- 11 minutes ago
The Commanders have had some unfortunate luck over the last several years, but they have created their own bad luck by making some terrible decisions. What’s the worst decision that Washington has made since the new regime took over?
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00:00This is Kevin Sheehan talking about Jaden Daniels
00:03and something he did during the offseason prior to his injury
00:07that, I guess, just set him off once the injury occurred over the weekend.
00:12Here's Kevin Sheehan from Team 980.
00:14That stupid-ass flag football game that he participated in,
00:18the Brady thing that was supposed to be in Saudi Arabia
00:21or wherever it was supposed to be,
00:23and then they had to pull it back here because of the war in Iran.
00:26I mean, how dumb was that?
00:28I mean, I know for a fact the organization was holding their breath.
00:34But given what we just saw in that game,
00:37how idiotic was it for him to play in that thing?
00:42That's on him.
00:43That's on his inner circle.
00:46That's on the team to a certain degree.
00:47I don't know if they could have prevented it.
00:49I understand the money he probably got for doing it.
00:52I don't begrudge any of these players that are trying to maximize their ability.
00:57But coming off the season, he came off last year.
01:00And what we just saw, can you imagine with him running around like a running back
01:05in that stupid-ass flag football game if he had done it then?
01:11He didn't, though.
01:13I didn't really have that much of a problem with the flag football game.
01:17I remember when it was happening.
01:18At first, I didn't have an issue with it until I saw the clips after it happened.
01:24When guys are like, they were like, they were going pretty hard.
01:29They were going hard.
01:30And it's like, well, you could definitely blow your knee out doing anything that those guys are doing.
01:34Remember, I was driving Grant crazy before.
01:36Yeah, I'm just saying, personally, I didn't have a problem with it.
01:39They could get hurt running sprints as they train.
01:44They could get hurt jumping on plyo boxes when they train.
01:49It's just a risk.
01:49It's risky.
01:50I'm just telling you me.
01:52A flag football game, I don't have a problem with it.
01:54What you're saying is correct, but you're just adding an extra layer of extra stuff you otherwise wouldn't do.
02:00It's an extra exhibition that's unnecessary.
02:01I get it.
02:02You're against it.
02:02Were you against it?
02:03I didn't think it was great.
02:06I'm okay with them playing a flag football game.
02:09It wasn't, though, like a flag football game with your church wives.
02:14It was a little more intense.
02:16Yeah, yeah.
02:17And I think he's saying that because, in hindsight, you could see where he just fell down and grabbed himself,
02:22and it popped out.
02:23Right.
02:23Now, I will say, a lot of people are asking, why didn't they consider surgery last year when he first
02:30dislocated it?
02:31And I have to say that it appears from researching that it's not a given it's going to dislocate again.
02:39A great example is Drew Brees in 2007.
02:42It's so interesting to read this now and look back on it in hindsight.
02:45Drew Brees in 2007, in the Pro Bowl, had his left elbow dislocated.
02:50Right?
02:50You wonder why they don't play the Pro Bowl anymore.
02:52That's a nightmare.
02:52Right?
02:53Right in a nightmare.
02:54Dislocated the elbow, just like Jaden, and just rested it.
02:58No surgery.
02:58And it never wore a brace.
03:00And it was never an issue again.
03:02Because there was no fracture.
03:04They didn't notice any particular ligament damage.
03:07And it just healed naturally.
03:09I'm assuming that's kind of what they thought would happen with Jaden.
03:12Unfortunately, you know, any time there's a dislocation, if there's not a fracture, there is a ligament compromise.
03:20It may not be ripped, but it could be stretched.
03:23That's what happens with a lot of guys with UCLs.
03:25A lot of times they'll say, well, it's not torn.
03:28But they still need Tommy John eventually because the ligament is so stretched that it's almost, in essence, the same
03:34thing.
03:35Yeah, and if he's injured that elbow three times, it's pretty much a hundred percent chance.
03:41It's been compromised.
03:42It's been compromised.
03:43It's chronic.
03:43Now, I'll say this.
03:44I believe the brace did its part last year.
03:47He didn't dislocate it again.
03:49It hurt.
03:50And if you remember, they threw him like a rag doll.
03:53And he went down and pounded.
03:54And I said this yesterday.
03:55I went on with Grant and Danny.
03:56You can't pound the turf anymore in 2026.
