The Washington Commanders are in their first NFC Championship Game in 33 years. However, they’ll be without one of their defensive line cogs. The team announced Saturday that defensive tackle Daron Payne has been downgraded to out for Sunday’s championship game against the Philadelphia Eagles with a finger and knee injury.
According to Ben Standig of The Athletic, Payne busted his finger in Washington’s wild-card round win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Yet, he landed on this week’s injury report with a knee issue.
JP Finlay of NBC Sports added that Payne was trying to get through the knee injury, but his knee was wrapped with a big ice pack. Payne will miss just his second game since being drafted in 2018.
Nonetheless, not having Payne in the lineup will be a massive loss for the Commanders’ defense, who will be tasked with slowing down the league’s best running back this season, Eagles star Saquon Barkley.
Washington elevated defensive tackle Carl Davis off the practice squad for Sunday’s game.
The Commanders used a four-man rotation in their two playoff games against Tampa Bay and the Detroit Lions. Payne played 55 of Washington’s 117 defensive snaps in those wins. Jonathan Allen, rookie Johnny Newton, and Sheldon Day were also in the DT rotation.
Allen played 66 snaps in the two playoff games; Day played 45, and Newton played 44.
How the Commanders replace Payne in the rotation may be key to stopping the Eagles’ potent offense.
