The Washington Commanders have dealt with injuries all season, but the latest update on wide receiver Terry McLaurin may be their worst injury news yet.
McLaurin opened the game with a 27-yard reception, putting the Commanders into San Francisco territory. Later in the first quarter, McLaurin went down awkwardly, was taken off the field on a cart, and was ruled out almost immediately with a knee injury.
#TerryMcLaurin@Commanders
— David J. Chao - ProFootballDoc (@ProFootballDoc) October 20, 2026
By video, worry for left patella tendon rupture
Leg just gives out. Horrible. 🙏
Would mean surgery and season.
Carted off with airsplint. pic.twitter.com/haMuICJFxu
Doctor David Chao, a former NFL team doctor for more than a decade, immediately believed McLaurin had a left patellar tendon rupture. The patellar tendon attaches the kneecap to the tibia and is crucial for the leg’s overall functionality. If this is the injury, McLaurin would need season-ending surgery. In a later video, Chao further explained why he believes McLaurin suffered this injury.
By video, I’m concerned Terry McLaurin suffered a left patellar tendon rupture. He was carted off with an air cast.
— David J. Chao - ProFootballDoc (@ProFootballDoc) October 20, 2026
If confirmed, the injury would require surgery and end his season. A brutal loss for Washington. pic.twitter.com/mdq0Ioc2y5
This would be the second year in a row McLaurin misses significant time due to injury after missing seven games last season; he also missed the Week 4 game against the Indianapolis Colts in London with a hamstring injury. Before last year, McLaurin went four seasons without missing a game and missed only three games in his first two years back in 2019 and 2020.
In a year already going downhill for Washington, losing McLaurin would be devastating, especially with Stefon Diggs also battling injuries through the first six games.
After the game, head coach Dan Quinn acknowledged that the Commanders feared McLaurin had suffered a significant injury.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Commanders' Terry McLaurin feared to have suffered season-ending injury vs 49ers