Daily Slop – 26 Apr 24: Looks like we finally have our quarterback

A collection of articles, podcasts & tweets from around the web to keep you in touch with the Commanders, the NFC East and the NFL in general

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Washington Post (paywall)

Welcome to Washington, Jayden Daniels. Now, save the franchise.

What lies ahead, though, is not just a challenge. It’s a burden.

“I’m going to come in and really just try to play my role, whatever that is,” Daniels said Thursday night in a Zoom call with reporters.

Ha. Good one, Jayden. Your role is starting quarterback. From Day One. More than that, it’s to provide stability at a position — the most important position — for a franchise that doesn’t know anything of the sort.

This was Josh Harris’s first draft as the Commanders’ owner. It was the first draft for Adam Peters, Harris’s handpicked general manager. There were a handful of options — Drake Maye of North Carolina, J.J. McCarthy of Michigan.

“Why Jayden?” Peters said late Thursday night. “Why not Jayden?”And then the general manager ticked off a seemingly endless list of attributes — his decisiveness as a runner, his ability to throw the deep ball, his speed, his work ethic. Peters thought back to the beginning of this process, when he began watching tape of all the quarterback prospects.“I turned on Jayden for the first time here, I couldn’t believe it,” Peters said. “I honestly couldn’t believe how good he was.”

So Daniels it is. And the rookie’s job: start immediately, and be a star.

On the night of the draft, this can feel franchise-shifting. For the next few months — as Daniels goes through minicamp and training camp and appears in the preseason before finally beginning his career in earnest — the perception will be that the fate of the organization hangs on his rocket of a right arm and his spindly legs.

In this case, there’s truth in all that. Washington’s stagnation for the entirety of this century — a span in which the franchise has more names (three) than playoff wins (one) — is rooted in its meddling former owner and its inability to find a reliable presence at quarterback. In that way, Daniels offers that most dangerous of sporting commodities: hope.

This should be an optimistic, exciting time for the Commanders. But there must be a reminder, especially around here, of the difficulties in projecting how talent will translate from college to the pros.

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Commanders.com

Five things to know about Commanders QB Jayden Daniels

4. He was one of the best deep-ball passers in college football.

It’s clear that Daniels knows how to hurt defenses with his legs. He had 41 runs of at least 10 yards with 565 yards after contact and 51 rushing first downs.

But what about his ability to deliver clutch throws? Well, Daniels was dynamic in that category last year, too.

Daniels was the best quarterback in college football on passes of at least 20 yards, earning a 99.2 grade from Pro Football Focus in 2023. He had 27 big-time throws on deep passes, which tied for third with Michael Penix Jr., with just one turnover-worthy play. He wasn’t asked to sling the ball downfield often, with such throws only accounting for 16.6% of his 332 attempts, but his completion rate of 63.6% was the best among quarterbacks with at least 55 deep throw attempts.

And just for the sake of comparison, Daniels’ 22 deep-ball touchdowns were more than Caleb Williams (15), Penix (14), Maye (13) and McCarthy (10).

The Commanders have several speedy wideouts on their roster, so players like Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson should love a quarterback who’s going to give them shots downfield.

5. Good luck blitzing him.

All quarterbacks face pressure, and that’s particularly true when you’re a playmaker like Daniels. He was blitzed on 39.2% of his dropbacks, and like all quarterbacks, there were times when the pressure got to him (although, for what it’s worth, he improved his sack total from 43 to 22 in 2023).

Those situations were also when Daniels was at his best. He ranked first among all FBS quarterbacks when blitzed, with PFF giving him a grade of 91.7. He completed 74.4% of his passes, throwing 20 touchdowns to zero interceptions with 10 big-time throws. He also accounted for 1,515 yards when blitzed, which ranked second behind Brayden Schager.

When it comes to overall pressure, Daniels ranked fourth overall and second among this year’s top quarterback prospects with a PFF grade of 82.2. As a runner, Daniels was even more effective, leading his position with a grade of 87.3.

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Commanders.com

Jayden Daniels ‘willing to work and put everything out there on the line’ for Commanders

Daniels comes to Washington after one of the most successful careers for a college quarterback in recent memory. He’s the first player in FBS history to throw for at least 12,000 career passing yards and 3,000 rushing yards. That five-year stint at LSU and Arizona State was highlighted by a stellar senior season with the Tigers, as Daniels hit career-highs in completion rate (72.2%), passing yards (3,812) and passing touchdowns (40).

