Jayden Daniels Dislocates Elbow Again as Commanders Lose 37-20 to Cowboys
Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels dislocated his left elbow in Sunday's 37-20 defeat to the Dallas Cowboys, suffering a repeat of the injury that wrecked his previous season.
Head coach Dan Quinn said X-rays showed no fracture. Daniels was due to travel home with the team and undergo further imaging on Monday to establish the extent of the damage.
A Freak Final Play
The injury came on the last snap of the first half at AT&T Stadium. Trailing 17-10 with three seconds remaining, Washington opted against a field goal from the Dallas one-yard line and ran a play with Daniels under center.
He stumbled as he dropped back after being stepped on by one of his own linemen, and reached out with his left arm to steady himself. The elbow bent the wrong way as he hit the ground. Daniels flicked the ball away as the half expired, and the pass fell incomplete.
Medical staff attended to him on the field before he was taken to the locker room on a cart, his arm in an air cast and a towel over his face. He was ruled out of the second half.
"Man, are we bummed for him," Quinn said. "He was really playing his ass off. We will rally so hard around Marcus (Mariota) until Jayden's back. That's what we talked about as a team."
Asked about a timeline, Quinn said he would give an update once he had one, adding that he anticipated Daniels returning this season and had no reason to think otherwise.
One of His Better Halves
The timing was cruel. Daniels had been producing one of his better performances in some time, completing 11 of 17 passes for 96 yards and a touchdown to Stefon Diggs while adding 69 rushing yards on seven carries. His touchdown throw had cut Washington's deficit from 17-3.
Mariota started the second half and completed 11 of 16 passes for 111 yards and a touchdown, but Washington could not recover. The defeat leaves the Commanders 0-2 after an opening loss to Philadelphia.
The Same Elbow, Again
The injury revives difficult memories from 2025. Daniels dislocated the same left elbow while scrambling against Seattle in November and missed the following three weeks. He returned in Week 14 at Minnesota, reinjured the elbow attempting a tackle after an interception, and did not play again that season.
An MRI on that occasion found no fracture or ligament damage, meaning he avoided surgery. Across an injury-hit year dealing with knee, hamstring and elbow problems, he appeared in just seven games and missed ten.
That followed a remarkable rookie campaign in 2024, when Daniels won Offensive Rookie of the Year and led Washington to the NFC Championship Game. He entered this season healthy and expected to lead a bounce-back year.
Mariota will start in his absence. Washington went 2-6 in games the veteran started in place of Daniels last season.
