Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels suffered a dislocated left elbow late in a 38-14 defeat to the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night. The injury occurred on a scramble with the game out of reach, prompting coach Dan Quinn to take responsibility for not pulling his starter earlier. Daniels, the reigning Offensive Rookie of the Year, is expected to miss several weeks, with an MRI scheduled to assess severity.
The Commanders hosted the Seahawks in Week 9's Sunday Night Football matchup at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Maryland, falling behind early and never recovering. Seattle's Sam Darnold completed his first 16 passes for 282 yards and four touchdowns in the opening half, building a commanding lead. Washington trailed 38-7 with 12:30 left in the fourth quarter when Daniels began what was intended as his final drive of the night.
On second-and-goal at the 7-yard line with 7:39 remaining, Daniels scrambled right but was tackled behind the line by Seahawks linebacker Drake Thomas. Attempting to brace his fall with his non-throwing left arm, Daniels' elbow dislocated awkwardly upon impact. Medical staff immediately attended to him, and he walked off the field under his own power but did not return.
No fractures were detected on initial X-rays, but the dislocation is expected to sideline Daniels for multiple games. An MRI is set for this week to provide further clarity, with hope that it avoids injured reserve status and allows a return before the season ends. This marks another setback for Daniels, who missed two games with an ankle injury in Week 2 against the Green Bay Packers and sat out Week 8 due to a hamstring issue sustained versus the Dallas Cowboys.
Coach Dan Quinn addressed the decision to keep Daniels in, stating, "I know many of you have been asking about the thought process of Jayden being in the game in that situation. I get that. I've been thinking about it honestly nonstop too, and for me the answer is, man, I missed it." He noted the drive featured vanilla play-calling without designed runs or reads, emphasizing, "We didn't have any read plays on [the play call], and the one he was injured on is usually a run or a throw to the flat. It's not a scramble." Quinn added, "Obviously, I'm just gutted by it, I'm just bummed."
Daniels finished 16 of 22 for 153 yards with one interception, plus 10 carries for 51 yards and a touchdown—his second rushing score of the season. In five starts, he has completed 61% of passes for 1,031 yards, eight touchdowns, and one interception. Marcus Mariota replaced him and led a touchdown drive; the veteran is 1-2 as Washington's starter this year.
The loss drops Washington to 3-6, exacerbating a season plagued by injuries. Wide receiver and returner Luke McCaffrey suffered a broken collarbone on the game's opening play and heads to injured reserve. Cornerback Marshon Lattimore tore his ACL, also ending his campaign. The Commanders face the 5-3 Detroit Lions next Sunday, with playoff hopes fading.