Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin is one of those players that Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels can count on to get open downfield. McLaurin has proven to be a vital asset to head coach Dan Quinn’s offensive plans. However, the 30-year-old wide receiver has been dealing with an injury situation that has ruled him out of the Week 6 game against the Chicago Bears.
Terry McLaurin Injury Update
McLaurin has been dealing with a quad injury and didn’t play in the Commanders’ Week 5, 27-10 victory over the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. Washington did not practice on Tuesday, so there was some hope that McLaurin might get some practice time in on Wednesday.
However, that didn’t happen as McLaurin didn’t practice, and his progress was still being monitored by the Commanders’ medical staff. He was spotted in the practice on Thursday, but he was not in uniform. Later, it was confirmed that the Commanders star did not practice.
McLaurin also did not practice on Friday and was officially ruled out on Saturday for the Week 6 game against the Chicago Bears.
On Wednesday, Dr. Jesse Morse offered some thoughts on McLaurin’s timeline to return to the field. “So Terry McLaurin has been dealing with a quad strain and probably a sports hernia for about the last month,” Morse said in his post on X. “Now they chose not to put him on IR, but there’s a possibility that they should have.”
Morse also mentioned that these types of quad strains can be “annoying and just not healing like you want it to.” He then went on to add that McLaurin may return this week, but he’s not confident about it, even though it’s a Monday night game against the Chicago Bears at home.
McLaurin was drafted in the third round by Washington in the 2019 NFL Draft. He’s played all seven of his NFL seasons with Washington, who currently sit sixth in PFSN’s Offensive Impact Rankings with an offensive impact score of 86.7.
This season, in three games, McLaurin has 10 receptions for 149 yards and no touchdowns. He’s had five consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons between 2020 and 2024. While Quinn had some hope that McLaurin could return, the Commanders will have to wait more for their star receiver to be back on the field.
Commanders Players’ Fantasy Outlook for Week 6
Here’s what PFSN’s Kyle Soppe wrote about the Commanders players’ fantasy outlooks for the Week 6 game against the Chicago Bears:
Jayden Daniels
I saw everything I needed and then some from Jayden Daniels in his return from the knee injury that cost him two games. In the win over the Chargers last week, he ran eight times for 39 yards and closed the deal with something of a fadeaway pass, out of the pocket, right on the money to Deebo Samuel in the end zone.
Chicago owns a vulnerable defense and an offense with some upside. I expect this to be a fun end to the week, and I have both QBs ranked as top-eight options for that reason.
Jacory Croskey-Merritt
Jacory Croskey-Merritt has a 4.7% Boom vs. Bust rate this season, and among players with at least 40 carries, that’s the top mark by a decent amount. “Boom vs. Bust” is simply the difference in percentage of carries that “boom” (gain 10-plus yards) against the percentage of carries that “bust” (fail to gain yardage).
His carry count is smaller, so drastic swings can happen, but through five weeks, his rate is more than double that of Jonathan Taylor, the running back drawing LaDainian Tomlinson comparisons.
The advanced metrics, like the one they call “Bill” before his big Week 5 performance against the Chargers, aren’t backing down. His usage is likely to tick up after the breakout game, and with 72.1% of his carries resulting in more yards after contact than the positional average, I see no reason to pump the brakes.
He’s my favorite running back in this game, and I could see a scenario where you have to decide between him and Derrick Henry this week… I have Croskey-Merritt ranked one spot higher. What a world.
Deebo Samuel Sr.
The prevailing narrative this summer was that the Commanders overspent on a veteran receiver, and while it may help them win games, the fantasy impact would be minimal.
Wrong, wrong, wrong. Washington is bouncing him in and out of the slot with all sorts of success. His target rate sits at 26%, and while some of that is due to Terry McLaurin’s health, he has looked great physically.
Last season, 19.8% of his targets came deep downfield, a mark that has increased to 34.2% through five weeks. The touchdown against the Chargers was a great display of nonverbal communication with Jahan Dotson, and that’s the type of thing we love to see.
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The versatility is hit-and-miss (three carries in two games this season, one total rush attempt in the other three), but if he’s going to be good for six catches per game, any value added on the ground is a bonus.
His value would be dinged a touch if McLaurin returns to action, but he’ll be a top-20 receiver for me regardless, with the second-worst completion percentage defense on the slate.