03:59Because they'll just blue tent you to death.
04:01And they're just going to shut you down.
04:03You can't get hit in the head.
04:05You can't.
04:05Nothing.
04:06You know, they're super cautious.
04:08And for better or for worse.
04:09And so, as soon as he pounded the pavement, he was in pain and pain and pain.
04:13That was it.
04:14But I don't think he dislocated it a second time.
04:18The brace did its job, just for the record.
04:21It just was.
04:21You mean last year.
04:22Yes, the second time.
04:23It just was.
04:24It hurt like hell.
04:25Which I'm sure it did.
04:27Well, you can tell it hurts.
04:28It has to be super painful.
04:29For sure.
04:29You can tell how much it hurt him on Sunday.
04:31For sure.
04:31I mean, do you know how much it hurts when you just hit your funny bone near your elbow?
04:36Yeah.
04:36You know, that pain?
04:37That's nothing.
04:38No, when it dislocates, it hurts.
04:40Now, this is also true.
04:41And I know this from seeing it firsthand with my son.
04:43And anybody that's experienced this knows this.
04:45Each subsequent time you dislocate, it hurts a little less.
04:49And then as soon as you pop it back in, it's like 98% better.
04:53Now, there's still inflammation.
04:53And it's still whatever.
04:55Yeah.
04:55And probably still should rest it for several weeks.
04:57But it's, you know, you get immediately 98% relief when it pops back in.
05:03Look, I get Kevin Sheehan's frustration.
05:05I can't connect the flag football game to what happened on Sunday.
05:10No, no.
05:11You're not connecting.
05:12But he's just pointing out maybe not the best decision by an injury.
05:17What's turning out to be an injury-prone quarterback.
05:19Well, he's only bringing it up because of what happened on Sunday.
05:22Understood.
05:22So he's trying to connect it.
05:23Well, he might have had a beef at the time.
05:24I don't know if he did.
05:25Yeah, yeah.
05:25But he's trying to connect it in a way.
05:28It almost seems like he's saying maybe instead of having the flag football game,
05:32he should have had surgery.
05:33And we don't know what was said to the doctors.
05:36We don't know what's going to be said this week.
05:38You're saying, don't do the extra thing.
05:39That's just extra.
05:41It's an extra thing you don't need.
05:42Right.
05:43But all of us would have done the same thing.
05:45And Kevin.
05:45I don't know.
05:46I don't know how much they paid him.
05:47I think it was.
05:48I don't know.
05:48I have no idea.
05:49I think it was millions.
05:52I'm sure we would have all played in the game.
05:54Yeah.
05:55So, I mean, we're just now we're just fans.
05:56Sure.
05:57But Kevin would have played.
05:58All four of us would have played for that money.
06:01All of us would have.
06:02And ultimately, he didn't get hurt in the flag football game.
06:04True.
06:04It was a risk.
06:05No doubt.
06:05Yeah.
06:05But I think that Kevin is actually on the right side.
06:08But I agree with Kevin.
06:08Hat.
06:09Had he suffered that injury in a flag football game, there would have been.
06:13Oh, yeah.
06:13It would have been serious outrage.
06:15Right.
06:15But my point is guys get hurt in training.
06:18I know.
06:19When they go to a gym.
06:20Everyone agrees with that point.
06:21The other part of that point is it's just an extra thing now.
06:25Unnecessary.
06:25But I think it's such a minimal risk.
06:28Turns out it actually wasn't.
06:29He just fell down and braced himself.
06:31That could happen in a flag football game.
06:33Yeah.
06:34It definitely could have.
06:35Especially with a guy with a weak elbow.
06:37You're on the stand or whatever you are.
06:38He could fall tripping down a step at his house and brace his fall and snap his elbow.
06:43I don't think it's an unfair criticism.
06:46It's unfair.
06:47I just don't agree with it.
06:48Yeah.
06:49Yeah.
06:50Yeah.
06:50I think it's perfectly logical.
06:52Actually.
06:54That's fine.
06:54Yeah.
06:55Doesn't mean you have to agree with it.
06:56It's a risk.
06:57It's a risk reward thing.
06:59You're rolling the dice with that 97% in your mind or 99.9%.
07:05He won't get hurt.
07:06I mean, you've made up some sort of calculation in your brain where you think it won't get hurt.
07:10Sure.
07:10Yeah.
