Who Should I Start? Xavier Smith or Jaylin Lane

Wednesday, October 21, 2:29 PM

Washington Commanders wide receiver Jaylin Lane (ankle) had surgery to fix his fractured and dislocated ankle that he suffered on Oct. 9, a source told Tashan Reed of The Washington Post. The surgery was deemed a success, and Lane is expected to be cleared for football activities just before organized team activities in the spring next year. With the 24-year-old out for the season after his ankle injury in the loss to the Indianapolis Colts in London, receiver Luke McCaffrey has become the Commanders' primary kick returner on special teams. Lane, a fourth-rounder from Virginia Tech in 2025, caught 16 passes for 225 yards and no touchdowns on 32 targets in 15 games played (four starts) as a rookie. He had two catches on his two targets for 25 yards, and no scores in four games played this year before suffering his season-ending ankle injury. With Terry McLaurin (knee) also now out for the rest of the year, the Commanders will ask Treylon Burks and rookie Antonio Williams to step up alongside veteran Stefon Diggs. The good news for Lane is that he should be a full-go for training camp and the preseason next summer as he looks for a bigger role on offense in 2027.