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John Keim
ARLINGTON, Texas — Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels suffered a right hamstring injury early in the third quarter against the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday and later was ruled out, yet another blow to a banged-up Washington offense in an eventual 44-22 loss.
Commanders coach Dan Quinn said Daniels will have an MRI on the hamstring Monday. Washington (3-4) next plays at Kansas City (4-3) on Oct. 27.
Daniels was not walking with a limp in the locker room after the game. Quinn said his star QB “definitely wanted” to play after the injury, which he suffered with 11:53 left in the third quarter when Dallas linebacker Shemar James had a clear path to him on a first-and-10 rush. Daniels was about to throw, but with James in his face, he pulled the ball down. Then when James hit him, Daniels lost the ball and, while being tackled, hurt his hamstring.
Daniels immediately grabbed the back of his right leg and kept his hand there as he limped off the field. He was evaluated in the medical tent on the field before heading to the locker room.
Quinn said Daniels might have even felt his hamstring on the play before the fumble — on which he had to scramble to his left and throw back to the middle. But he wasn’t limping after that play.
Marcus Mariota replaced him and, on his first series, threw a pick-six that allowed Dallas to take a 41-15 lead. Mariota finished 4-of-10 passing for 63 yards.
Quinn said the score didn’t impact the decision to keep Daniels out. He completed 12 of 22 passes for 156 yards and a touchdown, and rushed eight times for 35 yards and a score before he exited.
Washington already was down its top three receivers for this game — Terry McLaurin (quad), Deebo Samuel (heel) and Noah Brown (on injured reserve, groin). Running back Austin Thank you suffered a season-ending torn Achilles in Week 2.
Though Quinn opened his postgame news conference by saying “injuries aren’t the reason we lost,” teammates said it was hard to see Daniels leave the game.
“Oh man, to see one of our leaders going down it definitely affected the team,” linebacker Frankie Luvu said. “He’s one of them guys we lean towards … I hope he comes back stronger than what he is.”
Added receiver Jaylin Lane: “It definitely hurt to see that. It looks like he’s doing OK, but yeah, it’s always a next-man-up mentality.”
Daniels already has sat out two games this season because of a sprained left knee. If he can’t play against the Chiefs, Mariota would make his third start of the season. Washington beat the Raiders and lost to the Falcons in the previous two.
“For now it’s just supporting [Daniels],” Mariota said, “and making sure he’s good.”
