LANDOVER, Md. — Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels suffered a dislocated left elbow during the fourth quarter of Sunday night’s 38-14 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, sources told ESPN.

He is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday to confirm the diagnosis and help determine a recovery timeline. Daniels is expected to be sidelined indefinitely, but it is uncertain whether his season is over, according to sources.

Daniels was hurt with 7 minutes, 39 seconds remaining — and Washington trailing 38-7 — when he scrambled to his right and was sacked at the Seattle 4-yard line by Seahawks linebacker Drake Thomas. Daniels’ left elbow was bent back on the tackle, and he was visibly in pain.

“I’m gutted by it,” said Commanders coach Dan Quinn, who did not offer an update on the severity of Daniels’ injury after the game, saying only that it was his left elbow.

The remaining fans at Northwest Stadium gasped when they saw Daniels go down in pain, followed mostly by silence as they watched him be tended to by the medical staff.

Multiple teammates took a knee, some near Daniels. Eventually, most of his teammates surrounded him as a cart was sent. But Daniels instead walked to the locker room with a black air cast on his left, non-throwing elbow.

“Gut-wrenching,” right guard Sam Cosmi said. “You could just hear the air [come] out of everybody in the stadium. Not a good feeling to see that for sure. It really sucks.

“I put my head down and prayed for him. You don’t want to see that. … That’s our guy. It sucks.”

It’s the latest blow in a season gone awry for Washington (3-6). The Commanders have been hit hard by injuries, with multiple starters already on injured reserve: running back Austin Ekeler, defensive ends Deatrich Wise Jr. and Dorance Armstrong, safety Will Harris and receiver Noah Brown. Receiver Terry McLaurin did not play Sunday and has now missed five games because of a quad injury.

But Daniels represents hope for Washington’s present and future. A year ago, the No. 2 pick in the 2024 draft led the Commanders to a 12-5 record and the franchise’s first appearance in the NFC Championship Game since the 1991 season.

However, his encore has proved bumpy because of injuries to himself and others. It’s the third injury this season for Daniels and appears to be the most serious. He missed two games because of a sprained knee and one because of a hamstring injury, with Marcus Mariota replacing him.

“Just distraught,” tight end Zach Ertz said. “I care about Jayden the person much more than the player. The player is phenomenal, one of the best players in the league. He meant so much to me, to see him down like that in pain is tough. Football is a tough sport, a physical sport. To see injuries like that is difficult.”

Daniels had become a team leader, a player teammates gravitated toward.

“JD is one of them ones,” linebacker Frankie Luvu said. “He’s a special kid, and to see him go down like that, it’s scary. He’s a true dog, and I’m going every Sunday with him.”

According to ESPN Research, Daniels was pressured on a career-high 51% of his dropbacks Sunday night, including 61% in the second half. He was hit 14 times, according to TruMedia, the second most he had been hit this season. In Week 2, Daniels was hit 17 times against Green Bay, with one of those hits to his knee resulting in a sprain and two-week absence.

Despite the pressure and Washington trailing by 31 points Sunday night, Quinn said he did not consider taking Daniels out of the game.

Quinn said Daniels suffered the injury during a play that is usually a handoff or a throw to the flat. Daniels didn’t hand off to running back Chris Rodriguez Jr., but nobody was open in the flat and there was instant pressure.

“You don’t want to think that way where an injury could take place,” Quinn said. “It wasn’t a designed read or play to that spot. If we run it 50 times, it’s either a handoff or throw 50 times. So, yeah, it’s a bummer, man.”

Daniels completed 16 of 22 passes for 153 yards and 1 interception before exiting. He also ran for 51 yards and one touchdown.

Mariota will start in place of Daniels when the Commanders host the Detroit Lions next Sunday. Mariota said he and the other quarterbacks checked on Daniels in the trainer’s room after the game.

“Football is a violent game, something we understand going into it, but that being said, it still hurts,” Mariota said. “We all talked about it afterward, just being there for him. Making sure he feels supported and know he’s not doing this alone is important for us.

“He’s always in good spirits. He’s an incredible person in that sense.”

Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane is considering a shock move to Barcelona, while Liverpool are keeping tabs on recent Fulham signing Kevin after his impressive start to the season. Join us for the latest transfer news and rumors from around the globe.

Transfers home page | Men’s grades | Women’s grades

TOP STORIES

– Trent: Anfield reception won’t change love for Liverpool
– Wolves sack Pereira after winless start to season
– Amorim expecting Man United transfer requests in January

TRENDING RUMORS

– Bayern Munich striker Harry Kane is considering a shock move to Barcelona next summer, Sport has revealed. The England international is arguably in the form of his life this season, having scored 22 goals in just 15 appearances to date. However, a €65 million release clause in his Bayern contract will be activated at the end of the campaign — potentially opening the door to a transfer away from the club. Nevertheless, Sport also claims that Kane, 32, won’t make a firm decision over his future anytime soon.

– Liverpool are keeping tabs on recent Fulham signing Kevin after his impressive start to the season, says Football Insider. The Reds recently sent their chief scout to watch the 22-year-old forward, who arrived at Craven Cottage this summer from Shakhtar Donetsk in a £34.6 million deal. And while the Brazil U-20 international is yet to score for Fulham, he has impressed of late with his dribbling ability and chance creation.

– Manchester United are continuing to look at Bournemouth winger Antoine Semenyo ahead of the January transfer window, TEAMtalk reports. Semenyo, 25, has been one of the standout players in the Premier League this season, with nine goal involvements in his 10 matches. As such, United continue to track his development ahead of a potential future £60 million move. Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson is also “fast emerging as a key target” in 2026 at around £70 million.

– Paris Saint-Germain are among the admirers of Dayot Upamecano as the Bayern Munich defender’s contractual stand-off continues, Fabrizio Romano reports. While the Bundesliga champions wish to retain the 27-year-old, as things stand he’ll be free to leave the club next summer when his contract expires. A host of other European clubs are also said to be monitoring his situation at Bayern, with Chelsea and Liverpool recently linked. Bayern’s director of sport Max Eberl, meanwhile, has not given up on the idea of Upamecano extending his deal, recently stating: “We should be able to make it happen.”

EXPERT TAKE

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Moreno: Marcus Rashford has exceeded expectations at Barcelona

Ale Moreno has been impressed by Marcus Rashford’s resurgence since joining Barcelona on loan.

OTHER RUMORS

– Manchester United and Tottenham have Everton center-back Jarrad Branthwaite on their radars at around £70m. (Caught Offside)

– United are also keen to bring in former Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid in the January transfer window (Ekrem Konur)

– Chelsea want to extend Moisés Caicedo‘s contract, having tentatively opened negotiations with the midfielder back in August. (Fabrizio Romano)

– FC Porto are willing to listen to offers to sign Spain forward Samu Aghehowa in the region of €80m, below his €100m release clause. A reported target of Chelsea and Tottenham, the 21-year-old has a contract until June 2029. (Estadio Deportivo)

– Tottenham and Atletico Madrid are battling to sign River Plate center back Lautaro Rivero, 22, who has a €100m release clause. (La Razon)

– Barcelona face competition from Arsenal for the signature of French wonderkid Laciné Megnan-Pavé. Montpellier are keen to retain the 15-year-old and are planning on offering him a three-year contract when he turns 16. (Sport)

– Neymar could end up reuniting with Luis Suárez and Lionel Messi at Inter Miami, with his Santos contract about to run out. (Ekrem Konur)

– Richarlison is open to leaving Tottenham Hotspur if the right offer arrives, with Flamengo, Everton and Orlando City among his suitors. (Ekrem Konur)

– Wolverhampton Wanderers have shortlisted Middlesbrough’s Rob Edwards and former boss Gary O’Neil in their search for a replacement for Vítor Pereira. (Sky Sports News)

– Fiorentina are “getting closer” to sacking manager Stefano Pioli and are already sounding out potential replacements. (Nicolo Schira)

– Athletic Club have shortlisted three coaches as possible replacements for Ernesto Valverde, with Bournemouth’s Andoni Iraola among them. (La Razon)

– Former Roma midfielder Daniele De Rossi could be the next Genoa manager, replacing the sacked Patrick Vieira. (Gazzetta dello Sport)

– Senior Southampton players would welcome the return of Russell Martin as manager, following Will Still‘s dismissal over the weekend. (TalkSPORT)

LANDOVER, Md. — At halftime of the Seattle Seahawks’ blowout win over the Washington Commanders on Sunday night at Northwest Stadium, Sam Darnold had four touchdown passes and zero incompletions, having connected on all 16 of his attempts.

