It is inconceivable to me that the airplane crashed without the captain at the controls.
I too, found it extremely surprising, that the Captain did not automatically retake his seat immediately.
It seems to have been accepted without much comment...
...perhaps because he was assumed to be focusing on taking-in the situation, perhaps because he was still disoriented and not immediately aware of the extreme emergency.
Think I've said before that from his seat, he would then have initiated a full scan, likely including the trim-wheel!
I would say this was more than surprising, and tantamount to condemning the flight, although this is seen and easily said in retrospect, that appears to be the case.