In an eventful Wild Card weekend, one of the best performances was from Jayden Daniels, the Washington Commanders quarterback. He led his team to a 23-20 win, giving them their first playoff victory since 2005. It was the most competitive game of the weekend slate, but the rookie quarterback did not look phased under the bright lights. Daniels has been one of the most impressive rookies this season and that continued in the playoffs. He is a frontrunner for the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year Award and has punched Washington’s ticket to the divisional round.
Jayden Daniels Playoff Performance
Jayden Daniels threw for 268 passing yards and two touchdowns. He also led the team in rushing with 36 yards on 13 attempts. He led multiple drives down the stretch that ended up winning the Commanders the game with clutch plays and throws. One of his most impressive drives was the final drive of the fourth quarter. With the game tied at 20, Daniels led the offense down the field. He made a 21-yard pass on a 3rd and 6 and rushed for a first down on a 3rd and 2. Washington ran the final 4:41 off the clock and Zane Gonzalez doinked in the game-winning field goal.
Jayden Daniels’ run on 3rd and 2 was especially great. He had a defender in his face almost immediately but stiff-armed him away and ran to the outside. He then heroically dove forward for the first down that sealed the win. It will likely go down as a defining play in his career and the Commanders’ history, if not for his other great moments throughout this game. A Buccaneers fumble set Washington up in the red zone, but they were held to a 4th and 2. They decided to go for it and Jayden Daniels threw a five-yard touchdown pass to Terry McLaurin, giving them a 20-17 lead.
Going for it on 4th down was a theme throughout this game. The Commanders did not punt, and Jayden Daniels never turned the ball over. Every time they had the ball, they either scored or turned it over on downs. During the game, many questioned the risky strategy, but it ended up working. Washington converted on 3-of-5 4th down attempts, which resulted in multiple touchdowns. There was the previously mentioned Daniels to McLaurin touchdown and another that came after a 4th and 1 conversion. It was gutsy, but it worked, and Jayden Daniels got his first career playoff win.
Jayden Daniels’ Rookie Season
Jayden Daniels’s playoff win puts him on a different level in his rookie season. Other talented quarterbacks in the NFL have not found success in the playoffs, like Justin Herbert, Geno Smith, Tua Tagovailoa, and Kyler Murray have not won playoff games. This is not to say that Jayden Daniels is already better than all of them, but he is on a very good trajectory. The only other rookie quarterback that made the playoffs this season was Bo Nix on the Broncos, and they were beaten soundly by the Bills.
Few expected Jayden Daniels to be this good so quickly. Out of the quarterbacks drafted in the top three, many thought Caleb Williams and Drake Maye would be better than Daniels. That may be true one day, but this season, Daniels was better than both of them. In his rookie season, Jayden Daniels threw for 3,568 yards, 25 touchdowns, and nine interceptions. He also rushed for 891 yards and six touchdowns.
He was one of the best rookies in the NFL and has made his case as a future star quarterback. In his first season, he has done what no Washington quarterback could do in 20 years. He has won them a playoff game in a tough road environment. The Commanders will face the Detroit Lions next week in the divisional round.
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