Jayden Daniels led the Washington Commanders to a win this past weekend in a close finish against the Bucs, a memorable feat for the struggling franchise and rookie quarterback.
Jayden Daniels is one of many names brought up in conversation for 2024’s most outstanding rookie player on offense. This also includes the likes of Brock Bowers, Malik Nabers, Bucky Irving, and Bo Nix. The connoisseurs of trench warfare also like to throw Zach Frazier and Joe Alt into the conversation. While all these players deserve the praise they’re given, only one of them will still be playing later this week. Surviving the Wild Card round off of a miraculous doink, Daniels and the Commanders will take on the Detroit Lions this upcoming Saturday.
Not only is moving forward in the playoffs a great personal feat for Jayden Daniels, it’s also a huge moment for the Washington franchise and its fans. While Washington has made the playoffs sporadically throughout the years, they haven’t actually won a playoff game since 2005. There’s a whole generation of Commander’s fans who have seen their team win the Wild Card for the first time ever. Washington has been seemingly making all the right moves after the change in ownership and rebranding, and it’s finally starting to pay off. While there’s a tough road ahead, the future for the Commanders looks bright.
Jayden Daniels also joins a small cavalcade of quarterbacks who have won a playoff game starting in their rookie season. A historically tough task for most, rookie QBs have an overall low track record in the playoffs. While Brock Purdy and C.J. Stroud also get playoff wins as rookies, Daniels is the first rookie QB to win on the road since Russel Wilson in 2012. Winning the next game against Detroit would land Daniels in an even smaller group; first-year QBs who have led their team to a Conference Championship game. To this day, no rookie QB has won a Conference title, let alone started a Super Bowl.
The ROTY conversation was much more contested prior to the playoffs. Washington initially started the season off hot, but a series of losses over a three-week stretch made some fans question how good the team really was. They bounced back soon, however, and notably got their revenge on every team who beat them earlier in the year – with the exception of the Steelers. The Bucs actually gave Jayden Daniels and the Commanders their first loss at the beginning of the season, which made this Wildcard Weekend a long round-trip coming.
Needless to say, it won’t get any easier for Washington from here on out. The Lions will be well-rested after earning a bye-week, going in as heavy favorites for this game, and favorites to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl. Even if Jayden Daniels can lead the Commanders in an upset over Detroit, there’s a good possibility they’d have to face the Eagles in the Conference Championship. Inter-division games for the Conference title are significantly rare, but there are still some noteworthy trends that follow them.
For instance, divisional teams that have won the final matchup in the regular season tend to also win out against their rivals in the playoffs. Some Eagles fans say that Jalen Hurts getting injured in the Week 16 game gave Washington the victory, so there’s a possibility both teams have a chip on their shoulders. The Commanders have had plenty of close calls in their games, but that just shows they’re capable of closing out clutch moments.
Regardless of what comes next, Jayden Daniels and the Commanders have a lot to be proud of.
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