Washington’s defense needs to step up with the game-changing quarterback sidelined.
Read more Trump heads into a week of diplomacy, hampered by a lack of allies
ARLINGTON, Texas — Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels will be out for the foreseeable future after dislocating his left elbow — again — in a 37-20 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday.
X-rays showed that Daniels didn’t suffer any fractures, but further testing is required to determine whether there’s any ligament damage. That’ll help decide whether surgery is necessary. Until that’s known, there’s no timetable for his return.
The Commanders put a lot of work toward trying to avoid this. After Daniels missed most of last season because of injury, the front office and coaching staff collaborated on a plan to protect him.
That was launched before the end of the ill-fated 2025 campaign. Coach Dan Quinn told The Washington Post he had a film cut-up created of every play on which Daniels scrambled, then tasked him with identifying instances when he could’ve avoided hits. The goal was to improve his decision-making.
Once the offseason arrived, Quinn parted ways with offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury and promoted David Blough to fill the vacancy. From there, Blough reconstructed the offense to include an added emphasis on the traditional run game, play-action passes and snaps from under center. The goal was to create an ecosystem where Daniels didn’t have to force the issue.
General Manager Adam Peters and the front office went on to extend left tackle Laremy Tunsil and add talented pass catchers in Stefon Diggs, Antonio Williams and Chig Okonkwo. The goal was to avoid Daniels needing to carry the offense.
Despite all of that, Daniels has suffered another significant injury. At the end of the day, football is a contact sport. As unfortunate as the injury was, there’s no one to blame for what happened. It was a standard play that happened to go horribly wrong.
Nonetheless, it presents a question that’ll be difficult for the Commanders (0-2) to navigate: How do they move forward from here?
Washington has 15 games left, and the team can’t just call it a season because Daniels is sidelined. Everyone — the front office, coaching staff and roster — has work to do to keep their jobs.
“That’s the culture that D.Q. has built,” quarterback Marcus Mariota said of his head coach. “That no-flinch mentality is what’s going to drive us forward. Guys believe in each other. Guys believe in what we’re doing. They believe in Q. We’ll get this ship going in the right direction.”
The odds are undoubtedly stacked against the Commanders. They’re the only winless team in the NFC East. The last team to start 0-2 and win the division was the 2003 Philadelphia Eagles. Washington has the daunting task of attempting to repeat that feat with Daniels sidelined.
Read more Republicans’ one clear advantage this November: Money
That effort must start with the defense taking a major step forward. Defensive coordinator Daronte Jones’s unit had its bright moments in Week 1, but it displayed a propensity to give up explosive plays. That continued to be an issue against Dallas.
The run defense was stout — the Cowboys managed just 66 rushing yards and averaged only 3.1 yards per carry — but Dallas had its way with Washington through the air. Quarterback Dak Prescott completed 83.9 percent of his passes for 279 yards and four touchdowns. Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb torched the secondary to the tune of eight catches for 153 yards and two touchdowns.
Lamb and Dallas’s pass catchers were always going to be a mismatch for the Commanders’ cornerbacks. To have a chance, Washington’s secondary needed a strong performance from its pass rush. Instead, Prescott often had plenty of time to throw, making it easy for him to pick the back end of the defense apart.
Jones’s defense has to be a bona fide strength for the Commanders to stay afloat. The secondary will get a boost once starting cornerback Trey Amos returns from injured reserve — he has to miss at least the next two games before being eligible — but it’ll still need the pass rush to be far more effective for the pass coverage to be reliable.
Realistically, it’s hard to expect a lot from Washington’s offense. That said, Mariota is a locker room leader with a strong grasp of Blough’s system.
“I’ve truly felt this way for three years: There’s no reason he should be a backup quarterback in this league,” center Nick Allegretti said. “I have absolute, full confidence in him.”
Still, Mariota is a substantial drop-off from Daniels. Additionally, he’s playing behind a compromised offensive line. Tunsil could miss the season with a torn triceps. His replacement, left tackle Brandon Coleman (finger), and guard Sam Cosmi (concussion) went down with injuries against Dallas.
There are a few other injuries worth monitoring. Defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw suffered a shoulder injury against the Cowboys and couldn’t finish the game. Linebacker Frankie Luvu (groin) and Okonkwo (hamstring) didn’t play in Dallas.
It should be considered a win if the offense can be serviceable, but that won’t be enough to win games in Daniels’s absence. The defense must be dominant for the Commanders to have a chance.
Asked if the defense faces more pressure, Quinn responded: “It doesn’t add to it, but there’s an awareness for it.”
“When you miss the mark of what you want to do and how you want to do it, yeah, that bothers you,” he added. “But as far as the defense in total, I think they’re more concerned with, ‘Okay, why didn’t we hit the marks that we said we wanted to hit?’ And I have a lot of belief in the guys and what they can do.”
Read more Trump, Republicans launch ad blitz for midterms as races favor Democrats
