Hold on with Terry McLaurin. He practiced some on Wednesday, but it’s too early to say with certainty that he’ll be playing on Sunday. And that would be big, with a leaky Dallas secondary on tap.
McLaurin injured his quad on a 56-yard catch in Week 3 against Las Vegas. Dan Quinn before each of their last two games that he was hopeful McLaurin would be able to play, but the receiver didn’t practice at all in this weeks.
McLaurin was a limited participant at practice on Wednesday, making it look likely he’d be back. But he was a DNP today, making him look more up in the air. If he doesn’t practice again on Friday, it will be looking like his return is at least a week away.
Deebo Samuel (heel) also hasn’t practiced at all, making it seem the Commanders might be without both of their starting wide receivers.
These injuries are particularly notable this week, with the Commanders playing at Dallas. The Cowboys currently have the league’s leakiest pass defense, allowing 287 yards per week, and with five consecutive opponents throwing multiple touchdown passes. If Deebo and Scary Terry are healthy, they’ll be candidates for big numbers.
If they’re out, then what’s left will look like waiver-wire possibilities for those in larger leagues looking for a Week 7 plug-in receiver. But the options are fairly modest.
Chris Moore has started the last three games for McLaurin, but with limited results – no catches against the Falcons or Chargers but 3 catches for 46 yards against the Bears, with a touchdown. Moore is very much a journeyman – he’s in his 10th year (with five different teams) but has never reached 600 yards in a season.
Luke McCaffrey isn’t playing as much but has been more impactful. Four weeks in a row, he’s been on the field for just short of 40 percent of their plays, but he’s chipped in a big play in all of those games – 43- and 33-yard touchdowns, a 50-yard catch and another touchdown. He’s also had 2 kickoff returns over 60 yards. With the number of breakdowns the Cowboys have had, there’s a decent chance McCaffrey will hit on something.
Jaylin Lane has been logging playing time similar to McCaffrey, but with less pop. He scored on a punt return at Atlanta but has caught only 4 passes for 71 yards in his last three games. He has never caught a touchdown as a pro.
Washington expected veteran Noah Brown to be its third receiver, but he’s on injured reserve. He caught only 3 passes for 36 yards in the first two games and hasn’t played since.
The Commanders have activated Tay Martin off their practice squad the last three games, but he’s caught only 2 passes for 23 yards.
It’s the opponent that makes these receivers look like decent dart throws. Dallas has been awfully leaky. The Giants, Bears and Packers all put up monster passing numbers against this defense.
The passing numbers weren’t as prolific in the other games. In the opener, Philadelphia’s offense was stodgy and conservative, with Jalen Hurts completing short passes underneath. And on Sunday, Carolina ran the ball so well that it didn’t wind up passing all that much.
In six games, the Cowboys have allowed huge numbers against three wide receivers, and solid stats against four others.
| WIDE RECEIVERS AGAINST THE COWBOYS | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Result | Tgt | No | Yds | Avg | TD | PPR |
| Malik Nabers, NYG | L, 37-40 | 13 | 9 | 167 | 18.6 | 2 | 37.7 |
| Romeo Doubs, G.B. | T, 40-40 | 8 | 6 | 58 | 9.7 | 3 | 29.8 |
| Wan'Dale Robinson, NYG | L, 37-40 | 10 | 8 | 142 | 17.8 | 1 | 28.2 |
| Garrett Wilson, NYJ | L, 22-37 | 10 | 6 | 71 | 11.8 | 1 | 19.1 |
| Luther Burden, Chi. | W, 31-14 | 3 | 3 | 101 | 33.7 | 1 | 19.1 |
| Tetairoa McMillan, Car. | W, 30-27 | 5 | 3 | 29 | 9.7 | 2 | 17.9 |
| Rome Odunze, Chi. | W, 31-14 | 7 | 3 | 62 | 20.7 | 1 | 15.2 |
| DJ Moore, Chi. | W, 31-14 | 5 | 4 | 21 | 5.3 | 1 | 12.1 |
| Matthew Golden, G.B. | T, 40-40 | 6 | 5 | 58 | 11.6 | 0 | 10.8 |
| Jahan Dotson, Phi. | W, 24-20 | 3 | 3 | 59 | 19.7 | 0 | 8.9 |
| Darius Slayton, NYG | L, 37-40 | 3 | 2 | 61 | 30.5 | 0 | 8.1 |
| Josh Reynolds, NYJ | L, 22-37 | 4 | 3 | 29 | 9.7 | 0 | 5.9 |
| Jimmy Horn, Car. | W, 30-27 | 2 | 2 | 36 | 18.0 | 0 | 5.6 |
| Olamide Zaccheaus, Chi. | W, 31-14 | 4 | 3 | 24 | 8.0 | 0 | 5.4 |
| Savion Williams, G.B. | T, 40-40 | 3 | 3 | 22 | 7.3 | 0 | 5.2 |
| DeVonta Smith, Phi. | W, 24-20 | 3 | 3 | 16 | 5.3 | 0 | 4.6 |
| Dontayvion Wicks, G.B. | T, 40-40 | 4 | 2 | 19 | 9.5 | 0 | 3.9 |
| Xavier Legette, Car. | W, 30-27 | 2 | 2 | 11 | 5.5 | 0 | 3.1 |
| Arian Smith, NYJ | L, 22-37 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 14.0 | 0 | 2.4 |
| Malik Heath, G.B. | T, 40-40 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 | 1.9 |
| A.J. Brown, Phi. | W, 24-20 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 8.0 | 0 | 1.8 |
| Hunter Renfrow, Car. | W, 30-27 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 7.0 | 0 | 1.7 |
| Allen Lazard, NYJ | L, 22-37 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3.0 | 0 | 1.3 |
—Ian Allan