The Commanders believe in what they can become. Their injury list and record tell another story.

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LONDON — On Thursday, Terry McLaurin walked through a sprawling, manicured garden in the English countryside as the afternoon sun set. He passed a few greenhouses before he stepped into a small villa, ready to reflect on his last year.

The mood was tranquil. Things were good, he said.

Washington had just pulled off an unlikely win over Seattle. McLaurin was finally healthy, fresh off a 141-yard outing. And his franchise quarterback, Jayden Daniels, was back on the practice field after another injury scare.

“I think it means we’re in a good space right now,” McLaurin said, taking a deep breath. “Both [Daniels and I] being here together, we’re in a good spot. I try not to really think much of last year. This year we’re moving in the right direction.”

A day later, the mood soured.

On Friday, during a glorified walk-through, the star receiver hurt his hamstring again and landed on the injury report. Then Daniels was ruled out, deemed not ready to return.

And just eight minutes into the game on Sunday, with the Commanders already down two of their top stars, backup quarterback Marcus Mariota went down with an MCL injury. The 30-13 loss to the Indianapolis Colts that followed was hardly surprising.

The team’s decimated morale was to be expected as well.

“It definitely takes a toll,” cornerback Amik Robertson said, sitting at his locker.

All the optimism Washington came to London with has been replaced by uncertainty. The Commanders are 1-3 and have a growing injury report a year after health problems led to a 5-12 season. It’s hard not to see the parallels.

But there are glimmers of hope. Daniels, in theory, could come back next week. And maybe McLaurin can turn a corner. They played just 15% of the snaps together in 2025. This year, maybe they can finish out the year.

So the Commanders are in limbo. They haven’t reached despair but are increasingly wary. They believe in their potential, but it’s getting harder to see why.

“I still have high expectations, despite the beginning that we’ve had in the first quarter [of the season],” coach Dan Quinn said. “It has not dampened my belief in them in any way.”

But, if you take out the injuries, the Commanders have shown fundamental flaws that could plague them no matter who is on the field.

The offense has committed penalties at an alarming rate and in debilitating ways. This week, an 87-yard touchdown pass was erased by an illegal-motion call (a week after a holding call negated a 50-yard score.)

Washington had 10 penalties for 84 yards against the Colts. It’s hard to beat anyone that way.

“We have to get it fixed. I hate to say it, [because] I always say that s--t. Right?” offensive lineman Brandon Coleman said.

The defense is increasingly leaky. It allowed 30 points to a Colts offense that was among the worst in the league. That’s three straight weeks of 30 or more.

And the best players on the opposing teams — the ones the Commanders should be scheming to stop — keep finding a way. For the Colts, it was running back Jonathan Taylor, who went for 95 yards and two touchdowns.

”Definitely gets a little tighter [when the quarterback goes down],” defensive lineman Tim Settle Jr. said about the defense. “But we still have to do our job.”

The real questions are: Are these issues Washington can cover up when the stars are healthy? And will those stars be healthy soon?

“That’s definitely the hope,” Quinn said.

So much appears to depend on hope after a Commanders team determined to get back into the NFC East chase lost one of the most winnable games on its schedule.

After this, another division game — against the 3-1 New York Giants — awaits before a cross-country trip to San Francisco. Who knows who will be available in those games?

Before heading to the airport, bound for an eight-hour flight back to the U.S., Austin Ekeler made it clear he had little desire to reflect on the team’s misfortune.

“We got to make sure everyone is bought in to the mission,” he said. “Because, regardless of the injuries, we signed up for 17 games.”