Jayden Daniels' final numbers, notes as historic rookie season wraps up

Washington’s season — and Jayden Daniels’ historic rookie campaign — ended Sunday at the hands of the Philadelphia Eagles, Saquon Barkley and Jalen Hurts and the Commanders’ own turnovers.

The young quarterback completed 29 of his 48 passes (60.4%) for 255 yards, a touchdown and a late interception with the game already largely out of reach. He also rushed six times for 48 yards and another score in the 55-23 loss.

While Washington’s best season in 33 years will fall short of a Super Bowl trip, the Heisman-winner out of LSU firmly carved his name all over not only the franchise’s, but the league’s rookie record books.

Here’s a look at the final numbers for Daniels, the all-but-certain NFL Rookie of the Year, and where they stack up historically — with a strong case as the best debut season for a quarterback of all-time.

14 wins (regular season + playoffs)

Daniels tied the record for most total wins by a rookie quarterback in the regular season and playoffs combined. Only Ben Roethlisberger, for Pittsburgh in 2004, had previously led 14 victories in his first season in the league. Like the Roethlisberger and the Steelers, Daniels and the Commanders’ big season also marked one of the top single-season turnarounds in NFL history after Washington’s 4-13 record a year ago. The 10-win increase ties for third-most, behind only the Rams’ leap from 4-12 in 1998 to 16-3 Super Bowl champions in 1999 and the 49ers’ leap from 4-12 in 2018 to 15-4 Super Bowl runners-up in 2019.

Two Playoff Wins

Daniels became just the fifth rookie quarterback to win two playoff games and also just the third to do so on the road — both distinctions tying records. Only Joe Flacco (Baltimore, 2008) and Mark Sanchez (New York Jets, 2009) had previously won consecutive road playoff games in their first seasons. Dieter Brock (Los Angeles Rams, 1985) and Brock Purdy (San Francisco, 2022) also won two playoff games each — though, notably, Brock was a 34-year-old NFL rookie after a decade-long Canadian Football League career.

Conference Championship Appearance

Daniels became just the seventh rookie quarterback to lead his team to a conference championship game — with Washington making its farthest playoff push since its title run at the end of the 1991 season. Brock, Flacco, Sanchez and Purdy each reached conference title games with their two wins, as did Roethlisberger and Shaun King (Tampa Bay, 1999) with a first-round bye and then divisional-round win. No rookie quarterback has ever led his team to the Super Bowl.

All-Time Rookie QB Statistical Ranks

	Regular Season	Playoffs	Combined Total
Total Yards	4,459 (4th)	957 (1st)	5,416 (1st)
Total Touchdowns	31 (4th)	6 (T-1st)	37 (1st)
Passing Yards	3,568 (15th)	822 (1st)	4,390 (3rd)
Passing Touchdowns	25 (6th)	5 (2nd)	30 (T-2nd)
Completions	331/480 (11th)	75/114 (1st)	406/594 (1st)
Completion Percentage	69% (3rd)	65.8% (2nd)	68.4% (2nd)
Rushing Yards	891 (1st)	135 (1st)	1,026 (1st)
Rushing Touchdowns	6 (T-6th)	1 (T-1st)	7 (4th)

5,416 total yards (4,459 regular season, 957 playoffs)

Daniels became the first rookie quarterback to surpass the 5,000-yard mark in total yards between the regular season and playoffs combined. He passed the previous record, held by Andrew Luck (Indianapolis, 2012), by more than 450 yards. Daniels finished the regular season fourth on the list behind Cam Newton’s 4,784 yards for Carolina in 2011, Luck’s 4,629 in 2012 and Justin Herbert’s 4,570 for the Los Angeles Chargers in 2020.

37 total touchdowns (31 regular season, 6 playoffs)

Daniels also set a new rookie record for total touchdowns in the regular season and playoffs combined. He finished the regular season fourth on a list led by Herbert’s 36, but then tied the postseason record by a rookie quarterback with six — matching Aaron Brooks (New Orleans, 2000).

4,390 passing yards (3,568 regular season, 822 playoffs)

Daniels surpassed Russell Wilson (Seattle, 2012) early Sunday for the most postseason passing yards by a rookie quarterback and then cruised to an emphatic lead in the category by game’s end. The Commanders’ young star now holds the mark at 822 yards in three games, compared to the previous 572 in Wilson’s two.

Daniels’ 3,568 passing yards this regular season ranked No. 15 all-time among rookie quarterbacks, but his record-setting playoff performance skyrocketed him up the postseason-inclusive ladder to No. 3. Luck holds the regular-season (4,374 yards) and combined (4,662 yards) records. Only the Houston Texans’ C.J. Stroud’s 4,607 yards in 2023 joins Luck above Daniels on the season+playoffs list.

