ASHBURN, Va. — The Washington Commanders received some welcome news about their star quarterback. Multiple tests revealed Jayden Daniels suffered no ligament damage when he dislocated his left elbow and will not need surgery, a league source said.
Coach Dan Quinn said on Monday that Daniels did not fracture any bones in the joint, and he was not placed on injured reserve along with cornerback Marshon Lattimore (ACL) and receiver/returner Luke McCaffrey (collarbone).
The team does not plan to place Daniels on IR at this point. Instead, it will reassess his health after its Week 12 bye.
“Once you start getting better motion and better reduction of swelling and pain, you can start strengthening,” Dr. Carlos Uquillas, an orthopedic surgeon at Cedars-Sinai Orthopaedics in Los Angeles and a team physician for the Los Angeles Angels, said earlier this week.
“Usually, that’s three, four weeks out from the injury. It could be sooner, depending on how fast you heal the acute injury part of it. And then getting your strength back and ability to protect yourself since it’s a non-throwing arm … sometimes it’s as quick as three weeks and sometimes is six weeks. But it kind of depends more on function than anything else.”
The diagnosis leaves open the possibility of a return later this season for Daniels, but any decision will almost certainly take into account the team’s current state. Washington is 3-6 and riding a four-game losing streak, thanks to myriad factors, notably injuries and defensive mistakes.
Daniels suffered two other injuries, to his knee and hamstring, earlier in the season and missed three games to recover. He sustained his latest injury in the fourth quarter of Washington’s blowout loss to the Seattle Seahawks, on a scramble near the goal line. Daniels landed awkwardly when tackled and his left arm bent backward completely, leaving him reeling in pain as the team’s medical staff rushed to his side.
His arm was placed in an air cast, and he was led back to the locker room after teammates surrounded him in support.
Quinn said the following day that he erred in leaving Daniels in the game on that drive, which began with the Commanders trailing 38-7 with over 12 minutes left.
“Honestly, man, that’s where I missed it,” Quinn said Monday.
Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota will start for Washington on Sunday against the Detroit Lions and again when the team heads to Madrid to take on the Miami Dolphins in Week 11.