jayden daniels

Just when it seemed the Washington Commanders’ night couldn’t get much worse, it actually got much, much worse.

With his team trailing the Seattle Seahawks by 31 points midway through the fourth quarter Sunday night, Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels suffered a gruesome injury to his non-throwing arm that will likely keep him off the field for several weeks.

After Washington’s 38-14 loss, coach Dan Quinn had little information on his second-year quarterback, saying only that Daniels had a “left arm injury” and that he hoped to provide an update in the morning.

Multiple media outlets are reporting that Daniels dislocated his elbow and will undergo an MRI on Monday to determine the severity of the injury.

A former star at Cajon High, Daniels won the Heisman Trophy at Louisiana State in 2023 and was selected at No. 2 overall by the Commanders in the 2024 NFL draft. He immediately took the league by storm, earning Pro Bowl and offensive rookie of the year honors while leading Washington to an unlikely appearance in the NFC championship game.

Season 2 has been a disappointment. Going into this weekend, Daniels had already missed three games with knee and hamstring injuries and the Commanders had struggled to a 3-5 record.

Then came Sunday night. Down by four scores in the fourth quarter, Washington drove to the Seattle 2-yard-line and was looking to make a slight dent in the deficit when disaster struck. On second-and-goal with 7:39 remaining in the game, Daniels faked a handoff and scrambled to his right before being spun down by Seattle’s Drake Thomas for a 2-yard loss.

As he was being taken to the ground, Daniels put out his left arm to brace himself. His elbow bent the wrong way. Commanders guard Sam Cosmi called the scene “gut-wrenching.”

“I didn’t see what happened exactly. I just heard a pause and I kind of put my head down and prayed for him,” Cosmi said. “You just don’t want to see that happen.”

A similar scene took place nearly 13 years ago for Washington, when another rising young star at quarterback, Robert Griffin III, re-injured his knee during a home game against the Seahawks. His career was never the same afterward.

Griffin was one of several people who took to social media Sunday night to comment on the matter. He seemed to speak for the majority of them when he wrote on X, “WHY WAS JAYDEN DANIELS EVEN STILL IN THE GAME?!?!?!”

“The Seattle Seahawks had the game won,” a visbly distraught Griffin said in a video also posted to X. “I understand you want to play to the end, but with the injuries that he’s already had this year, and the injuries he had last year, why is he in the game? Doesn’t make sense.”

Griffin, who currently works as a college football analyst on Fox Sports, added: “You can’t say a knee and a hamstring leads to an elbow injury like that. It was a freak accident, freak play. But I can’t help but feel for Jayden Daniels. Man, I can’t help but feel for Washington Commanders fans. Just a demoralizing blow, man.”

Asked by reporters after the game whether any consideration was given to removing Daniels before that series, Quinn seemed to indicate that the plays being called didn’t seem to present a high injury risk.

“Obviously in hindsight, you don’t want to think that way, where injury could take place,” Quinn said. “Obviously, we’re more concerned in that spot to run and hand off and not have reads to go, but just the end result, obviously I’m bummed.”

Later in the news conference, in response to a similar question, Quinn gave a similar answer.

“Yeah, obviously, I’m just gutted by this, bummed,” Quinn said. “The one that he was on injured is usually a runner or throwing the flats, not a scramble. So it wasn’t a designed read or play into that spot. If we run it 50 times, it’s either hand off or throw, say, 50 times. So it’s a bummer, man, in a big way.”

Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota has led the Commanders to a 1-2 record starting in place of Daniels this season.

The Chargers triumphantly dispatched the AFC West.

The NFC East? That’s a different story.

The Washington Commanders barged into SoFi Stadium on Sunday and handed the Chargers their second consecutive defeat — a 27-10 spirit crusher — coming on the heels of an upset of coach Jim Harbaugh’s team by the winless New York Giants a week before.

The visitors iced the win with a 13-play, 99-yard drive that ended with an eight-yard, blitz-beating touchdown pass from Jayden Daniels to Deebo Samuel. That had thousands of blue-clad fans streaming for the exits.