30 passing touchdowns (25 regular season, 5 playoffs)

Daniels finished the regular season sixth all-time in passing touchdowns by a rookie quarterback with 25 and, similarly to the yardage charts, followed with an even stronger postseason. His five passing touchdowns in the playoffs is second all-time among rookie quarterbacks, just one behind the six thrown by Brooks. Herbert holds the record with 31 in the regular season his first year before missing the playoffs. Daniels’ combined 30 passing touchdowns between the regular season and postseason is tied for second-most.

406/594 passing (331/480 regular season, 75/114 playoffs)

Daniels’ big passing numbers came in efficient fashion among the highest completion percentages by a rookie starting quarterback in the league’s history in each of the regular season (69.0%), playoffs (65.8%) and combined totals (68.4%). Two rookie passers with notable simple sizes of throws (50 attempts) exceeded Daniels’ percentage. Bailey Zappe of the New England Patriots completed 65 of his 92 (70.7%) rookie passes in four games, including two starts, backing up and filling in for Mac Jones in 2022. And, backing up Steve Young for the San Francisco 49ers in 1994, Elvis Grbac completed 35 of his 50 passes (70.0%), all off the bench. Only John Elway’s 10-for-15 (66.7%) performance off the bench for the Denver Broncos in 1983 for an injured Steve DeBerg tops Daniels’ postseason mark. Zappe’s rate in 2022, with no playoff games, also holds up atop the combined season+playoff list.

Daniels’ volume also overwhelming dwarves other quarterbacks near the top of each of those lists. Among the rookie quarterbacks in the top 25 in pass attempts (480) for the regular season and playoffs combined, Daniels’ nearest competition in completion percentage is Dallas Cowboys’ star Dak Prescott’s 67.4% on 335-for-497 passing in 2016. His 30-to-10 touchdown-to-interception ratio is also among the best with Herbert’s 31-to-10 mark, Prescott’s 26-to-5, Stroud’s 26-to-5 and Caleb Williams’ 20-to-6. For further reference, the average ratio among the 24 quarterbacks with Daniels in the top 25 of pass attempts is 20-to-14.2.

Daniels’ 331 completions in the regular season ranks No. 11 all-time among rookie quarterbacks, a list topped by Herbert’s 396 on 595 attempts. Daniels’ 75 playoff completions is nearly 30 more than any other rookie quarterback, with Brooks’ 46 next on the list — meaning Daniels surpassed the former Saints quarterback by more than 63% of that previous mark. Daniels’ postseason moved him past Herbert and others for the most completions by a rookie quarterback. in the regular season and playoffs combined.

1,026 rushing yards (891 regular season, 135 playoffs)

Daniels surpassed Washington predecessor Robert Griffin III in the regular season for the NFL record for most rushing yards for a rookie quarterback, extending the previous bar of 815 yards to now 891. That total also marks the ninth-most by any quarterback in a season behind: No. 1 Lamar Jackson’s 1,206 for Baltimore in 2019, No. 2 Justin Fields’ 1,143 for Chicago in 2022, No. 3 Michael Vick’s 1,039 for Atlanta in 2006, No. 4 Jackson’s 1,005 for Baltimore in 2020, No. 5 Bobby Douglass’ 968 for Chicago in 1972, No. 6 Randall Cunningham’s 942 for Philadelphia in 1990, No. 7 Jackson’s 915 this season and No. 8 Vick’s 902 for Atlanta in 2004.

Daniels also set the rookie quarterback record for postseason rushing yards with 135 as he went on to pass the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season with his playoff numbers included — one of just eight such performances by quarterbacks all-time, including the lone rookie. Jackson’s 1,349 yards in 2019 is the record, and the Baltimore star has accounted for three of the instances. Vick did so twice, and Daniels joins Fields and Cunningham with one 1,000-yard rushing season each.

7 rushing touchdowns (6 regular season, 1 playoffs)

Newton’s 14 rushing touchdowns for Carolina in 2011 continue to stand well above all other rookie quarterbacks. Only Billy Kilmer joins him in double digits with his 10 in a role as almost a wildcat backup to John Brodie for the San Francisco 49ers in 1961. Daniels’ six regular-season rushing touchdowns ties for sixth all-time among rookie quarterbacks, and his seven for the season and playoffs combined ties for fourth. Few rookie quarterbacks have scored rushing touchdowns in the playoffs, with most other players near the top of these rushing lists missing the postseason or struggling there. But Daniels broke through Sunday against the Eagles.