Quarterback Jayden Daniels of the Washington Commanders exited early in their loss to the Dallas Cowboys after suffering a right-hamstring injury. Daniels was hurt in the third quarter when he scrambled and was hit by Cowboys linebacker Shemar James, causing a fumble. He immediately clutched the back of his leg, limped off, and was later ruled out of the game.
Coach Dan Quinn confirmed that Daniels will undergo an MRI on Monday to assess the full extent of the injury. At the time of the announcement, Daniels was not walking with an obvious limp in the locker room, but the team opted not to risk further damage.
Before exiting, Daniels had completed 12 of 22 passes for 156 yards and a touchdown while also rushing eight times for 35 yards and a score. His replacement, Marcus Mariota, entered the game and on his first series threw a pick-six which extended Dallas’s lead.
The injury compounds an already depleted Commanders offense — their top three receivers were unavailable due to injuries (Terry McLaurin with a quad issue, Deebo Samuel with a heel injury, and Noah Brown on IR with a groin problem). Running back Austin Ekeler is also out for the year after a torn Achilles.
Daniels had already missed two games this season due to a sprained left knee. With the next game against the Kansas City Chiefs upcoming, if he is unable to play, Mariota will make his third start of the year. Teammates expressed concern at seeing Daniels go down, with linebacker Frankie Luvu calling him “one of the guys we lean toward” and receiver Jaylin Lane noting that while the team operates under a next-man-up mentality, losing their leader “definitely hurt.”
