Daniels taken 2nd as QBs, offense dominate top picks
Jayden Daniels was not sure the Washington Commanders would call his name, after months of questions about which quarterback they wanted. He's glad they did.
Washington selected Daniels with the second pick in the NFL draft on Thursday night, choosing the Heisman Trophy winner out of LSU over North Carolina's Drake Maye, Washington's Michael Penix Jr. and Michigan national champion J.J. McCarthy. Unlike Chicago leading off with USC QB Caleb Williams, as expected, the Commanders kept everyone, including the AP's college football player of the year, in suspense until the last moment.
“They did a pretty good job of not showing their hand too much,” said Daniels, who starred at San Bernardino's Cajon High. “But I was pretty confident based off the conversations that we had that I was able to come here and fit into the Commanders team. I'm here now. I can't wait to get to work.”
Daniels had for quite some time been the favorite to go to the Commanders, though buzz over the past week put that in doubt after reports surfaced that he and his agent were not happy with the team hosting four QB prospects at once. Daniels, May, McCarthy and Penix all visited the practice facility and area together, including a group trip to Topgolf.
“Everybody had a great time and it was very beneficial to see everybody in a more relaxed environment,” General Manager Adam Peters said last week. “They all got a lot of time individually with their coaches, with us, where they were staggered coming in, too, so it wasn't like they were sitting in a room together. They all had their own individual time with everybody, so, it worked out really well.”
Well enough to smooth over any issues and make Daniels the centerpiece of the Commanders' rebuilding process and roster overhaul under Peters and an ownership group led by Josh Harris that has been in charge since August.
“Selecting a winner like Jayden Daniels will energize the players and our fan base!” co-owner and Lakers legend Magic Johnson posted on social media.
Short of Williams, a Washington-area native who would have been a nobrainer if the Bears passed on him for some reason, Daniels became the pick after leading the nation in total offense last season with 4,946 yards — 412.2 on average over 12 games. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound QB ranked fifth with 3,812 yards passing and with 40 touchdowns trailed just Oregon's Bo Nix, who played in two extra games. He also ran for 10 more.
Daniels, 23, blossomed into a star over two seasons at LSU after transferring in 2022 following three years at Arizona State. He became an increasingly decisive pocket passer as his trust in receivers Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. grew, and he became more adept at buying time by scrambling rather than giving up on plays and taking off running.
It's unclear if Daniels will play right away, get the chance to compete for the starting job or sit and learn behind veteran Marcus Mariota, who is willing to be a mentor after signing a one-year deal in free agency. Whether it's Daniels, Mariota or journeyman Jeff Driskel, Washington will have an eighth different Week 1 starting QB in as many seasons after trading Sam Howell to Seattle last month.
“I'm just coming in to compete,” Daniels said. “I'm going to come in and really
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just trying to play my role, whatever that is. I just want to be the best teammate to help the team win, and we can bring some victories back to Washington.”
Drafted second by Washington 12 years after the organization took Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III out of Baylor in the same spot, Daniels becomes the face of the Commanders under coach Dan Quinn and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury.
Daniels cited Kingsbury's work with Kyler Murray while coaching the Arizona Cardinals as one reason he is excited to play for him.
“The offensive staff, their track record speaks for itself,” Daniels said. “Kliff was over there with Kyler and what he did as a head coach, and for quite some time he had Kyler in the MVP conversation.”
Asked on ESPN after being drafted what the coaching staff can do to get the most from him, Daniels said: “Just believe in me. It's going to be a grind. We're going to work. I'm a hard worker, man, so I can't wait.”
This is the fourth draft with quarterbacks going with the first three picks.
It matched 2021 (Trevor Lawrence, Zach Wilson, Trey Lance), 1971 (Jim Plunkett, Archie Manning, Dan Pastorini) and 1999 (Tim Couch, Donovan McNabb, Akili Smith).
At No. 8, the Atlanta Falcons made a stunning decision to choose Penix despite signing Kirk Cousins to a massive contract in free agency. Penix made it four quarterbacks in the top 10 for just the second time since 1949. It also happened in 2018 (Baker Mayfield, USC's Sam Darnold, Josh Allen, UCLA's Josh Rosen).
The Denver Broncos chose Oregon's Nix with the 12th pick, tying the 1983 draft with six QBs in the first round. Three of those became Hall of Famers — John Elway, Dan Marino and Jim Kelly. Todd Blackledge, Tony Eason and Ken O'Brien also went in the first round in 1983.
Nearly the entire first half of the draft was offensive players. A defensive player wasn't selected until UCLA edge rusher Laiatu Latu went at No. 15 to Indianapolis. That's the latest a first defensive player has ever gone.
The Arizona Cardinals snapped the early QB trend, choosing Ohio State wide receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. with the fourth pick. The Chargers opened the Jim Harbaugh era by taking Notre Dame left tackle Joe Alt instead of giving Justin Herbert a No. 1 wide receiver to replace Keenan Allen and Mike Williams.
The New York Giants then snatched up LSU receiver Nabers at No. 6. The Tennessee Titans took Alabama offensive tackle J.C. Latham with the seventh pick and the Bears selected Washington wideout Rome Odunze at No. 9.
The New York Jets, who dropped to No. 11, chose offensive tackle Olu Fashanu, giving Aaron Rodgers more protection. The Las Vegas Raiders got Georgia tight end Brock Bowers at No. 13. The New Orleans Saints took Oregon State offensive tackle Taliese Fuaga with the 14th pick before the Colts grabbed Latu.