The Washington Commanders couldn't hide from the scoreboard Sunday, and neither did Marcus Mariota. After a fourth straight blowout loss, the veteran quarterback said the upcoming Madrid trip “comes at a good time” and gives Washington a week together.

“I think it's in a good time to go as a team together. Where we can all kind of sit down and be together for the next 7 days and figure out how we can get this right,” the Commanders' QB stated.

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The numbers in the 44-22 defeat to the Detroit Lions tell a familiar story. Detroit scored on its first eight possessions and stacked 546 yards, leaning on Jared Goff’s 25-of-33, 320-yard, three-touchdown day and a monster outing from Jahmyr Gibbs, who ran for 142 and two scores and added a receiving touchdown. Jameson Williams roasted Washington deep, finishing with six grabs for 119 yards and a score. Reuters noted Washington has been outscored 154-65 over the last four games, an ugly trend that explains Mariota’s message about honesty and identity. 

Marcus Mariota’s stat line wasn’t empty. He went 16-of-22 for 213 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions, took two sacks, and added 22 rushing yards. Deebo Samuel found the end zone on a 19-yard catch, one of the few bright sparks in an injury-riddled team, Ben Sinnott added a short TD, and Chris Rodriguez Jr. punched in a goal-line score. Still, Washington’s defense couldn’t get a stop early, and the Lions turned every short field and third down into more scoreboard pressure. 

The Commanders are 3-7 and licking wounds with Jayden Daniels sidelined. The Spain week arrives as a built-in intervention. A long flight, a week of meetings, and a showcase game in Madrid could force the kind of transparency Mariota referenced, what needs to change, who plays, and how Dan Quinn wants this offense to operate around a backup quarterback.