LONDON —
The Commanders are headed back to Washington dealing with yet another quarterback injury.
That makes for an unpleasant flight home after Washington lost 30-13 to the Indianapolis Colts at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Sunday.
Marcus Mariota lasted just two drives in his second straight start in place of Jayden Daniels, who dislocated his left elbow in Week 2 against Dallas but might be back soon.
Mariota sustained a knee injury while getting sacked. So the Commanders (1-3) turned to rookie Athan Kaliakmanis, a rookie seventh-round draft pick out of Rutgers.
“Athan came in after 12 plays. That’s not the ideal space to begin it, but I thought he also showed a lot of confidence, some fearlessness with that, and made some of the throws to highlight why he is where he is,” coach Dan Quinn said.
“As far as a full team, I didn’t think we did enough around him,” Quinn added. “I loved the way the defense started, created takeaways but to only get field goals out of those ... those were ones that we needed to nail.”
Washington led 6-0 on field goals from Drew Stevens, but from there the Colts took control. Indy took a 10-6 lead into halftime.
Jaylon Carlies’ third-quarter interception of Kaliakmanis in Washington territory set up Jonathan Taylor’s second 5-yard touchdown run to make it 17-6.
Kaliakmanis said that interception was the one time he tried to do too much.
“There’s no need to try to put the cape on ... The one time I did, it was a pick. Maybe I could have put a little more loft on it ... maybe I could have thrown it away,” he said.
The highlight of his day was hitting Treylon Burks on a 47-yard touchdown pass that closed the gap to 17-13.
“It was surreal, man, it was absolutely surreal,” Kaliakmanis said, “but I’ve got to be honest, right now I’m just thinking about the loss. It’s not about me. It’s about this team.
“There were some very blessed moments for me,” he added, “but at the end of the day I’m a winner and today we did not win.”
The rookie said he’s looking forward to studying film of the game to make corrections. He completed 15 of 33 passes for 186 yards with one touchdown and the interception.
“I’m eager to get back after it,” he said. “I don’t know what the situation is going to be like, but I’m going to wake up and prepare like I’m the starter.”
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