The Washington Commanders (2-1) head back on the road this week with a trip to Atlanta to face the reeling Falcons (1-2). While Washington is dealing with multiple injuries on both sides of the ball, the Falcons are coming off an ugly and embarrassing 30-0 loss to the Carolina Panthers.

Will Jayden Daniels be healthy enough to start at quarterback for the Commanders? Or will Marcus Mariota receive his second start? If Daniels can do everything at 100%, he’ll be back under center. But the Commanders could also be without star wide receiver Terry McLaurin, who suffered a groin injury in the Week 3 win.

Here are five things to get us ready for Sunday’s matchup between the Commanders and Falcons.

All-time series history

Washington leads the all-time series, 18-10-1. The two NFC franchises have played each of the last four years, with the Commanders winning every meeting. All four of these games have been decided by eight points or less, including last December’s game, which Washington won 30-24 in overtime. Daniels led the Commanders on a touchdown drive in overtime, finding tight end Zach Ertz for the game-winning score. That win clinched Washington’s first playoff berth since 2020.

Marcus Mariota’s history with the Falcons

In one of those four recent meetings where Washington beat Atlanta, Mariota was under center for the Falcons (2022). Unfortunately, Mariota’s one season in Atlanta ended prematurely, leaving a sour taste in his mouth. Atlanta was 5-8 late in the season, and the coaching staff wanted to give rookie quarterback Desmond Ridder a chance to play with the playoffs out of the question. Mariota had no problem with that; instead, he chose to undergo surgery for a chronic knee injury and went home for the birth of his first daughter. His departure was framed as him quitting the team. If you ask any teammate who has ever played with Mariota, including his current team, that depiction couldn’t be further from the truth. Mariota set the record straight on his departure, and he was justifiably unhappy with how he was portrayed.

Dan Quinn’s first trip to Atlanta since he was fired as head coach

Dan Quinn was Atlanta’s head coach from 2015-20, before he was fired five games into that final season. He has played the Falcons since, including once when he was the defensive coordinator of the Dallas Cowboys. Then, last season, Quinn faced the Falcons again, downplaying any resentment toward the team that gave him his first head coaching job. Quinn praised the Falcons’ organization, including owner Arthur Blank. Quinn is 2-0 against Atlanta since he was fired. He’d never admit it to anyone, including his players, but winning in Atlanta, dropping the Falcons to 1-3, would feel good for Quinn. Quinn was 43-42 as Atlanta’s head coach, with a 3-2 mark in the playoffs. He led the Falcons to Super Bowl LI before they blew a historic lead against the Patriots.

Falcons coach Raheem Morris replaced Quinn in 2020

When the Falcons fired Quinn in 2020, they replaced him with then-defensive coordinator Raheem Morris. Morris happens to be in his second season as Atlanta’s head coach. After that 2020 season ended, Morris had some support to be the new head coach, but the Falcons opted for Arthur Smith. After firing Smith at the end of the 2023 season, they hired Morris — the same year Washington hired Quinn. Morris, like everyone else, has glowing things to say about Quinn. They worked together for the entirety of Quinn’s time in Atlanta, and Quinn promoted Morris multiple times.

“Dan Quinn gives me credit for that (how Morris relates with people), but he gets credit for being the best connector I’ve ever been around,” Morris said in 2024. “I watched this man connect with everybody. You want to talk about a great listener. Dan Quinn has the patience like I’ve never seen. He can sit there and listen, and I don’t know if he believed me or not, but he made me believe he believed me, and that’s all that really matters.”

No Kirk Cousins for Atlanta

No one expected former Washington quarterback Kirk Cousins to be in play to start this game before the season. However, when Morris benched starting quarterback Michael Penix Jr. in the second half of Sunday’s loss, reporters asked Morris if Cousins would have a chance to compete for the starting job. Morris offered an emphatic “No” and did not expound upon his answer. Penix wasn’t benched for performance reasons, Morris said; it was about self-preservation. When Cousins played his old team last season, he had just been benched for Penix.