Last week, Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn declined to name No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels the team's starting quarterback coming out of the offseason program. However, just because Daniels hasn't officially won the job just yet, doesn't mean the Commanders aren't high on him, or pleased with his progress.
In fact, "he's further along than you probably should be," Quinn said, via ESPN. "There's no doubt that Jayden's making unbelievable progress here. It was really clear that he's put in the work. He's got a swagger to him. He really has a very firm handle on the things that we're doing, but he also has the humility of a young player ... knowing he has a lot to prove."
Daniels agrees that he has a lot to prove. "I'm still learning the playbook and trying to grasp everything," the quarterback said. "So just being comfortable for a day and being ready to go out there and go out and compete."
Quinn reiterated Daniels' ability to exhibit traits of both a rookie and a seasoned player, saying, "He has the humility and kind of the hunger of the young player — 'I've got a lot to prove, I've still got a lot to learn.' But he also has the swagger and calmness of a veteran player," Quinn said.
The head coach added that Daniels college experience has made an impact on his preparedness and that the QB has "worked really hard to learn the system."
But Quinn is not the only one impressed by what he's seen from Daniels so far this offseason. Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, who spent last season coaching No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams as a senior offensive analyst at USC after previously coaching the Arizona Cardinals, talked about Daniels' handling of the mental aspects of the position.
"His football IQ is really high," Kingsbury said. "[With] protections, I've been really impressed by that. A lot of guys coming into the league, that's not an area that they major in in college. They don't have a lot of time. But he's well-versed in protections and works at it."
And then there are Daniels' new teammates, who are marveling at his physical abilities. "Dude can sling it man," right tackle Andrew Wylie said. "He makes it look easy. Something about his game is just special."
"After the second or third crosser that he threw, I started telling receivers, 'Hey, you got to get your head around,'" presumptive No. 1 wide receiver Terry McLaurin said. "A lot of quarterbacks may like to see you cross the ball and get into that open zone. Or if it's man [coverage] they like to see you get open for him. He can make those throws and give you a chance to catch and run."
It's good for Daniels to be progressing quickly, and even better if he can live up to the lofty praise of his coaches and teammates. It's still quite early in the process and we shouldn't get ahead of ourselves, but it's certainly better to be hearing good things than more tepid praise at this stage of the offseason.