07:11I'm going to let a guy go running outside.
07:14That's different.
07:16They could trip on a sidewalk and get hurt.
07:19Yeah.
07:19That's different.
07:20Get struck by lightning.
07:21That's different.
07:21Yeah.
07:22The odds are much lower.
07:23That's different than juking and trying to avoid someone and competing.
07:26Totally different than going for a three-mile run.
07:28I mean, it's just different.
07:29This is what happens when you have a guy who's injury-prone.
07:31You just question everything he does.
07:32By the way, last week, I definitely clipped the end of my toe on a root during a run, and
07:40I nearly just went face first into the trail.
07:44Like, it would have been bad.
07:45That's happened to me.
07:46Yeah.
07:47I mean, I think I told you.
07:48I almost ate it.
07:49I went running on a trail, and I was deep in the trail.
07:52Yeah.
07:52And I tripped over a root.
07:55My ankle got swole.
07:57I had to call my wife to pick me up.
07:59I had to walk out of the woods for 20 minutes to get to the nearest road.
08:04It was a disaster.
08:06I wouldn't have had a phone.
08:07I would have been just stranded.
08:09I would have been like Brad Pitt in The Heart of the Beast.
08:12Exactly.
08:12Except I didn't mind.
08:13Except you wouldn't have had a dog to help you.
08:14I wouldn't have had my dog to assist me, get me out, help me.
08:18Roosevelt Island, would you have been the only one?
08:20No, there would have been people there.
08:22You're a homeless guy?
08:23It's a populated area.
08:25I'm telling you, that guy wasn't homeless.
08:27He's just enjoying a nap on the bridge.
08:29Right.
08:31But Jason, you can make, just to get back to the Jaden thing, you can make the argument
08:37though, let's say Jaden, his contract and endorsements right now, let's say he's just
08:42sitting on a net worth of $30, $40 million.
08:44I have no idea.
08:45Right?
08:46If they paid you $5 million to play in that flag football event, that's a lot of money.
08:51But you might be risking $100 million down the road, right?
08:54You know, so you just got to make a calculation for everybody.
08:57It's different.
08:58For us, I'm worth nothing.
09:00I'll go in the Indy 500 and drive it.
09:02Yeah, well, he just thought it's a flag football game.
09:04I'm not going to get hurt.
09:05I'm sure he talked about it with his team.
09:08I mean, who knows if there were anybody against it.
09:11But I agree with Kevin.
09:13I would guess behind closed doors.
09:15Like Adam Peters.
09:15The team was freaking out.
09:16And the team.
09:17They're probably like, oh my God, if he blows his knee out.
09:19Well, probably every team was.
09:21Yeah.
09:22With every player.
09:23Not just Jaden.
09:23You don't have to be injury prone.
09:25It's just like, yeah, it's just an extra unnecessary thing.
09:28That's why they don't want you competing in other things.
09:31That's why unless you get carve outs like MJ did, you know, love of the game type of carve outs.
09:36Teams generally frown on that.
09:37That's why they don't want you like jet skiing and parachuting and mountain climbing during the offseason.
09:42Right, but I don't mind guys, football players, for example, playing basketball.
09:47I do.
09:47I know.
09:47You don't mind anything.
09:48You don't mind anything.
09:50You wanted Steven Strasburg to rehab at the major league level.
09:53Yeah, you'd have gotten more innings out of him.
09:54Yeah.
09:55Yeah.
09:55I'm sure that would have helped his fragile body.
09:58Yeah.
09:58Let's just have him do a third of an inning here in the big leagues.
10:02He's throwing just as hard as the minors.
10:04Yeah.
10:04The actual action is the exact same.
10:07Yeah.
10:07I just, sometimes you can't argue with you.
10:10It's just inarguable.
10:11It's just inarguable.
10:12Not everybody can contain this genius.
10:14Yeah, I get it.
10:14You guys are stuck inside your own boxes.
10:17No, I'm very, I'm very much an outside the box thinker.
10:20That's where I kind of draw.
10:21So, Jaden had, did he have meetings or did he have tests yesterday?
10:26Yes.
10:26And he's going to have more?
10:28Well, they had the MRI results and they're sharing with, but it sounds like they're sharing
10:31with other orthopedic doctors.
10:32Yeah, he was getting a bunch of advice.
10:34Right, he was going to meet with a bunch of guys.
