To Practice reported | Jahan Dotson questionable, Logan Thomas out vs. Packers
Taylor Heinicke could be without some of the Washington Commanders‘ weapons this weekend against the Green Bay Packers.
Tight ends Logan Thomas and Dyami Brown will be out for the Week 7 matchup. John Bates and Jahan Dotson will be questionable with hamstring injuries.
Dotson, who has been inactive for the Commanders’ previous two games, was a limited participant on Wednesday and Thursday but absent on Friday. Dotson tweaked his hamstring again on Thursday while running routes in individual drills. The team will see how he feels on Saturday before making a decision.
Thomas has dealt with a calf injury since the Friday before Washington’s game against the Tennessee Titans. After Wednesday’s practice, Thomas said in the locker room that he was trending in the right direction. However, he did not participate in practice all week and was going through drills on the side field with the rest of the injured players.
Brown did not have much of an impact against the Bears but showed his value against the Titans with a career high 105 yards and two touchdowns. Bates, who has been the best blocking tight end in the NFL by Pro Football Focus’ metrics for the past two years, has nine receptions for 73 yards but is invaluable to Washington’s ground attack. According to Ron Rivera, Bates had a good day on Friday, but like Dotson, the team will monitor him before determining his status.
The losses are certainly hits to the Commanders’ depth at both positions, but the team feels that it is deep enough to handle the lack of production. Aside from Terry McLaurin, Washington still has Curtis Samuel as the No. 2 option. Heinicke did not throw much to Samuel last season, as the wideout dealt with several injuries, but he is confident in their chemistry on the field.
It’s amazing and I’ve been with him in Carolina, so the timing with me and him is I feel like it’s there,” Heinicke said.
Heinicke has not thrown much to Dotson in practice, although he knows what kind of impact the rookie can have and it excited about the prospect of playing alongside him.
“He’s a smart guy,” Heinicke said. “He makes a lot of good plays, and I feel like I have a lot of trust in him. I’m sure he has the same in me.
As for tight end, Thomas being out means that Cole Turner will get an opportunity for the third straight game. Turner was active for the first time against the Titans but made his first catch against the Bears. Turner finished the 12-7 victory with two receptions for 23 yards.
“You could see him getting better, more comfortable from one week to the next,” offensive coordinator Scott Turner said of the young tight end. “Just playing faster. That’s the biggest thing when you’re a young player understanding the speed of the game. When you try to feel your way through everything it doesn’t work out, you just gotta go.”
In other injury news, William Jackson III (back) and Jonathan Williams (knee) have been ruled out. Offensive tackle Sam Cosmi, who returned to practice this week and practiced with a cast around his left hand, will be questionable.
