Two things can be true in Ashburn right now: Jayden Daniels finally has his WR1 back…and yet his Week 1 runway might already be slipping away. On paper, this Commanders offense still looks like the bully Dan Quinn and Adam Peters spent all offseason building for their new franchise QB. But in the NFL, all it takes is one quiet phone call to flip the whole blueprint upside down.

Reporter Heath Cummings dropped a nugget that’ll make every Commanders fan’s ears perk up: he thinks Washington has been shopping Brian Robinson Jr. Oh, and no team might be offering anything real in return. That’s your lead back being floated in August. And if the Commanders actually pull the trigger without bringing in another proven back, they’re basically daring Jayden Daniels to carry the show in pass-heavy spots before Halloween.

Why is that such a big deal? Because Brian Robinson was the tone-setter last season. He racked up 187 carries for 799 rushing yards and 8 rushing TDs in 2024, leading all Washington running backs in attempts and scores. He also chipped in 20 catches for 159 receiving yards. That’s a lot of early-down ballast and red-zone certainty to subtract from a team that leaned on the run to keep the offense on schedule.

Even with Jayden Daniels flashing the fireworks, Washington still leaned on the ground game as its backbone. The Commanders racked up 2,619 rushing yards and 25 touchdowns on the ground last season. Yeah, these are the numbers that let Kliff Kingsbury keep defenses guessing and tie the play-action game perfectly to Daniels’ legs.

And those legs? Absolute cheat code. Daniels ripped off 1,016 rushing yards and 10 scores on 143 carries as a rookie. While still throwing for 3,568 yards with 25 touchdowns and just 9 picks, by the way. His 70.6 Total QBR wasn’t just good, it was top-tier. That’s why you don’t ask a quarterback with that kind of profile to do even more of the heavy lifting on the ground in Year 2.

From a resource standpoint, shopping Robinson doesn’t really make anything better. He’s still on a modest rookie deal heading into Year 4, so trading him doesn’t suddenly open up cap room. It only rips a hole in a spot you’ve been leaning on to support your superstar. If Washington really isn’t impressed with the offers, the football logic is simple: keep him around unless you’ve got someone ready right now who can handle pass protection and grind out those tough short-yardage carries.

But as hard as it would make things for Daniels, the Commanders just activated a weapon for him.

Commanders activate wide receiver Terry McLaurin

The silver lining for Daniels? Washington officially activated Terry McLaurin off the PUP list on August 16, which ends his camp “hold-in” and puts QB1’s top target back in the huddle. After weeks of stop-and-go contract drama, just seeing No. 17 lining up in team drills again would feel like a big win.

By activating McLaurin, you just (hopefully) restored a receiver who hauled in 82 balls for 1,096 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2024, the kind of numbers that demand safety help and make every RPO glance route feel dangerous. And now with Deebo Samuel in the mix, Washington suddenly has YAC gravity all over the field.

That’s exactly why the backfield feels so massive on paper. Washington already did the heavy lifting to build around its young QB: Laremy Tunsil locked in at tackle, Kliff Kingsbury back for continuity, and a receiver room stacked with guys who can win after the catch. But if you pull the plug on the RB who steadied early downs last year and don’t replace him, you’re basically inviting the exact style of game that puts your biggest investment at risk.

But McLaurin? He’s off the PUP list, sure. But we still don’t know how the contract situation will unravel. Activating him is a big step towards something positive, but we cannot just assume he’ll be up and running. And if the contract talks don’t pan out the way fans want them to, and they shop Robinson? Tough times ahead for Jayden Daniels.