10:35And it sounds like if you believe Schefter's report that he really doesn't want to deal with
10:39any surgery, certainly during the season.
10:41Because I think if he goes under the knife now, it ends the season.
10:44Oh, of course.
10:44Sounds like the timeline is similar to last year where he missed three games and then
10:48came back.
10:49And then the only way they can do it is they'll brace that thing up.
10:51Again, like they did Kurt Warner and others, just brace it up like crazy.
10:55And he'll have to gobble Advil or whatever else he wants to take and try to get through
11:00it.
11:00I mean, it'll be painful.
11:01Do you think their record would affect the organization's decision?
11:06Let's say they're winless at 0-1-6.
11:09I think they'll look out for his best interest.
11:11Do you think the organization would say, you know what, instead of wait until after the
11:13season, have the surgery, just do it now?
11:15Yeah, I don't know.
11:16It's a possibility.
11:16But they can't make him do it either.
11:19Yeah, because if they're 0-6.
11:20Oh, yeah.
11:22They can't make him.
11:22They can suggest it, but they can't make him do it.
11:25Yeah, they can't make him do it.
11:26I don't know.
11:27They're doomed.
11:29I've never seen a situation where it just completely, because they're damned if they
11:33do, damned if they don't.
11:34If they brace him up and throw him out there, I mean, something's probably going to happen.
11:38Right, it's going to land on him again.
11:40It's going to land on him again.
11:41And even if nothing else, it's just the optics.
11:43Like, it's going to be painful.
11:44You know, and that's going to look terrible.
11:45And they're going to be scared.
11:46That's what happened last time.
11:47They're just going to be scared.
11:48It's going to be bad.
11:49If you go, you know, it's almost no, they have to thread the needle, brace him up, and then
11:56pray against every prayer possible that he doesn't get hurt again.
12:00Anytime he hits the ground.
12:02You know, 12 more games.
12:03Right.
12:03Anytime he hits the ground.
12:05Yeah, there's going to be a lot of people holding their breath.
12:08I mean, even if he runs, you know, he scrambles outside the pocket and he runs out of bounds
12:12and he's pushed out of bounds and he hits the ground.
12:14Yeah.
12:14You're going to think, oh my gosh, he might get hurt here.
12:15It's a Gatorade thing.
12:16You're going to look at him and go, is he okay?
12:17Every single time he hits the ground.
12:18It's just like when Alex Smith played.
12:20It's like when Alex Smith played.
12:21And every time he got sacked, you're like, oh my God.
12:24Speaking of Gatorade, did you guys watch the Chiefs game the other night?
12:29Part of it.
12:30Not the whole game.
12:30Did you see Patrick Mahomes' mini Gatorade bottle?
12:33I did not.
12:34I think it was Patrick Mahomes.
12:36Was that Gatorade or something else?
12:38No, no, no.
12:39I know what you're talking about.
12:40That looked like a pain medicine.
12:42Yeah.
12:43But yeah, he was drinking like a mini Gatorade bottle.
12:48It almost looked like.
12:49Like when you give your kids a soccer game?
12:51The ones that sell like a 12 pack.
12:53One of those little ones?
12:54But he's like squeezed it.
12:55Yeah.
12:56Instead of like a regular size Gatorade bottle.
12:58When I buy Gatorades for my daughter's like field hockey team, I buy the little ones.
13:02Because buying the big ones is much more expensive.
13:05Right.
13:06You buy like an 18 pack and slam them in the cooler.
13:08I think it's a better value to get the bigger ones.
13:11I mean, it might be.
13:12Maybe.
13:12But those kids, they don't finish them all.
13:14They may not finish them.
13:14They leave half of them right there on the bench.
13:16Valdees, what were you going to say about the G thing?
13:20I don't think having the surgery is off the table.
13:26Because if you listen to what Adam says, Adam's not reporting that he's not going to get surgery.
13:32It's just his opinion.
13:33Yeah.
13:34I agree with that.
13:35I don't think it's off the table.
13:37Jaden Daniels, they're still going over the medical opinions on this.
13:44There are going to be a lot of different schools of thought.
13:46It is a dislocated left elbow.
13:49It sounds like a similar timeline to last year.
13:54But again, they're going through this right now with all the medical professionals and still gathering together opinions.
14:02And I don't think he wants to do any surgery on the elbow that would stabilize it.
