Kurt Warner Affirms Jayden Daniels Can Play Through Left Elbow Injury

Hall of Fame quarterback Kurt Warner believes Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels is capable of playing through the left elbow injury he sustained during Sunday’s game.

Warner, currently contributing to ESPN, recounted suffering an identical injury in 2007 and playing without missing any games.

“I suffered the exact same injury back in ’07, and I played the next week,” Warner explained. “I braced it up, obviously a couple shots along the way, I had to hand the football off with my right hand in both directions, but this to me is something, because it’s the left arm, if he wants to play through that, and get back out there and help his team, I believe he can. It’s not going to be one of those things that affects the throwing part of things. Does it affect his movement, does it affect his running or some of the things they want to do by design? Maybe, but I do believe this is something he can come back from. Because it’s the left arm, I don’t think it’s something we worry about long term and go, ‘Should we extend this guy, because he’s had this type of injury twice?’ I believe it’s something he can play through.”

Warner emphasized that as a player, his focus would be on doing everything possible to help his team win.

“I can brace it up and go,” Warner said. “I don’t care about all that stuff. Let me go out there and play, I want to be out there with my guys as opposed to thinking about this a year or two down the road.”

Warner originally suffered his left elbow injury in Week 6 of 2007 when he was tackled by Panthers defensive end Julius Peppers. He missed the remainder of that game but returned in Week 7 wearing a substantial brace on his left elbow, going on to start every game for the Cardinals the rest of the season. Warner performed well down the stretch and was eventually named the starter in 2008 after beginning the 2007 season as the backup to Matt Leinart. In 2008, he led Arizona to the Super Bowl.

What remains uncertain is whether Warner’s assessment is accurate in labeling the injuries as “the exact same.” Daniels’ elbow injury could be more severe, and playing despite it may not be feasible even with significant bracing. While Warner demonstrated remarkable resilience, that doesn’t automatically make it the correct decision for Daniels moving forward.

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