Commanders, after NFC title game appearance, fall to 3-9 entering Sunday’s game against Vikings

The struggling Washington Commanders come to town Sunday with their own quarterback issues.

Jayden Daniels, who led the Commanders to the NFC title game as a rookie last season, has been sidelined since Nov. 2 because of a dislocated left elbow. He’s played only six games, missing two because of a knee sprain and another one with a hamstring strain. His status for Sunday (noon, U.S. Bank Stadium) is unknown.

Vikings offensive coordinator Wes Phillips, in the middle of an answer about the key to being a consistent playoff team Tuesday, wondered aloud how heavily the absence of Daniels — “a very good player” — has impacted the Commanders, who have a 3-9 record and are on a seven-game losing streak.

Daniels is 2-4 in his six games, the same record as Vikings rookie J.J. McCarthy.

McCarthy, who dealt with a high-ankle sprain earlier this season, could clear concussion protocol at Wednesday’s practice after Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said Monday he came in symptom-free. Sunday’s loss to the Seahawks was the sixth game McCarthy has missed this year.

Daniels, meanwhile, practiced in a limited fashion last week but has not been cleared for full contact yet. Commanders coach Dan Quinn said in a news conference Monday that Daniels will work individually through “functional movements” this week like stiff-arms and diving.

“That’s the step that we need to see from a functional evaluation, functional contact,” Quinn told reporters. “It’s not traditional in the sense of taking a hit.”

“He’s done a real nice job for those guys,” said Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores of Mariota. “Obviously, one, having played against him in the past, the scramble ability. The quarterback mobility. The explosives that come just from that alone. He’s broken a lot of big runs over the course of his career. That opens up the deep part of the field often times for big pass plays.”

O’Connell said Monday he didn’t want to end his news conference without recognizing second-year outside linebacker Dallas Turner’s five-tackle, two-sack performance against the Seahawks.

After some bumps around mid-season with sacks negated due to penalty, Turner has started to find some consistency, even as the Vikings went from missing Andrew Van Ginkel for a long stretch to Jonathan Greenard being absent for two games.

Turner has recorded at least one sack for three straight weeks and has tallied 15 tackles, five of them for loss, in the same span. His season totals are up to 5½ sacks and 42 tackles, both significant improvements over his rookie numbers.

“With young players, everybody wants it right now,” Flores said. “If you look at rookies ... it rarely happens that way. ... It takes time to learn the defense. Learn techniques and fundamentals. Learn the things that you do well individually ‘cause I think every player has to play to their strengths. Dallas is starting to figure that out. He’s really working hard at it.”