Washington’s quarterback situation just got a whole lot wilder against the Colts in London when Marcus Mariota went down with an injury, forcing rookie Athan Kaliakmanis onto the field for his first professional snaps. Remember, this is the same Commanders squad that upset our Seahawks back in Week 3, with Mariota at the helm because Jayden Daniels was already dealing with an elbow issue. Now, they’ve dug even deeper into their depth chart.
Kaliakmanis Throws a Dime in His Debut
This kid, Kaliakmanis, is a 23-year-old rookie, plucked in the seventh round of April’s NFL Draft. He had some preseason action but was firmly behind Mariota heading into the regular season. So, when Mariota had to head to the locker room, it was game on for the young guy. He finished the game with 186 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. That deep touchdown throw to Treylon Burks? Yeah, that was his first in the pros, and it was a beauty. You gotta wonder if Mike Macdonald’s defense is already taking notes.
From Minnesota to Rutgers, Now The Pros
Kaliakmanis’s journey to the NFL wasn’t exactly a straight shot, but hey, whose is? He spent three seasons slinging it at Minnesota before transferring to Rutgers for two years, where he started for the Scarlet Knights in both the 2024 and 2025 seasons. His brother, Dino, even followed him to Rutgers from Minnesota after the 2023 season. In 2024, Athan put up 2,696 yards, 18 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. Then, in 2025, he cranked it up to 3,124 yards, 20 touchdowns, and seven interceptions. According to the NFL Network broadcast, he’s the first Rutgers quarterback to even take regular season snaps since way back in 2005. When we played the Commanders in Week 3, we thought we knew what we were up against. Now, there’s another name to watch.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
Leave a Reply