The Sunday slate of Week 14 games couldn’t have gone much worse for the Washington Commanders. They lost Zach Ertz to injury, which will affect their tight end depth. The Minnesota Vikings also blew them out 31-0 in a game that saw starting quarterback Jayden Daniels leave without returning. Perhaps it’s a blessing in disguise to be hopeless in the playoff picture with a 3-10 record? They’ve got plenty of disappointments to catch up on.
The NFL reports on specifics around the Ertz injury. The incident is hard to watch, including seeing his leg clearly bending the wrong way after being hit by Vikings’ safety Jay Ward with a low tackle. The Commanders found themselves down a tight end and 24 points with 38 seconds left in the third quarter.
Washington head coach Dan Quinn reported the concern is currently Ertz’s ACL, and that “early signals aren’t good.” In a letdown season for the team, this Ertz injury looks to be, at least, season-ending. It was difficult to watch him sobbing while being carted off the field.
Daniels left the game during the first drive of the second half. After throwing an interception to Vikings’ linebacker Andrew Van Ginkel, he was also hit with a stiff block on the return. Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota finished the game, but he was no better at scoring.
With nothing but pride on the line, the Commanders avoided the deadly sin. Quinn also commented on Daniels’ injury, stating that he could have played, and it was only a precaution. The second-year quarterback missed three games due to a dislocation of the same elbow in Week 9. For now, this injury seems to have fewer future implications than the loss of their tight end.
Washington enjoyed a breakout season from Daniels and the Commanders last year. This one, though, fell apart early, and the team didn’t figure it out in time. Fans can now focus on watching development or waiting for the team to return healthy next year.
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