Chase Young ruled out for Washington Commanders opener vs. Cardinals

The Washington Commanders will be without one of their top defensive players for the season opener against the Arizona Cardinals. ESPN’s Adam Schefter is reporting that Chase Young has been ruled out for Sunday’s game.

There is some good news, though. Young has been cleared for contact in practice — a step in the right direction. The team does not expect him to miss much time this year.

Chase Young has been ruled out for Washington’s home opener. But he was cleared for contact in practice and is not expected to miss much time.

— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 9, 2023

Young has battled a neck injury, suffering a stinger in the team’s first preseason game in August. Since then, the former Ohio State star has been gradually working back towards returning to the field. Unfortunately, it won’t happen in Week 1.

Last season, Young played in just three contests for the Commanders, totaling five tackles. He spent most of the year recovering from an ACL injury from the previous season.

Young, a former first-round pick, enters his fourth year in the NFL in 2023. He has yet to complete a full season, totaling 75 tackles and nine sacks in 27 career games. His best season came as a rookie in 2021, piling up 44 stops and 7.5 sacks in 15 contests. Young also forced four fumbles.

Washington hosts Arizona on Sunday with kickoff at 1 p.m. ET. The game airs on FOX.

Commanders sell out Week 1 home opener

Washington fans are ready to ring in a new era in the NFL. The Commanders sold out their season-opening game against the Cardinals.

Last week, the Commanders announced that their home opener against the Cardinals at FedEx Field was sold out. The capacity at the venue is listed at 67,617.

Perhaps a sellout for an NFL game isn’t typically the biggest story, but the news comes after Dan Snyder and his family sold the organization. Josh Harris and his ownership group purchased the franchise for $6 billion.

Washington is coming off an 8-8-1 season in 2022, missing out on the playoffs for a second straight season. The Commanders have reached the postseason just once since 2016, making an appearance in 2020.

Snyder was one of the most unpopular owners in all of professional sports. Fans were ready to see the family sell the organization. After the transaction was finalized, more buzz surrounded the Commanders.

It’s a new era in Washington and there’s now more support for the Commanders. It’ll be interesting to track attendance at FedEx Field throughout the course of the 2023 regular season.