– One final note: The Daniels stat over two straight games with all chances to score? Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, Peyton Manning and Drew Brees have combined to do it twice in 1,094 starts including playoffs.

— Trey McBride wasn’t ready to be a healthy tailback in his first NFL game of his 2022 rookie season. He was so used to playing. Now he’s too good not to play. However, injuries happen and McBride’s concussion will keep him out on Sunday. McBride has yet to have a breakout game in 2024, but he remains very important in the passing game and offense. He will be missed against a Washington defense vulnerable to tight ends.

Elijah Higgins expects to land the McBride role. Tip: Reiman could get a few more passes. And we should see Travis Vokolek active for the first time.

– It’s somewhat ironic that veteran tight end Zach Ertz, whose injury last season opened the door for McBride and ultimately led to Ertz demanding his release, will play for Washington in this game while McBride will be out with an injury.

– Speaking of injuries, Gannon was asked if rookie defenseman Darius Robinson, who is eligible to come off IR next week because of his calf issue, will be back. Gannon said he didn’t want to delve into hypotheticals. Rookie tackle Christian Jones and rookie cornerback Elijah Jones could theoretically return as well.

– Former Cardinals coach Kliff Kingsbury is back for this game as the Commanders’ offensive coordinator. He spoke about Murray and the Cardinals this week when Washington practiced locally at ASU, and it’s no surprise Kingsbury was kind to both Kyler and his time as coach.

On Murray: “He was fun to watch. At the end of last year I thought you could see the confidence coming back and made a lot of big plays and played really well. They were just a few plays away from being undefeated (when Kyler returned). You can see the speed and the competitive nature. It was great to see him throughout my career and I still believe in seeing him play for who he is.

As for the end of his tenure with the Cardinals, he was asked if he was bitter. “Not at all.”

“That’s why I still have my house here. I love it out here,” Kingsbury said. “I will always be grateful to Michael (Bidwill) for giving me the opportunity. He was the first fired college coach to ever get that opportunity. Some of the guys in this building are my closest friends and on the team, James Conner, Budda.” (Baker), they still inspire me. Nothing but positive memories.

– Sophomore and starting right tackle Kelvin Beachum is listed as questionable for a second straight game after missing last week with a hamstring injury. Charlie Heck is available on the practice squad, but last week’s PS starter Jackson Barton landed on IR this week after injuring his toe.

Meanwhile, right back Will Hernandez shrugs when asked if he has that many left neighbors in games so far – four in three games.

“It’s part of football, you know,” Hernandez said. “No one is promised you a perfect season, you are never promised a perfect scenario. So it would be pointless for me to say, ‘Oh, that sucks’ or ‘It’s different every week. That’s just the truth.’ “

– The defense played well at times and made some important plays. They amassed 26 negative plays, tied for the NFL lead.

– The Cardinals played the Commanders a little over a year ago. It was the 2023 season opener in Washington DC. The starting QBs were Joshua Dobbs and Sam Howell, and let me tell you, it seems Away more than a year ago.

– Marvin Harrison Jr. and Commanders cornerback Mike Sainristil know each other a little. They found themselves on opposite sides of one of college football’s biggest rivalries, with MHJ at Ohio State and Sainristil at Michigan. So Harrison was asked: Is the rivalry between the two still there?

“At some point you have to move on,” Harrison said. “College is behind us now. I didn’t win one, so there’s not much for me to talk about.”

Michigan has won three straight in the series – Harrison took part in all three.

– Kyler Murray’s next TD pass will be 100^Th his career.

– The Cardinals have just 14 penalties in three games. That’s their lowest total in their first three games since 2002. (You remember the 2002 Cardinals, right? Jake Plummer, David Boston in their final season in Arizona and a 4-2 start. We won’t talk about the rest of the season.)

– The final word belongs to Hernandez and the running game after the Cardinals struggled to run the ball last week. While Gannon said the Cardinals needed to be able to pass even if they couldn’t run, Hernandez focused on the floor.

“I am a firm believer that you have to be able to run the ball to open up space. We have players who can take things both ways and that’s what makes us so good, but at the end of the day we can do it. “We don’t rely on anyone else to do the job for us. In my opinion, it’s the O-line’s responsibility to get the game going and we can’t let it happen again. “