Left tackle Laremy Tunsil is inactive, while defensive end Drake Jackson will be available to make his debut as a Washington Commander when they host the Philadelphia Eagles on Saturday.
Days after both quarterback Jayden Daniels and wide receiver Noah Brown were ruled out for the final three games of the regular season, the Washington Commanders got more mixed injury news on Thursday ahead of Saturday's home game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Head coach Dan Quinn said that left tackle Laremy Tunsil is not expected to play, while defensive end Drake Jackson is expected to make his 2025 debut.
Tunsil left last Sunday's win against the New York Giants with a rib injury before being ruled out for the remainder of the game with an oblique injury. Tunsil, who is reportedly eyeing an offseason extension, was one of four who did not practice on Tuesday and was limited as a limited participant alongside Jayden Daniels during Wednesday's practice.
"Laremy has a strained oblique and he will be out. Tried to go at practice [Wednesday] and just not there yet so hopefully get him back for the following game but not for this one," Quinn said.
While George Fant has been a full participant in practice both Tuesday and Thursday, Tunsil's absence could pave the way for second-year lineman Brandon Coleman to draw the start against a talented Eagles' defensive line. Coleman started the first two games at left guard before being replaced, though after starting 16 games during his rookie season, Quinn noted Coleman "had been ready, he was ready, he looked ready and performed that way" after logging 34 snaps against the Giants.
"I also saw a guy working guard and tackle who's been our jumbo [lineman]," Quinn said Thursday. "So there's some things like let's get him back in the fight, get him back into it. I saw good practice habits, number one, so I wasn't surprised that he performed well because this wasn't a guy that put his head down and sulked about it. He said 'okay, I'm going to go to work and get to it.' It's not always smooth but I thought that showed a lot about his resilience to say okay, yeah these are not circumstances that I want, but I'm going to go battle for it. And when called, if called, he would show and demonstrate that he was ready. And some people bullshit themselves and say they'll be ready but like you'll have to put the work in to do that. And I've certainly seen that from [Brandon Coleman]."
Meanwhile, defensive end Drake Jackson will be available to play on Saturday.
"Drake had a good week. Kind of started last week, the individual piece. We're ramping up hopefully to look at this game as one for him to go and yeah, he will be able to play," Quinn confirmed on Thursday.
Jackson's 21-day window was activated back on Nov. 13, marking Saturday his potential debut as a Commander. Jackson, a former second-round pick by the 49ers in 2022, was placed on the injured reserve list during the 2023 season and missed the 2024 season after undergoing patellar tendon surgery.
Saturday marks the first of two matchups against the Eagles over the next three weeks for the Washington Commanders.