Commanders were ‘locked in’ on Jayden Daniels as their QB1 even before NFL Combine

The Commanders were convinced that they should draft Jayden Daniels after seeing his love for the game.

Commanders were ‘locked in’ on Jayden Daniels as their QB1 even before NFL Combine

Jayden Daniels (Image via Sports Illustrated)

The Washington Commanders went from being a bottom-tier NFL franchise to a winning one in under two seasons. From a shift in ownership to a new Head Coach and drafting an energetic young quarterback, the resurgence of the Commanders’ franchise has gone as far as to encourage Native Americans to urge the team to change their name back to the Redskins.

The team went as far as the NFC Championship Round this year. Jayden Daniels has been a key reason for the team’s overall success, it was clear within the first few weeks that the team had found its franchise quarterback.

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Daniels is him. With a string of clutch performances, his ability to maintain his composure, and never back down from a fight, the 2nd overall pick of last year’s draft established himself to be the undisputed Offensive Rookie of the Year.

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This year, the Commanders have broken tradition as they will not be drafting in the top 10 overall. Last year, the team was doubted for drafting Daniels due to doubts surrounding his NFL readiness. However, GM Adam Peters was convinced that Daniels was their guy the moment they interviewed him at the Combine. Interestingly, Daniels has a mentality different than all of his peers.

We were pretty locked in on him. We interviewed him really early in the morning. You know Jayden’s chill, he’s relaxed and California cool but as soon as we turned on the tape, he sat up, perked up, you could just see his eyes light up. You could just see how much he loved football just at that level of interaction.

Adam Peters told Pete Schrager of NFL Network

Jayden Daniels’ love for football convinced the Commanders to pick him

The Chicago Bears had made up their mind on picking Caleb Williams with the first overall pick but from the words of the Commanders’ GM, it seems that the team was fixated on picking JD over the former USC quarterback. Daniels’ love for the game sealed the deal for him. His appreciation for the game and his commitment to constantly improve and hone his craft are traits of greatness.

Jayden Daniels
Jayden Daniels (Image via Open Source)

Jayden Daniels has been brought up in an environment where his mother has ensured that he never loses sight of what matters most to him, football. He spends most of his time watching film and preparing himself to play better than he did previously. When Tom Brady was interviewing him during the season, he could not help but smile and appreciate the rookie’s work ethic.

The Commanders’ bet on Daniels paid off. The most hyped quarterback of last year’s draft failed to make the playoffs but the second pick was one win short of making it to the Super Bowl in his first year as a pro. He sent a strong message to the league in his rookie year. It will be scary to see how good Jayden Daniels will get in the coming years.

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