New Video Shows Jayden Daniels in Disbelief Over Little Known NFL Rule in NFC Title Game

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Owen Crisafulli | Last updated Jan 29, 2025 6:21 PM ET

The Washington Commanders 2024 campaign came to an end in the NFC Championship Game, as they suffered a blowout 55-23 loss at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles. And along the way, there was a sequence of events in this game that left star rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels scratching his head.

Early in the fourth quarter, the Eagles were on the Commanders one-yard line, setting the stage for their famous "tush push" play. With Washington desperate to stay in the game, they committed three straight encroachment penalties, as linebacker Frankie Luvu jumping over the line of scrimmage on two of the plays in an effort to stop Philly.

It got to the point where referee Shaun Hochuli threatened to award the Eagles a touchdown if the Commanders kept on intentionally committing penalties. When informed of this relatively unknown NFL rule, Daniels' reaction of disbelief on the sideline was captured in a new clip.

"Award a score? You can give them a touchdown?" Daniels said in response to Hochuli's warning towards Washington about their continued penalties.

No one knew that the refs could award a score ‍♂️@InsidetheNFL pic.twitter.com/Kg6TM09p3Z
— NFL Films (@NFLFilms) January 29, 2025

Eventually, Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts found his way into the end zone for his third score of the day, which made the score 41-23 and all but ended the Commanders hopes of winning this game.

Daniels did what he could to help keep Washington in this game, as he threw for 255 yards and a touchdown, in addition to racking up 48 yards and another score on the ground. The problem was that he threw a costly interception along the way, with the Commanders losing three fumbles throughout the game too.

The loss shouldn't take away from Daniels' wildly impressive rookie campaign, though. The second overall pick of the 2024 NFL Draft threw for 3,568 yards and 25 touchdowns and ran for 891 yards and another six scores in his first season in the pros, making him the heavy favorite to take home the NFL's Rookie of the Year award.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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