Jayden Daniels' follow-up to his 2024 Offensive Rookie of the Year campaign proved arduous and underwhelming.
The Washington Commanders signal-caller is intent to reset the narrative in Year 3, perhaps again rising to the forefront of a stellar quarterback draft class.
"A lot of people, what they last saw was me getting hurt, so what can I say? I can't live off of what was done in '24," Daniels said in an interview with Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer. "Obviously, salute to the other guys in my class. Drake (Maye) did what he did. So did Caleb (Williams). So did Bo (Nix). Hopefully, down the line, we can go down as the greatest QB class. I know we have a long way to go, but shout out to them, honestly.
"So I have a chance, when I get out there, in Week 1, to showcase my talents once again, and remind a lot of people."
Daniels played just seven games due to a sprained knee early in the 2025 season and, later, a dislocated left elbow. But it wasn't solely the absences that turned it into a down year. Daniels also produced worse results. He lost five of his starts, the same number of defeats the Commanders experienced throughout the entirety of his 17-game rookie season, and his completion percentage dropped from 69.0 to 60.6.
For a number of reasons, Daniels could easily bounce back to the form he displayed when first breaking onto the NFL scene. Wide receiver Terry McLaurin is back healthy, now joined by Stefon Diggs, who is coming off his seventh 1,000-yard receiving season. Washington drafted an enticing pass catcher in Antonio Williams in the third round, and while Daniels no longer has trusty target Zach Ertz at tight end, Chigoziem Okonkwo offers a little more pop at the position.
There's also new offensive coordinator David Blough's system, which Daniels and Co. believe is perfectly suited for the QB's play style.
"The balance of play-action passes, the bootlegging, stuff that we're able to run to marry up with our run game, get those guys moving laterally, it's going to help out to be able to get some shots in to showcase what I can do with my arm," Daniels said. "I'm a passer before I'm a runner. God just blessed me with legs, and the ability to do both. He blessed me with legs a lot of people in this league don't have. There are some guys that can do it.
"But I look back to the year when Josh (Allen) won MVP but Lamar (Jackson) had that year, and he was still Lamar, but I think he threw for like 4,000 yards."
Lastly, Daniels intends to lean on the lessons learned from the injuries he endured in 2025. Though he won't change who he is -- a world-class scrambler who rushed for 891 yards as a rookie and 39.7 yards per game in his second season -- Daniels will pick his spots and be smarter about avoiding danger.
"It's situational," he said. "Early in the season, games are lost more than they're won. Guys are getting in football shape and feeling things out. But when it gets to November, December, when everybody should be playing their peak football, you build up all those reps through time, and those games come down to the one yard or one possession, so every possession, every play matters."
There aren't many predicting an NFC East title for the Commanders, and detractors of Daniels or the team will rightfully point to an offensive line that struggled throughout camp in the wake of left tackle Laremy Tunsil tearing his triceps.
The club didn't have a ton of people in its corner before going all the way to the NFC Championship Game with Daniels as a rookie, though.
Rather than resting on having proven doubters wrong once before, Daniels now sets out to do it again, starting with the team's season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles.
