Jayden Daniels is down. The Commanders must look ahead.

With their face-of-the-franchise QB sidelined for several weeks with an elbow injury, and the team holding a 3-6 record, Washington enters the NFL trade deadline needing to retool the roster.

Teammates huddle around injured Commanders’ QB Jayden Daniels during the Week 9 loss to the Seahawks (LMS)

ASHBURN, Va. — The Washington Commanders have eight games remaining in the 2025 regular season, but the final stretch no longer feels like a playoff chase. It’s a reality check.

Following Sunday night’s injury-riddled, one-sided loss to the Seattle Seahawks, the front office must shift from survival mode to long-term planning.

Quarterback Jayden Daniels’ dislocated elbow late in the 38-14 defeat wasn’t just a bad-luck injury — it was injury added to insult and a symbolic gut punch for a team already trending down. Whether Daniels returns this season or not, the Commanders have slipped out of any realistic playoff conversation. What they should be doing now: listening to and engaging with potential trade partners before Tuesday’s NFL deadline.

The Playbook:

• The Jayden Daniels timeline and the search for age-appropriate help

• Marshon Lattimore’s last dance

• Trade Daron — Payne or gain?

• Trade deadline candidates — How league sources gauge Washington’s options