ARLINGTON, Texas — In Washington’s regular-season finale held at the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium, Jayden Daniels was substituted at halftime, as the Commanders secured their position in the playoffs, aiming for either the sixth or seventh seed.

Head coach Dan Quinn had expressed earlier in the week that his team would be fully committed to the game. However, this commitment seemed less than complete when it came to his promising rookie quarterback.

Following halftime, Marcus Mariota stepped in for Washington and swiftly guided the team to their first touchdown of the match, coming after a lackluster first half marked by only 64 total yards and a 6-3 deficit.

In the first half, Daniels completed 6 of 12 passes for a total of 38 yards and added four rushes for 27 yards.

The Commanders, with an 11-5 record, entered the game positioned as the sixth seed in the NFC playoffs. They needed either a win or a loss by Green Bay against Chicago to maintain their standings. Conversely, a loss combined with a Green Bay victory would result in Washington dropping down to the seventh seed.

The seventh seed is set to compete in the wild-card round against the NFC East champion Philadelphia Eagles, who have secured the No. 2 seed in the playoffs.