Washington Commanders defensive end Javontae Jean-Baptiste will be out for “a while” after suffering a torn pectoral muscle in Sunday’s 34-27 loss at Atlanta, head coach Dan Quinn told reporters Monday.
Jean-Baptiste will be placed on injured reserve, but the expectation is that he’ll be sidelined longer than the four games required for an IR stint. While Quinn was non-committal on a specific timeline before surgery, he said that torn pecs normally require recoveries that last months, not weeks.
“We’re bummed for him. He’s worked hard to come back from injuries and was starting to make his move again,” Quinn said. “Definitely a setback for him, and a blow for us as well.”
Jean-Baptiste, 25, has carved out a rotational role on the Commanders’ defense despite being a seventh-round pick in the 2024 draft by Washington. He’s appeared in 15 games (one start), recording 19 tackles, two sacks, two tackles for loss and three quarterback hits.
Quinn also shared an update on Jayden Daniels’ status after the quarterback missed the last two games with a right knee sprain. After a “strong” workout on Saturday, Quinn sounds at least somewhat optimistic that Daniels could be back for the Commanders’ (2-2) Sunday game at the Chargers (3-1).
However, it will still come down to how he looks and feels this week in the lead-up to the game in Los Angeles.
“We’ll take (Tuesday and Wednesday) and work out his practice plan, go through the whole process with him this week medically, how he feels, how he practices,” Quinn said.
