ASHBURN, Va. — Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels suffered a left knee injury last Thursday, leaving his status for Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders in doubt, coach Dan Quinn confirmed Monday.
Quinn did not specify what the injury was to Daniels’ knee, but sources told ESPN’s Adam Schefter that the quarterback has a sprain.
Daniels is “day-to-day,” the coach said, adding that he did not yet know what that meant for Sunday.
Daniels, last season’s Offensive Rookie of the Year, injured the knee in the 27-18 loss at Green Bay. He had a large ice pack on the knee after the game and walked with a limp out of the building. A day later, he underwent an MRI that revealed no major damage, a source with knowledge of the situation said.
Daniels was injured on the first play of the fourth quarter, when Packers edge rusher Micah Parsons chased Daniels to his left. As Daniels cut, safety Javon Bullard hit him on his left knee with his helmet.
Quinn said Daniels must hit “all the markers” in his recovery before the Commanders return him to the field.
“We know how important he is,” Quinn said.
Quinn said the team wants to make sure Daniels can “absolutely be himself,” knowing that his running ability is a key aspect of his game.
Daniels has thrown for 433 yards and three touchdowns while rushing for another 85 yards in two games this season.
“It starts off first on the strength, the movements,” Quinn said. “Then on the field change direction, the pivoting, the moving, all of those would be the things to go. So, we’ll just take it as it goes through the week, but he’d have to see all of the steps along this week to hit those marks. The speed, the stopping, the change of direction, all of it.”
If Daniels can’t play, it will be the first missed game of his career. He exited in the first quarter of a Week 7 win over the Carolina Panthers with a rib injury. He did not play in the second half of the regular-season finale against the Dallas Cowboys because of “mild leg soreness,” Quinn said at the time.
Marcus Mariota would start in place of Daniels, facing one of his former teams. Mariota replaced Daniels in both of those games last season and completed 33 of 41 passes for 366 yards and four touchdowns.
“We’ll take it all the way to Friday,” Quinn said, “and then have a good idea of where we’re at. … This is an elite competitor. Our confidence in him is through the roof.”
Thursday’s defeat proved costly for Washington, which also lost two starters to season-ending injuries — running back Austin Ekeler (Achilles) and defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. (quad). Two other Commanders exited with groin injuries — receiver Noah Brown and tight end John Bates — and cornerback Jonathan Jones left with a hamstring injury.
Quinn called Brown and Bates “long shots” for Sunday but added that he will know more later in the week. Washington placed Ekeler and Wise on injured reserve Monday and signed veteran receiver Chris Moore and defensive end Jalyn Holmes off its practice squad. Running back Chase Edmonds was added to the practice squad.
Last season, the Commanders had only one starter miss as many as nine games — defensive tackle Jonathan Allen. Health played a key role in the Commanders’ 12-5 season and berth in the NFC Championship Game.
