Another issue for Jayden Daniels and another loss for Dan Quinn's Commanders create a new low

Coach Dan Quinn and the Washington Commanders hit a new low with their latest dismal showing, an eighth consecutive loss that officially eliminated them from playoff contention a year after they came within a victory of reaching the Super Bowl.

The 31-0 rout at the hands of the previously struggling Minnesota Vikings on Sunday featured a mediocre performance — and, continuing a troubling trend, early exit — by star quarterback Jayden Daniels, plus a bad-looking injury to tight end Zach Ertz for Washington (3-10).

“Baffling, frustrating, enraged,” Quinn said, summing up the day.

A season ago, Daniels was superb, leading Washington to a 12-5 record and earning AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors by completing 69% of his passes for 3,568 yards with 25 touchdowns and nine interceptions and running for 891 yards, at a clip of 6.0 per carry, with six TDs.

This season, he's been just OK — nothing more.

After going 9 for 20 for just 78 yards passing plus a pick on Sunday, Daniels owns a completion rate of 60.6 with 1,262 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions. His passer rating slid from 100.1 to 88.1. He's run for 278 yards, at 4.8 per carry, with two scores.

And after appearing in all 20 of the Commanders' games last season, including the playoffs, he's been in the lineup for only seven of 13, leaving before the end the past three times he played.

It was on the interception that Daniels got leveled by a Vikings defender and aggravated the dislocated left elbow that had sidelined him for more than a month.

“One of those fluke plays,” Washington linebacker Bobby Wagner said.

One game after seeming to play like a real NFL team in a tight overtime defeat to the Denver Broncos, prompting Quinn to say, “We lost, but we’re not lost anymore,” the Commanders were as inept as ever.

“I thought we took a step forward last week,” Quinn said after the disaster against Minnesota, which came in a four-game losing streak, “and tonight I thought we took three steps back.”

On Sunday? Absolutely nothing. “That’s not even a tough day at the office,” receiver Terry McLaurin said. “That’s just bad.” From giving up three turnovers (backup quarterback Marcus Mariota had one fumble and one interception) to forcing none, from not scoring to an inability to slow Minnesota, and so on. “When you miss the mark like we did,” Quinn observed, “you’ve got to look at it all and question it.”

The defense. After looking better during the past two games with defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. stripped of play-calling duties, that unit was once again unable to do anything — even against a Vikings team that got shut out last week and had gone more than 20 consecutive possessions without a touchdown. And even against QB J.J. McCarthy, who came in with a 57.9 passer rating, a 54.1 completion percentage, six TD throws and 10 interceptions. All he did was go 16 for 23 for 163 yards and his first NFL game with three scoring passes and lead one ridiculous drive that lasted 19 plays, 98 yards and took 12:01 off the clock.

Any tight end that faces Washington. On Sunday, it was Josh Oliver, who went into the day with seven catches all season and produced the first two-TD game of his NFL career. He only once finished any of his previous five seasons with a total of three scores.

Quinn. The number of games in which the Commanders have failed to be competitive keeps rising.

Quinn said he feared Ertz tore the ACL in his right knee; the No. 5 tight end in career receptions was expected to have an MRI exam on Monday. ... Quinn said Daniels could have gone back into the game Sunday but the coach decided to keep him out.

Zero — The number of points for Washington; the club hadn't been shut out since 2019.

Four meaningless games against NFC East rivals remain, starting next Sunday at the just-as-terrible New York Giants (2-11). It'll be worth monitoring how much Quinn and GM Adam Peters give extra playing time to some younger players to see what the roster contains — and, of course, what happens with Daniels the rest of the way.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/NFL

Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) runs with the ball during the first half of an NFL football game against the Washington Commanders, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Matt Krohn)

Minnesota Vikings tight end Josh Oliver (84) celebrates next to Washington Commanders cornerback Jonathan Jones after scoring a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn talks to linebacker Frankie Luvu (4) on the sideline during the first half of an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Washington Commanders tight end Zach Ertz (86) hits the ground after not being able to catch a pass between Minnesota Vikings linebacker Blake Cashman, left, and safety Jay Ward during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) walks off the field after an NFL football game against the Minnesota Vikings, Sunday, Dec. 7, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Matt Krohn)

TOKYO (AP) — A powerful 7. 6-magnitude earthquake struck late Monday off northern Japan, triggering a tsunami of up to 70 centimeters (27 inches) in Pacific coast communities and warnings of potentially higher surges, the Japanese Meteorological Agency said.

Several people were injured, media reports said.

The quake struck at about 11:15 p.m. (1415 GMT) in the Pacific Ocean about 80 kilometers (50 miles) off the coast of Aomori, the northernmost prefecture of Japan's main Honshu island, the agency said.

A tsunami of 70 centimeters was measured in Kuji port in Iwate prefecture, just south of Aomori, and tsunami levels of up to 50 centimeters struck other coastal communities in the region, the agency said.

The agency issued an alert for potential tsunami surges of up to 3 meters (10 feet) in some areas, and Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara urged residents to immediately head to higher ground or take shelter inside buildings or evacuation centers until the alert is lifted.

Several people were injured at a hotel in the Aomori town of Hachinohe and a man in the town of Tohoku was slightly hurt when his car fell into a hole, public broadcaster NHK reported.

Kihara said nuclear power plants in the region were conducting safety checks and that so far no problems were detected.

Several cases of fires were reported in Aomori, and about 90,000 residents were advised to take shelter at evacuation centers, the Fire and Disaster Management Agency said.

Satoshi Kato, a vice principal of a public high school in Hachinohe, told NHK that he was at home when the quake struck, and that glasses and bowls fell and smashed into shards on the floor.

Kato said he drove to the school because it was designated an evacuation center, and on the way he encountered traffic jams and car accidents as panicked people tried to flee. Nobody had yet come to the school to take shelter, he said.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, in brief comment to reporters, said the government set up an emergency task force to urgently assess the extent of damage. “We are putting people’s lives first and doing everything we can,” she said.

The quake struck about 80 kilometers (50 miles) northeast of Hachinohe, and about 50 kilometers (30 miles) below the sea surface, the meteorological agency said.

It was just north of the Japanese coast that suffered the magnitude 9.0 quake and tsunami in 2011 that killed nearly 20,000 people.

Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara speaks during a news conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo early Tuesday, Dec. 9, following a strong earthquake in northeastern Japan. (Kyodo News via AP)

Japan's Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi speaks to reporters at the prime minister's office in Tokyo after a strong earthquake struck northeastern Japan. (Kyodo News via AP)

A tsunami warning is displayed on a television in Yokohama, near Tokyo, Monday, Dec. 8, 2025, after a strong earthquake hits off Japanese northern coast, tsunami alert issued. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)