Herm Edwards compares Jayden Daniels to Eagles legend

LSU Tigers head coach Brian Kelly indicated last week that he may know that the Washington Commanders will make LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels the second pick of the 2024 NFL Draft. 

Herm Edwards previously coached Daniels at Arizona State, and Edwards told Tyler Dunne of the Go Long website he believes the signal-caller "is probably going to go to Washington" on the night of April 25. Edwards also compared Daniels to an iconic Philadelphia Eagles quarterback who is fifth in all-time NFL rushing yards among players at the position. 

"Close your eyes and think about this when I say his name: Randall Cunningham. He’s Randall Cunningham," Edwards said about Daniels. "...The length. The height. Their body build. Their arm talent. Almost similar. Jayden might be a little bit faster, but I don’t know. Randall could run, too. They’re about the same." 

Many believed before and shortly after the scouting combine that Washington taking Daniels with the draft's second overall selection was a lock. That, however, was before the draft stocks of North Carolina Tar Heels quarterback Drake Maye and J.J. McCarthy of the Michigan Wolverines soared. On Tuesday afternoon, Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk pointed out that some sportsbooks currently list Maye as the betting favorite to go to Washington with the second pick.

At that same time, DraftKings Sportsbook had Daniels at -150 odds to be the draft's second selection. To compare, DraftKings listed Maye at -105 odds. 

The Chicago Bears are expected to take USC Trojans quarterback Caleb Williams first overall. If a club such as the Denver Broncos moves up in the draft order at some point over the next few weeks, quarterbacks could be taken via the draft's top four selections. 

"One thing he could always do — he could throw the ball down the field," Edwards added about Daniels. "And he’s unique as a runner. You don’t know how fast he’s running until you get on the field: 'Oh, this dude's running, man.' And the thing he doesn’t do, he doesn’t turn the ball over a lot. That’s the one thing he understands: Don’t turn the ball over. But I just think he has matured. I had him for three years and we have a really, really good relationship." 

ESPN NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky has repeatedly made it known he feels "the best quarterback in the draft is Jayden Daniels" and not Williams. If individuals such as Orlovsky and Edwards are correct in their assessments, whatever team ends up with Daniels on the final Thursday of April could end up believing it got the best steal of this year's draft class.