14:10But I'm not telling you that that's off the table either because who knows what a doctor is going to
14:15say.
14:15Yeah, I'm certain that that's true.
14:17I'm 100% certain that's true.
14:19Just I wouldn't rule out the surgery.
14:21No, I wouldn't rule it out.
14:22I'm not ruling out anything.
14:23During the season?
14:24Yeah, I wouldn't rule it out.
14:26Like next week.
14:27Strongly, strongly, you know, push him that way and then he might just be backed in a corner even though
14:33he doesn't want it.
14:34I mean, can you imagine?
14:35He's in an impossible spot.
14:37By the way, also, this is important to know.
14:39The surgery's no guarantee.
14:40It will make it more likely that it's less going to pop out.
14:45But, you know, again, I can only compare it to shoulder.
14:49My son has shoulder surgery.
14:50It pops out all the time now.
14:51It held for about three years.
14:53And it pops out all the time now.
14:54He just swings his arm up.
14:56That's just the way he's built.
14:58That's just the way he's built.
14:58But can you imagine if he doesn't fix everything?
15:01For two years, for two years of his career, if he has the surgeries after the year, he would have
15:06played six games in those two years.
15:08Yeah.
15:09Well, that would be devastating.
15:10He's in an impossible spot.
15:13That's why you want to try to kick the can down the road.
15:14Six and a half.
15:15And these guys are in a tough spot, too, because they're dead men walking already.
15:19I mean, I watched Dan Quinn in his presser.
15:21That's the deadest guy I've ever seen.
15:22Like, it's just, if he plays him and he gets hurt, he's going to get murdered.
15:27If he doesn't play him, they're going to win three games.
15:29I'm sorry, they can't win with Marcus Mariota.
15:32The team's not good enough.
15:33The Seahawks are good enough.
15:35Maybe even, you know, maybe the Rams are good.
15:38Other teams, but they're not good enough.
15:40They're going to get slaughtered.
15:41They're probably going to win three or four games.
15:43Yeah.
15:43And so, they're just in an impossible spot.
15:48He doesn't want to quit after, you know, six quarters.
15:53You know, he's been waiting ten months to do this.
15:55And by the way, for people saying, like, be realistic.
15:58Like, he's going to rest it up for four weeks and then play again.
16:00He just rested for nine months.
16:02And it took one fall, and it popped out, right?
16:05So, resting for four weeks is just going to quiet the inflammation.
16:08It's not going to do anything to help, like, keep the elbow in place if he gets in an awkward
16:12spot.
16:12He just rested for nine months.
16:14I wonder if he would have had, like, a smaller brace on just as a precaution,
16:18even though he felt fine going into the game.
16:20It would have helped.
16:21If he had a smaller brace on to kind of tighten it.
16:23Oh, he should be wearing a brace for the rest of his career.
16:25Right.
16:25That's what I mean.
16:26And he, yeah.
16:27That's why I'm kind of surprised that he didn't have it on.
16:29Well, the problem is, I think you can safely say that there's no guarantee it was going to pop out.
16:35I know.
16:35Because other guys rested it.
16:36Just maybe it would have helped.
16:38I don't know.
16:38Maybe it would have helped.
16:40No, not a sleeve.
16:42But like a small brace.
16:44Yeah.
16:44Kind of like the one he wore where it didn't pop out.
16:47Yeah, maybe like that one.
16:48Or something a little smaller.
16:49Something that made it a little tighter on his elbow, on his joints.
16:53I think it would help, but it's not going to reduce the pain.
16:56Oh, the pain's there.
16:57You know.
16:58I think it's up.
16:59I'm sure he didn't sleep great last night.
17:01Well, yeah.
17:02No, I think it's, when it's back in, it's, the pain, it subsides a lot.
17:08It's probably manageable.
17:08But when you throw him to the ground, it's going to hurt you.
17:11Yeah, or like a 320-pound guy lands on top of you.
17:14Yeah.
17:15It's not going to be great.
17:16Yeah.
17:18It's a tough spot, man.
17:20I just can't, I've just never seen a season disintegrate this quickly.
17:23Ever.
17:23Ever.
17:24We'll definitely talk more about that, that injury with Dr. Jesse Morris.
17:28He's going to join the show coming up at 8 o'clock.
17:31Mike Jones from The Athletic will join us coming up at 725 here on The Junks.
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