This Jayden Daniels take is making fans furious for all the wrong reasons

Turbulence has suddenly picked up on the Washington Commanders' offseason in recent weeks. Star wide receiver Terry McLaurin doesn't seem to be getting any closer to a contract resolution, while the team's expected deal to return to the RFK Stadium site has been delayed.

It's quite unfortunate for the team to be dealing with these distractions right now, given all of the positive momentum Washington has worked so hard to build both on and off the field this past season. Coming off the team's first NFC Championship game appearance in more than 30 years, all is supposed to be on the up heading into 2025.

Of course, there is one massive reason why none of that optimism should be squandered, and that's Jayden Daniels.

The 2023 Heisman Trophy winner had a dazzling rookie season for the Commanders and figures to only get better. Now, as he enters Year 2, he'll have the opportunity to distance himself from a tired narrative equating him to another one-time Washington signal-caller.

Comparisons between Jayden Daniels and Robert Griffin III are lazy at best

Many voices around the football world seem to think the Commanders should be worried about Daniels having a regression similar to that of Robert Griffin III following his memorable 2012 season. Those voices include 2015 league MVP Cam Newton, who brought up the subject on a podcast with rapper and D.C. sports loyalist Wale.

Newton claimed that "There's nobody who had the game in a chokehold like Robert Griffin III," and that he fears a similarly dangerous level of hype going to the LSU product's head. Wale simply responded that, given how long the Commanders had struggled before Daniels' arrival, "We don't even know how to have good things."

The similarities between Daniels and Griffin are obvious. Both are dual-threat quarterbacks who were drafted No. 2 overall by Washington following Heisman-winning college campaigns, and both went on to win NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year honors. But that's about where they end.

Griffin was an exciting player, but he was also a flawed one. He relied on his mobility much more than Daniels and didn't protect his body from big hits.

Most significantly, he did not take coaching well, to the point where the player, his father, and Dan Snyder undermined Mike Shanahan. There is plenty of blame to go around for how the Baylor standout's ACL tear in the 2012 Wild Card round was managed, but the fact of the matter is he never grew from his weaknesses.

Daniels has shown no such red flags and enters his sophomore campaign healthy and motivated. His and Washington's season could go in a multitude of different ways, but it's probably safe to say the rest of his career will play out better than Griffin's.

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