How Commanders worked to help Jayden Daniels improve after stellar rookie season

Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels ran away with the Offensive Rookie of the Year Award for the 2024 season after he guided the club to the NFC Championship Game, where Washington fell to the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles.

For a piece published on Monday afternoon, NFL insider Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated revealed that people within the Commanders spoke with quarterback trainer and 3DQB coach Taylor Kelly about establishing "a commonality in language" regarding conversations Daniels would have with offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury.

"Refining his lower body movement on certain throws — something quarterbacks are always working on — was one thing," Breer said about how Daniels spent portions of the offseason. "Working on some specifics on throws to Daniels' left, and his arm angle on those throws, was another. Meanwhile, Kingsbury and the rest of the offensive staff resolved to condense the offense and grow the things the Commanders did well, and throw out some of the things they didn’t in 2024."

Daniels helped Washington go 12-5 before he notched a pair of playoff victories to take the club to within a game of a Super Bowl appearance. According to the StatMuse website, he finished his first pro regular season ranked seventh in the league with 4,459 combined passing and rushing yards. He was ninth with 31 combined passing and rushing touchdowns. Additionally, Pro Football Reference shows that Daniels was ranked fourth in the league among qualified players with a 70.6 adjusted QBR. 

In an attempt to keep Daniels from experiencing a sophomore slump, the club gave him dual-threat offensive weapon Deebo Samuel, left tackle Laremy Tunsil and rookie tackle Josh Conerly Jr. this offseason. For a different piece posted on Monday, ESPN's John Keim noted that Daniels threw the sixth-most screen passes in the NFL last season and that Samuel "gained 61.5% of his receiving yards after the catch, 10th most last season among receivers with at least 25 receptions."

Breer mentioned that the Commanders retaining Kingsbury, pass game coordinator Brian Johnson, quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard and backup signal-caller Marcus Mariota made it "easy for the entire quarterbacks room to hit the ground running when the offseason program started in April and (organized team activities) began in May." Washington keeping that band together is yet another reason many believe Daniels could emerge as a legitimate superstar player at the position this coming fall. 

As of Monday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook had Daniels fifth among the betting favorites at +750 odds to claim the Most Valuable Player Award for the upcoming regular season.