sports PFT Commenter shared a video from JP Finlay of Kaliakmanis, saying
, "Might be Athan time. This guy is about to set the world on fire."
In Finlay's video, Kaliakmanis can be heard saying, "Constantly getting better and preparing, always preparing. Now it's time to work harder than I ever have in my entire life. You know, it's when you think you're preparing hard enough, it's like, nope, another step to it, nope, another step to it. It's just getting better because you just never know, you never know what's gonna happen, you never know when it's gonna be your time."
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Sports journalist Kelsey Nicole Nelson couldn't help but feel bad for the veteran, saying
, "Hate to see that injury to Marcus Mariota."
With Kaliakmanis being a seventh-round draft pick out of Rutgers, many haven't heard of the signal-caller before. Tom Pelissero posted
, "With Marcus Mariota in the locker room, rookie QB Athan Kaliakmanis is about to make his NFL debut. Here was the word on him before the draft, in which the Commanders took him in the seventh round (223rd overall)."
Pro Football Network's account on X shared a GIF of Druski to indicate how Kaliakmanis would have been surprised to play in Week 4.
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The text in the post read:
"Athan Kaliakmanis, get in the game"
Thankfully for the Commanders, who ranked 17th on PFN's Offense Impact Metric
before Week 4, it sounds like Daniels may be ready to return in Week 5, which will be needed as the offense has struggled to get much going with the rookie under center.
This article originally appeared on
Pro Football Network
.