The game had been decided before that. A pivotal play came with 7 minutes, 40 seconds remaining and the Chargers looking to cut into Washington’s 10-point lead.

On third-and-goal from the 4, Justin Herbert dropped back and fired a pass for the sure-handed Keenan Allen. The ball was tipped by Jer’Zhan Newton and intercepted at the goal line by cornerback Mike Sainristil. Threat neutralized.

That blunted a drive that started with a masterful defensive play, a tackle by Chargers defensive tackle Teair Tart, who pried the ball loose from Washington running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt — who was having a tremendous game — then recovered the fumble.

The play hinted at a dramatic comeback by the lurching Chargers (3-2), a team still looking to find its groove. Much like their season so far, the Chargers started strong then faded.

Washington wide receiver Deebo Samuel scores on an eight-yard touchdown pass from Jayden Daniels in the fourth quarter of the Commanders’ 27-10 win Sunday.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

They jumped out to a 10-0 lead against the Commanders before surrendering 27 unanswered points with the game torturously slipping away from the Chargers in the second half.

Their kryptonite was rookie Croskey-Merritt, who tore off some gains longer than his last name. The seventh-round pick from Arizona finished with a combined 150 yards in 14 carries and two catches.

He had touchdown runs of 15 and five yards around the left side that befuddled a Chargers defense that had played so well to this point. This was a Commanders offense missing star receiver Terry McLaurin, and with Daniels ostensibly limited by a sprained knee and bulky brace.

Daniels did some scrambling, however, and mobile quarterbacks historically have given this defense problems. The onetime star from Cajon High in San Bernardino threw for 231 yards and ran for 39.

Heading into the game, the primary concern of the Chargers offense was protecting Herbert, who was pressured on 46 drop backs in the first four games, more than any quarterback in the NFL, according to TruMedia. He was facing a defense Sunday that includes future Hall of Famers Von Miller and Bobby Wagner.

Washington players celebrate after cornerback Mike Sainristil intercepts a pass intended for Chargers wide receiver Keenan Allen in the fourth quarter Sunday.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Herbert creates problems for defenses with his arm and legs. On the third play from scrimmage, he broke loose on a run up the middle and picked up 41 yards.

The opening drive appeared to end with a 29-yard field goal by Cameron Dicker, but the Chargers got new life with an offsides call on Washington. That afforded the Chargers a first-and-goal at the six, and two plays later, Herbert found Ladd McConkey with a two-yard pass for a touchdown.

Allen caught five passes, becoming the 16th receiver in NFL history to accumulate 1,000 career receptions. He came into Sunday’s game needing two catches to hit that milestone, and he did that in fewer games than anyone (159), compared with the prior record-holder Marvin Harrison (167).

Herbert is playing behind a patchwork offensive line, as the team lost left tackle Rashawn Slater in training camp — 10 days after making him the highest-paid offensive lineman in history — then lost replacement Joe Alt to a high-ankle sprain in the first quarter of a Week 4 loss at the Giants.

Chargers wide receiver Ladd McConkey celebrates after scoring his first touchdown of the season in the first quarter Sunday.

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times)

Right guard Mekhi Becton returned from a concussion that sidelined him for the Giants game, but Sunday sustained a hand injury. What’s more, right tackle Trey Pipkins III hobbled off the field in the second quarter with a banged-up knee. It was a true MASH unit.

This has been a roller coaster season for the Chargers, a microcosm of which happened at the end of the first half.

The Commanders were punting from their own end zone and put the ball in the hands of Chargers returner McConkey, who weaved his way to the end zone for an apparent touchdown.

That jubilation didn’t last long for the Chargers, as they were flagged for roughing the punter, giving the visitors a first down. No sooner did the defense get back onto the field than Daniels connected on a 50-yard heave to Luke McCaffrey, younger brother of San Francisco 49ers star Christian McCaffrey.

Two plays later, Samuel picked up 22 yards on a reception for Washington (3-2), setting up a field goal that forged a 10-10 tie the teams took into halftime.

The Commanders carried that momentum into the third quarter when, with a combination of receptions and runs by Croskey-Merritt, they worked their way downfield for the go-ahead touchdown.