The game’s outcome had effectively been determined when star Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels trotted out for another possession with 12 minutes remaining on Nov. 2.
Down 31 points to Seattle, Washington chose to keep Daniels, last season’s NFL offensive rookie of the year and the franchise’s cornerstone, in the game rather than sit him to avoid the risk of injury. Ten plays later, Daniels fell awkwardly on the elbow of his left, nonthrowing arm, dislocating it.
The drumbeat began as soon as Daniels started writhing on the turf. Sure, he was healthy. But why was he still in the game?
Less than a month later, the Commanders’ season now appears to be a lost cause. With their 3-8 record and less than a 1% chance of making the playoffs, according to one analysis, there’s a new question in Washington. Though Daniels could be healthy enough to return by early December, does that mean the team should let him take the field and again risk injury?
“You’re just got to try to do what’s best for the player,” Commanders coach Dan Quinn said this week. “We know what we’re looking to do and how we want to do it, but by no means are we careless about that. It’s important not just for Jayden, but important for our entire team.”
What is best, in Quinn’s view, is that Daniels continues to play, to benefit his long-term improvement. As Quinn said on Wednesday: “We would not put him out there if he’s not able to fully express who he is as a player.”
Jayden Daniels of the Washington Commanders leaves the field after injuring his left arm.Greg Fiume / Getty Images
Daniels is one of the NFL’s most exciting young players, but not all Washington fans want to see him play again in these circumstances.
“We know what Jayden can do. We saw it last year and we’ve even seen it in games this year against the Chargers. He looked fantastic,” said Mark Manjardi, a lifelong fan of the franchise who was so dedicated he flew to Spain to watch the team face Miami in November, in a game Daniels missed.
“I just think the the worst-case scenario far, far, far outweighs the best-case scenario, which is, ‘Oh, he looks like his old self again,’ and we still have no chance of doing anything this year anyway. … Even if Jayden wants to play, which she obviously does, think long term. Think next year. This is a lost season. It sucks but it is what it is.”
The Commanders aren’t the only team who could, theoretically, place their franchise star in proverbial bubble wrap and tank the rest of the season with the aim of earning a better draft pick.
The practice is common late in NBA seasons by teams already far from playoff consideration. Though NBA teams do not explicitly say so, team executives, agents and players have long shared their belief that shelving a promising player for the remainder of a season often has more to do with improving a team’s odds of landing a high draft pick than it does with the severity of an injury.
NFL teams this season, however, seem to be deferring to players. Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow suffered a turf toe injury in Week 2 and missed the next nine weeks as his team cratered to a 3-8 record, with commentators making their case for why neither the Bengals, nor Burrow, were best-served by continuing to play him. Yet Burrow said returning on Thanksgiving would be meaningful to him.
“He’s a football player. He wants to play football,” Bengals coach Zac Taylor said earlier this week. “We want to win football games. That will lead into that decision.”
It’s safe to say the Bengals were glad they made the decision to start Burrow, who threw two touchdowns in Thursday’s 32-14 win against Baltimore.
Angst around the risk of Daniels hurting himself again has grown because his elbow dislocation was his third injury this season, after he previously missed three games for a sprained knee and tweaked hamstring.
Matthew Berry, a fantasy football expert for NBC Sports, posted on X, “begging my beloved Commanders. This is not our year. We should not risk further injury to our franchise QB in a lost year. He shouldn’t have been playing at the end of a blow-out loss and he shouldn’t play again this season. We are 3-8.”
Daniels isn’t wired that way, said Herm Edwards, the former NFL coach who also briefly coached Daniels in college at Arizona State.
“You’re going to have to tie him down for him not to play,” Edwards told a D.C. radio show recently. “You want a guy like that. If he would sit there and say, ‘Well, I’m done. We’re 3-8 now’ — that ain’t who he is.”
But, Edwards was pressed by a radio host: Should Daniels play when the playoff upside is so remote?
“The season is now, and he got to play now. Are you kidding me?” Edwards said. “That’s what they do. Football players play football. They don’t do anything else. That’s their job. He’s not going to say, ‘Hey man, you know’ — he don’t care. He wants to play, he wants to compete.”
Daniels confirmed that sentiment when telling reporters Tuesday, “If I’m healthy and ready to go, I want to be out there.”
Washington ranks in the league’s bottom half in sacks allowed. Its next two opponents, meanwhile — Denver and Minnesota — are known for harassing defenses to a degree that borders on maniacal. Denver, which faces Washington on Sunday, has 49 sacks, seven more than the league’s second-place team. The Vikings, who await on Dec. 7, blitz more often than anyone.
Still, Daniels could soon be suiting up again anyway. If, or when, that happens, some fans will be watching through their fingers.
What else we’re watching for in Week 13
49ers (8-4) at Browns (3-8): Cleveland defensive end Myles Garrett is threatening to break the NFL’s single-season sack record of 22.5, with 18 sacks in just 11 games. Those 18 sacks are more than Carolina, San Francisco and Cincinnati have recorded as teams this season.
Jaguars (7-4) at Titans (1-10): Tennessee’s home losing streak currently sits at 10 games. Jacksonville is 5-1 against the Titans since 2022. If the No. 1 pick and Titans quarterback throws for multiple touchdowns Sunday, it would be the first instance of his career.
Texans (6-5) at Colts (8-3): The league’s No. 1 scoring offense (Colts, 31.0 points per game) faces the No. 2 scoring defense (Texans, 16.6 points per game). The Colts are 6-0 at home.
Saints (2-9) at Dolphins (4-7): Tua Tagovailoa’s 13 interceptions are one away from tying his career high. Miami’s last two opponents have been held to 13 points each.
Falcons (4-7) at Jets (2-9): New York is the first team in NFL history with one or fewer turnovers through 11 games in a season since turnovers were first tracked in 1933. Kirk Cousins is 8-8 as a Falcons starter since last season.
Cardinals (3-8) at Buccaneers (6-5): Tampa’s final six games are against teams that do not currently have a winning record. Cardinals tight end Trey McBride’s 301 career receptions are tied with Jimmy Graham for the most by a tight in their first four seasons in NFL history, per NBC Sports research.
Rams (9-2) at Panthers (6-6): The Rams own the best outright record in the NFC. Carolina has been outscored by 53 points in the aggregate, which is the worst mark by a .500-or-better team through 12 games since the 2019 Raiders, per NBC Sports research.
Vikings (4-7) at Seahawks (8-3): Seattle wideout Jaxon Smith-Njigba has a league-leading 1,313 receiving yards, which is only 290 yards fewer than the entire Jets roster. Minnesota’s three-game losing streak is one shy of its longest under coach Kevin O’Connell.
Bills (7-4) at Steelers (6-5): Josh Allen is 4-1 in his career against the Steelers. Buffalo, however, has failed to score 20 or more points in all three of its road losses.
Raiders (2-9) at Chargers (7-4): Raiders coach Pete Carroll has never lost six straight games in his career, but his current team is riding a five-game losing streak.
Broncos (9-2) at Commanders (3-8): Denver QB Bo Nix has five game-winning drives this season, tied with Chicago’s Caleb Williams for most in the league. Denver has won eight straight games while Washington has lost six consecutive.
Giants (2-10) at Patriots (10-2) Monday: When the Giants lost last week in Detroit, it was their fifth time this season blowing a double-digit lead on the road, the most in a single season in NFL history.