He didn’t know it until someone told him — a no-no in football akin to talking about a no-hitter in baseball.

“Obviously, I can feel the flow of the game and understand that we’re doing really good on offense, but no I didn’t know that I hadn’t thrown an incompletion,” Darnold said after the 38-14 victory. “It was pretty cool. Someone at halftime said to me that I hadn’t thrown an incompletion, so I think he’s to blame for throwing an incompletion in the second half.”

By the time Darnold missed for the first time, the Seahawks were well on their way to a win that improved their record to 6-2 — and boosted their quarterback’s MVP odds in the process.

“Not going to say who it was,” Darnold said with a smile, refusing to give up the culprit.

Darnold finished 21-of-24 for 330 yards, four touchdowns and one interception before he was pulled in favor of Drew Lock with just over seven minutes left. That was good enough for a Total QBR of 97.8, the best in any game of his eight-year NFL career.

According to ESPN Research, there have been four instances of a player recording a QBR of 97 or higher in a game this season, and Darnold has three of them. The others are his performances against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 5 (97.4) and the New Orleans Saints in Week 3 (97.3). Darnold’s three such games are tied with Tom Brady (2007), Tony Romo (2014) and Lamar Jackson (2019) for the most by a starting quarterback in a season since ESPN began tracking Total QBR in 2006.

“Sam’s execution right now, he’s just ridiculous,” coach Mike Macdonald said. “All the things we’ve talked about that he’s been doing, but decisive, making smart decisions, our receivers are doing a great job, I thought the protection was really good.”

The Seahawks were short-handed at receiver, with Cooper Kupp, Jake Bobo and Dareke Young inactive. It didn’t look like it, though, with Darnold throwing touchdown passes on each of Seattle’s first four possessions. He connected twice with rookie Tory Horton — who assumed Kupp’s role of No. 2 receiver — before hitting rookie tight end Elijah Arroyo and veteran receiver Cody White.

Darnold’s 87.5% completion rate was the second highest in a game in Seahawks history (minimum 10 attempts), behind only Russel Wilson’s 88.6% in a 2020. By completing his first 17 passes, Darnold tied the franchise record that Warren Moon set in 1998, which was also to begin the game.

“Believe me when I say it, I’m not surprised,” Macdonald said of Darnold’s completion streak. “We watch Sam every day and how he operates, and he’s the same guy every day, which is what you love about him. We’re chasing it. The guys are determined, and it’s fun to watch. When the team comes together, that’s the type of stuff you can do when you play the right way, you prepare the right way. Our coaches deserve a lot of credit. I thought [offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak] called a great game.”

Jaxon Smith-Njigba extended his NFL lead in receiving with 129 yards on eight catches, marking the sixth time in eight games he has topped triple digits.

Smith-Njigba was asked about the etiquette observed with a quarterback who’s off to a perfect start.

“We stay away from him a little bit and just let him do his thing,” he said. “I think somebody might’ve broke the news to him, but yeah, honestly, I didn’t know. We were just in such a flow and just out there dealing, so it was great to see that.”

According to ESPN Research, Darnold began the day with 60-to-1 odds to win MVP, per ESPN BET. Those odds improved to 18-to-1 by the end of the game.

With their win, the Seahawks are 4-0 on the road this season and 11-1 since the start of last season.

Seattle lost middle linebacker Ernest Jones IV to a knee injury and cornerback Josh Jobe to a concussion in the second quarter. Macdonald said of Jones’ injury, “It’s not season ending, but we’ll see how it goes.”