Analysts repeat big concern about Commanders' Jayden Daniels

Long before the Washington Commanders made Jayden Daniels the second overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, concerns about the quarterback's size and his ability to stay healthy through a full pro season hovered over his status.

Such worries haven't disappeared as Daniels presumably prepares to enter September as Washington's QB1.

"The biggest challenge, I think, for the staff will be working with him to avoid taking big hits on his slender frame without taking away what he brings to the table in the run game, something that’s easy on paper but tough to put into practice," Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated said about Daniels for a piece published Tuesday night.

Daniels has impressed teammates, onlookers and opposing players with his performances from springtime workouts through this past Saturday's preseason matchup against the New York Jets. 

As Ricky Doyle of NESN pointed out, though, former New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick recently reminded everybody during an interview that rookie signal-callers routinely face "basic" defenses that aren't "showing too much" during summer joint practices and exhibition contests. Thus, defenses don't make players such as Daniels pay via punishing hits until the games begin to matter in September.

"If I were the Commanders, I would not let Jayden Daniels see the field again this preseason," former quarterback and current NFL analyst Chase Daniel of The Athletic wrote for a Wednesday article. "He just looks smaller than what he weighed in at the combine. If there was one knock against him, he does not know how to slide, he does not know how to protect himself."

Back in 2023, quarterback Anthony Richardson now of the Indianapolis Colts measured 6-foot-4 and 244 pounds at the NFL Scouting Combine. Richardson later did not know "when to get down" in certain situations, and he suffered a concussion in Week 2 of his rookie campaign before what became a season-ending shoulder injury sidelined him in just his fourth start. To compare, Daniels is listed at 6-foot-4 and 210 pounds.

As of Wednesday morning, DraftKings Sportsbook had Daniels second among the betting favorites at +475 odds to win the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. He likely won't stay in OROTY conversations for long if Daniel is right about the first-year pro not knowing "how to protect himself" when facing what won't be "basic" defenses.