Daron Payne

Payne suffered the injury during Friday’s practice. A previous report from Ian Rapport stated the 29-year-old defensive tackle suffered a significant foot injury and would be out for the foreseeable future. Payne will be placed on injured reserve as he’s set to miss the rest of the season. He recorded a sack, a forced fumble and 14 tackles in six games with the Commanders this year.

Rapoport adds that the injury is likely to sideline the standout defensive tackle “for the foreseeable future,” with a stint on injured reserve appearing likely. The Commanders continue to be dealt significant injuries, this time on the defensive side of the ball, as they fight to remain in contention in a fragile NFC East division. The team will know more about the extent of the injury when Payne undergoes further testing Saturday.

Payne could appeal this, but the tape doesn’t exactly work in his favor. Payne took a blatant, cheap shot at St. Brown during the second quarter of Sunday’s game and was immediately ejected for his actions. Assuming this holds up, which it should, Payne will miss Week 11’s game against the Dolphins in Spain and will be eligible to return in Week 13 after the Commanders’ bye week.

Payne was flagged after a hard-fought 13-yard touchdown run made by Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs. Payne can be clearly seen punching Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown on the left side of his facemask. Astonishingly, Commanders DT Javon Kinlaw was not ejected after striking a referee in the forehead, though he was penalized, after Payne was ejected. The Commanders also may have lost CB Trey Amos, who entered the game with a hip injury, and required two trainers’ assistance to leave the field after injuring his ankle on the play. Amos is currently questionable to return.

Payne came into the weekend listed as questionable but will ultimately miss the team’s NFC Championship game against the Eagles. The Commanders have struggled mightily against the run and will now be without one of their top run defenders on the interior of their defensive line. That could spell trouble against Saquon Barkley and Jalen Hurts after the two ran wild in both of these teams’ previous meetings this season.

Linebacker Bobby Wagner was removed from the report and will play. Payne did not practice at all this week, putting him on the wrong side of questionable heading into the weekend. However, with a Super Bowl berth on the line, he will be doing everything in his power to get on the field. Payne has four sacks and five TFLs this year.

Payne suffered his finger injury in the team’s wild card win over the Buccaneers. He was limited in two of three practices last week but appears to have picked up a knee injury in the divisional round win over the Lions. Back-to-back DNPs to open the week is a concerning sign for Payne’s availability, but the team could be exercising caution for their star tackle. We’ll see where things stand come Friday when the Commanders release their final injury report before the weekend.

This is a big blow for the Commanders. The 320-pound defensive tackle has 42 tackles, four sacks, and five tackles for a loss on the season while soaking up attention from blockers in the middle of the defensive line. Payne injured his finger early in the second quarter of the game and seemed to be in immense pain on the sideline. It would be a huge boost for the Tampa Bay running game if Payne can’t come back in.