While Daniels was a proficient pocket passer, his ability to hurt defenses with his legs when plays break down — something Quinn has often highlighted as a key quality for modern quarterbacks — is what makes him such a unique prospect. He had 41 runs of at least 10 yards with 565 yards after contact and 51 rushing first downs. He ranked third among 73 Power Five quarterbacks with a rushing grade of 92.4.

Daniels brings that talent to an offense learning a new system under coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. The Commanders never revealed much about their intentions to draft him, but he liked bits they did give him on how they could use him.

Daniels is coming to an offense that is built with a quarterback’s development in mind. Several of the coaches, from Tavita Pritchard and David Blough to passing game coordinator Brian Johnson, have some experience developing young signal-callers, particularly those with Daniels’ skill set, and guiding them in their careers.

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Bullock’s Film Room (subscription)

What QB Jayden Daniels brings to the Washington Commanders

Breaking down what the Commanders are getting with second overall pick Jayden Daniels

The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Daniels stands out immediately for his explosiveness, both as a passer and as a runner. In his final season at LSU, he threw for 3812 yards and 40 touchdowns as well as running for another 1134 yards and 10 touchdowns. That’s a total of nearly 5000 yards and 50 touchdowns, meaning he averaged 416 total yards and 4 combined touchdowns per game, which is ridiculously impressive. But the numbers alone don’t do his game justice. As a passer, Daniels torched teams with his ability to throw down the field with great reads, touch and accuracy.

Daniels is a strong passer down the field, but he particularly excels on slot fades. If you’ve watched any highlights of LSU or Jayden Daniels this year, you’ll have likely seen multiple slot fades because LSU ran them all the time. Slot fade concepts consist of two receivers, with the outside receiver running a quick hitch to occupy the outside cornerback and creating space outside for the slot receiver to fade into. It’s a concept that takes advantage of having great receivers, like LSU did this year, but it also requires the quarterback to have a strong feel for touch on his throws.

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Commanders.com

Jayden Daniels | ‘My childhood dream came true’

“I mean, I’m kind of in the moment now, man. I just got drafted, it’s a childhood dream. So, later down the road I’ll be very excited to go out there and embrace the fans and have the fans embrace me no matter what the role is and I’m excited.”

“You’re going to get somebody that’s a competitor, that wants to win no matter what. And I just want to go ahead and compete. I want to help the team win football games. At some point in the future, we’ll get this thing turned around, hopefully, but take it day-by-day. I’m willing to work and put everything out there on the line.”

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Podcasts & videos

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Locked on Commanders: Washington Commanders Pick Jayden Daniels | 2024 NFL Draft Coverage

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Beltway Football: Commanders select Jayden Daniels with #2 pick

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Photos

PHOTOS | The best of Jayden Daniels

Check out the top photos of Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels from his days at LSU and Arizona State. (Photos via The Associated Press)

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NFL.com

First round of NFL draft sets record for offensive players selected

A record 23 offensive players were selected in Thursday’s opening round of the 2024 NFL draft in Detroit, including the first 14 selections off the board — also a record.

The previous high for offensive players picked in a draft’s first 32 selections was 19. It happened in 1968, 2004 and 2009.

The 14 consecutive offensive players selected to open the draft was also a record at any point in a draft. The previous high in the first round in the common draft era was 10 consecutive offensive players selected in the 1987 draft — picks No. 19 through No. 28.

“It’s a receiver heavy draft, there’s some talented quarterbacks, just do the math,” Broncos coach Sean Payton said. “… We felt like there were going to be more offensive players taken.’’

In perhaps the most stunning pick of the first round, quarterback Michael Penix Jr. went No. 8 to the Atlanta Falcons. The Minnesota Vikings traded up one slot to select quarterback J.J. McCarthy at No. 10 and Bo Nix, picked No. 12 by the Denver Broncos, became the the sixth quarterback off the board.

“You can see, six quarterbacks went in the first round. There’s a reason,” Falcons GM Terry Fontenot said. “If you see a guy at that position that you believe in, you take him.”

The six quarterbacks selected tied the fabled 1983 draft, that included seven Hall of Famers overall in the first round, including three Hall of Fame quarterbacks in John Elway, Jim Kelly and Dan Marino.

“We did have six quarterbacks (graded) in the first round,’’ Broncos general manager George Paton.