Washington star quarterback Jayden Daniels was forced to leave the second half of the Commanders’ 44-22 loss to the Dallas Cowboys with a hamstring injury.
Early in the third quarter, Daniels was sacked by Cowboys linebacker Shemar James. On the play, Daniels was pulled down, fumbled the ball and appeared to injure his hamstring. He could be seen grabbing the back of his right leg before heading to the medical tent and eventually the locker room.
Daniels was replaced by Marcus Mariota and did not return to the game, finishing 12-of-22 for 156 yards with one touchdown. Mariota entered the game already trailing 34-15 and threw a pick-6 to extend the Cowboys’ lead to 41-15, ending any hope of a Commanders comeback. After the game, all of the attention turned to Daniels and just how severe his injury may be.
Washington Commanders Receive Positive News on QB Jayden Daniels
On Monday, Daniels underwent an MRI and after seeing their star miss the second half of Sunday’s loss, the Commanders received a bit of good news on Sunday.
According to ESPN’s John Keim, “Dan Quinn said the good news on QB Jayden Daniels is that the MRI showed no long-term issue,” however, they are “still not sure about his status for Monday’s game vs. Kansas City.”
Dan Quinn said the good news on QB Jayden Daniels is that the MRI showed no long-term issue. But they’re still not sure about his status for Monday’s game vs. Kansas City.
— John Keim (@john_keim) October 20, 2025
After winning the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and leading the Commanders to the playoffs last season, and defeating a pair of division champions, the third-seeded Tampa Bay Buccaneers and top-seeded Detroit Lions, on his way to the NFC Championship, year two has proven difficult for Daniels and the Commanders.
Daniels already missed two games in weeks three and four due to a knee sprain and has seen several of his teammates suffer difficult injuries as well.
Daniels’ top target, wide receiver Terry McLaurin, has played in just three games due to a quad injury while running back Austin Ekeler was lost for the season to an Achilles injury in week two.
On the season, Daniels has completed 89-of-146 passes (61.0%) for 1,031 yards with eight touchdowns and one interception. He has a PFSN QBi grade of 74.3, suitable for a C, which ranked just 23rd in the league. The Commanders’ offense has PFSN OFFi grade of 83.5, a B, ranking eighth in the league. We will probably know more about Daniels’ status later in the week.
The Commanders are now just 3-4 and will try to rebound when they travel to Arrowhead Stadium to take on the Chiefs Monday night. Beating the Chiefs under any circumstance is quite the task but if Daniels is unable to go, it makes the task that that much more difficult.
