Loser No. 2
Jayden Daniels - Commanders QB
The Washington Commanders are wasting quarterback Jayden Daniels' rookie contract window. Cracks are showing in this project, and the signal-caller will now have to work with what he has the rest of the way.
General manager Adam Peters didn't acquire another backfield presence to take the pressure off. There was no move for a productive center, even though the Commanders desperately need one. And even with the wide receiver room being so decimated, there was no activity whatsoever.
Nobody should have been particularly surprised by this.
Things were quiet. Peters has been stung by too many signings and deals gone wrong, and the Commanders were in no real position to be aggressive.
Daniels is intelligent enough to see this for what it is. He's just got to make the best out of a bad situation, but standing firm at the trade deadline does nothing to ease the pressure on his shoulders.
The Commanders are arguably asking Daniels to do too much again. Things aren't clicking offensively, and there seems to be some disconnect between the signal-caller and coordinator David Blough. They won't admit that, but the on-field execution speaks for itself.
Would Daniels have benefited from a new center or a new pass-catcher? Absolutely, but the Commanders felt they couldn't justify it given their precarious situation.
Winner No. 3
Dan Quinn - Commanders HC
Dan Quinn is still fighting to turn things around and save his job prospects beyond 2026. The head coach genuinely believes his team is gearing up for a strong finish to the season, though he acknowledged that Washington's Thursday Night Football showdown with the New York Giants is now a must-win.
Quinn may have been a little nervous heading into the trade deadline. The Commanders could have easily gone into selling mode, as the Philadelphia Eagles did. Instead, Adam Peters gave him even more confidence by standing pat.
The Commanders are not throwing in the towel. Quinn embodies that, and fans shouldn't have expected anything less.
Week 18 last season was a dead rubber for the Commanders. Some fans wanted the team to down tools and protect their top-five draft pick, but Quinn ended the year on a positive note with a meaningless win.
He is taking the same approach this time around. And fortunately for Quinn, the front-office leader held a similar opinion.
This does absolutely nothing to reduce the pressure on Quinn over the next nine games. A loss at MetLife Stadium would make things almost untenable during their mini bye week. But at least the coach has a full complement of players to work with.
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