Commanders rule out defensive cornerstone for Christmas Day battle

LANDOVER, Md. – As the Washington Commanders prepare to host the Dallas Cowboys on Christmas Day, there is a high likelihood that the players who aren’t participating will have as much to do with the outcome of the game as those who are.

Entering the day, already ruled out by their teams are marquee players like Commanders quarterbacks Jayden Daniels and Marcus Mariota, along with Cowboys offensive tackle Tyler Guyton, who was placed on injured reserve this week, ending his season with two games left to play.

Because of the injuries, much of the game-day inactive list for Washington was already written before we even got to this point, but here are the players on both sides who won’t be active in Week 17.

Dec 22, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders defensive tackle Daron Payne (94) celebrates after a play during the third quarter against the Philadelphia Eagles at Northwest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images | Peter Casey-Imagn Images

Washington Commanders Game Day Inactive List

QB Sam Hartman (3rd Emergency QB)

LB Nick Bellore (concussion)

QB Jayden Daniels (elbow)

QB Marcus Mariota (hand/quad)

DT Daron Payne (back)

OT Laremy Tunsil (oblique)

RB Chris Rodriguez Jr. (illness)

Just hours before the game was set to kick off we discovered that running back and one of the team captains for the day, Chris Rodriguez Jr. had fallen ill and was downgraded to questionable for the game.

Dec 9, 2024; Arlington, Texas, USA; Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown (30) runs with the ball as Dallas Cowboys linebacker DeMarvion Overshown (13) defends during the second half at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images | Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

Dallas Cowboys Game Day Inactive List

OT Tyler Guyton (ankle)

LB DeMarvion Overshown (concussion)

CB Caelen Carson (hamstring)

WR Ryan Flournoy (knee)

RB Jaydon Blue

DT Jay Toia

DT Perrion Winfrey

Dec 7, 2025; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Josh Johnson (14) practices before the game at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-Imagn Images | Brad Rempel-Imagn Images

Veteran takes over at quarterback

With Daniels and Mariota determined as inactive before we reached game day, we already knew that veteran backup Josh Johnson would start at quarterback for the team, making his first start since the 2021 NFL season when he was a part of the Baltimore Ravens’ organization.

Johnson is 1-8 in nine career NFL starts, but that one victory came in 2018 during his first stint playing football in Washington.

Practice squad elevations provide depth

To give the Commanders a little bit of coverage in case the injury bug continues to run through their quarterback room, the team signed Sam Hartman to the active roster, making him eligible to be the third emergency quarterback against the Commanders.

They also elevated defensive tackle Ricky Barber and receiver River Cracraft from the practice squad. Barber may get some rotational work with Payne out for the contest, but it is expected that Jer’Zhan ‘Johnny’ Newton and Sheldon Day will be the first two who see increased work in place of the veteran.

Cracraft’s expectations are mostly on special teams, though he could see some work as a rotational receiver, especially if the game were to get out of hand late in the afternoon.

Cowboys make late roster moves

Dallas signed cornerback Corey Ballentine to its active roster and elevated linebacker Justin Barron from the practice squad for Thursday afternoon.

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