Everyone in the Washington Commanders organization is on Jayden Daniels watch as the rookie looks to overcome a rib injury sustained against the Carolina Panthers.
While backup Marcus Mariota stepped in for Daniels, and played well...really well, the hope is that Jayden will start against the Chicago Bears.
Head coach Dan Quinn stated the team wouldn't know much about Daniels' status until Friday's practice, leaving Mariota unsure of exactly what his role is on gameday.
But for now, he's the incumbent starter, which means his week looks a little different.
"It's just little things," Mariota said. "It's sitting here talking you guys [media], maybe it's a question or I get maybe five minutes a week with somebody whereas now there's a kind of specific moment. So those things are a little different in the routine, but for the most part I just kind of focus on what my weekly routine is continue to do that, and let kind of everything else fall into place and be ready to play on Sunday."
So despite the week being vastly different to what he's experienced in the first seven weeks of the season, Mariota is taking it all in his stride and if his number is called, he'll be ready to go.
With a nice performance against the Panthers in his back pocket that saw Marcus go 18 for 23 for 205 yards and two touchdowns to hang 40 points on Dave Canales' team, if Mariota is to start against the Bears, he has confidence that he can execute Kliff Kingsbury's scheme to a high level.
So, while the week is different for Mariota, and he likely won't know his status until closer to game day, so it's business as usual for the veteran.
Control what he can control and see where it takes him.
