Beleaguered commanders lean on Jayden Daniels

ASHBURN, Va. – Nothing about the play was typical. On Sunday against New Orleans, it was second-and-goal from the 16-yard line. Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels had to fight for eight seconds – at one point even pushing the ball to the ground while stumbling – before throwing the ball.

Receiver Terry McLaurin, sprinting from the other side, had a lead of less than a yard. Another defender approached the ball.

And yet: After adding 8.04 seconds to the game, Daniels put a pass right where it belonged; McLaurin clutched it and the Commanders quarterback had put another magical play in his pocket. Not that Daniels is as impressed with what he does as others.

“It’s just a matter of going out there and doing my job,” said Daniels, who has the fifth-best quarterback rating in the NFL. “Doing what the defense allows me to do. Go out and play if you need to.”

As the Washington Commanders (9-5) try to secure a playoff spot and injuries mount, Daniels’ job could require similar effort. Luckily for Washington, Daniels has been making plays like this all season. But after a three-game losing streak in which he struggled with the aftereffects of a rib injury, he responded with back-to-back games – separated by a bye week – in which he completed a total of 50 of 61 passes with five touchdowns in wins over Tennessee and New Orleans .

“You can tell he’s just rested and feeling better, and hopefully that can lead to a really good game down the road,” Washington offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury said.

It comes at a good time. Two key offensive players – receiver Noah Brown and running back Austin Ekeler – are already on injured reserve. A third, tight end Zach Ertz, suffered a concussion on Sunday and his status for Sunday’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles (12-2) remains uncertain.

But without her, it’s more of a burden for Daniels to be, well, Daniels.

Plays like the one in Washington’s 20-19 win over New Orleans show why the Commanders are feeling good. Ekeler and Brown combined for 68 catches. Brown is done for the season, but Ekeler could return for the season finale. Ertz caught 54 passes, including eight for four touchdowns in the red zone. He is their second most productive pass catcher in both areas behind McLaurin.

However, as Daniels has gained experience, he and the Commanders are better able to handle some player losses.

“It’s never easy replacing (starters), but Jayden, no matter who we used, did a great job of being disciplined, making the right throws and not turning the ball over,” Kingsbury said. “That’s the biggest thing.”

Daniels started the season strong: He became the first player in NFL history to achieve more than 1,000 passing yards and 250 rushing yards in his first five games; He set the record for highest completion percentage after four games (82.1) and became the first player to complete at least 85% of his passes in consecutive games.

But coaches say he has improved since then, particularly in his knowledge of the offense.

“It’s the things that don’t show up on the stat sheet,” Quinn said. “It’s about controlling the right play, finding the right defense and taking care of the football with great decisions.”

If the Commanders secure a playoff spot, these decisions will be a big reason. Daniels threw just six interceptions and lost none of his five fumbles. Since the error rate minus important parts is lower, avoiding turnover becomes increasingly important.

It’s also because Daniels continued to show up between 5 and 5:30 a.m. to watch film and did a walk-through with Kingsbury and quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard three days a week. A trainer said when he arrived at 6:30 a.m., Daniels and Kingsbury were leaving the practice bubble after a walkthrough.

“You either get better or you get worse, and I don’t want it to get any worse,” Daniels said.

Backup quarterback Marcus Mariota, who was the No. 2 pick in the 2015 draft, said consistency helps combat rookie complacency.

“When you have success as a young player, you think, ‘Okay, I can do this,'” Mariota said. “He did a great job for him: ‘This isn’t enough, I want more.’ We must continue to encourage him to be like that. This really sets everyone else apart.

But Daniels also plays faster in the red zone. In the first eight games, Daniels completed 14 of 29 passes with four touchdowns inside the 20-yard line. However, he has gone 17 of 23 with nine touchdowns in the past six games. Daniels has gotten better at recognizing which side of the defense is playing man or zone and adjusting accordingly.

Daniels also went through his progressions quickly on a 3-yard touchdown pass on Sunday before finding his third pass in McLaurin. McLaurin said Daniels has improved at diagnosing what the defense is doing in that area compared to earlier in the year.

In the red zone, “he plays fast,” Kingsbury said of Daniels.

Daniels has 3,045 passing yards and 17 touchdowns; He also rushed for 656 yards and six touchdowns. Daniels wasn’t perfect against the Saints. His decision-making helped the Saints record eight sacks. But Daniels also made several big plays with his legs — sometimes it was just a scramble for 2 yards on third-and-2 or leaping over a lineman for a fourth-and-1. Or there were big throws – on a scoring drive, consecutive 12-yard completions got them out of a second-and-20 situation.

On the 16-yard touchdown pass to McLaurin, Daniels converted a play that had a 16.1% chance of completion, according to Next Gen Stats. It was a piece that few could do. More of the same would go a long way in Washington over the next three weeks.

“He made some plays,” Saints interim coach Darren Rizzi said. “That’s what he does. That’s why he won the Heisman Trophy. That’s why he’s having the season he’s having. He is a phenomenal player. He had a few runs. He made some great throws. Jayden Daniels is going to make those plays.”