Commanders coach Dan Quinn on Monday said he should have removed Jayden Daniels before the drive that ended with the second-year quarterback dislocating his left elbow, a distinct change from what he said shortly after Washington lost to Seattle on Sunday night.
"I just missed it," Quinn said. "That is 100% on me."
Quinn said they're still awaiting further testing on Daniels' elbow to determine the next course of action, but the coach said it would "knock him out a while, for sure."
An X-ray after the game showed no fracture.
Daniels suffered the injury to his non-throwing elbow with 7:39 remaining in the fourth quarter of the 38-14 loss to Seattle. He was sacked on a scramble at the Seahawks' 4-yard line with the Commanders trailing 38-7.
Washington also lost two more players to season-ending injuries. Cornerback Marshon Lattimore tore his ACL, and receiver/kick returner Luke McCaffrey fractured his collarbone.
Quinn also said receiver Terry McLaurin is unlikely to play vs. the Detroit Lions on Sunday because of a quad injury that already has sidelined him for five games.
Washington won't be signing another quarterback "at this time," Quinn said. Marcus Mariota will start in place of Daniels, with Josh Johnson as his backup. Sam Hartman is on the practice squad.
After the game, Quinn said he did not give any consideration to removing Daniels at that point in the game. There was 12:30 left when Daniels and the starting offense began the drive.
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 a two-week absence.
But on that final drive against the Seahawks, Daniels handed the ball off four times and threw five passes before the play in which he got hurt. On the previous five passes, he was chased out of the pocket on one rush but avoided getting hit.
He was injured while scrambling to his right, after opting not to hand off to running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. With a defender rushing at him and impacting his ability to throw to the right side, Daniels chose to scramble and, as he was tackled, his left elbow bent backward.
Quinn said they weren't going to call any plays in which the quarterback might run.
"Honestly, that's where I missed it," Quinn said. "Of course he scrambled. It's Jayden. It's what he's special at."
He said that was going to be the last series for Daniels and a handful of other starters.
"The hindsight part is the hardest one," Quinn said. "That's what I think about all night and nonstop."
Daniels missed three games earlier this season with injuries -- two with a sprained knee and another with a hamstring issue. He suffered the first injury on the initial play of the fourth quarter at Green Bay in Week 2, trailing 17-3. He was hit by a helmet in the left knee, but he stayed in the game, showing no visible signs of an injury, and capped off the series with a touchdown pass to make it a one-score game.
He also hurt his hamstring early in the third quarter of a game at Dallas, getting tackled in the pocket by a free blitzer.
Teammates were upset by what happened Sunday night.
"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."
Quinn also said he won't be making any changes to his defensive staff, but he did say that defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. would move from the press box to the field. The Commanders rank 28th in yards allowed and 22nd in scoring -- and 31st in both categories over the past four weeks.
"It's players, it's coaches, it's all of us, man," Quinn said. "We're capable of playing these calls and playing them better. And I'm certain of it. My belief in the players is high, in the staff is high."