Washington drafts LSU QB Jayden Daniels with No. 2 pick
The Washington Commanders selected LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.
Daniels, who won a Heisman Trophy this past season as the cornerstone piece to college football’s No. 1 offense, will join a Washington franchise that recently hired former Arizona Cardinals head coach Kliff Kingsbury as team’s offensive coordinator.
Daniels was the second quarterback taken in the 2024 NFL Draft following the Chicago Bears’ selection of USC quarterback Caleb Williams with the No. 1 overall pick.
Daniels finished the 2023 season with 3,812 yards passing and 40 touchdowns, adding 1,134 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns.
For longtime NFL Draft analyst Mel Kiper, the marriage of Kingsbury with Daniels is the perfect fit following Washington’s decision to trade former starting quarterback Sam Howell.
“You’re talking about a guy who is ready to play,” Kiper said. “I think with the dual-threat that he is and how much improvement he showed from 2022 to 2023, (he was) kind of Joe Burrow like in terms of that improvement. And he can escape, so he doesn’t put maximum pressure on that offensive line.”
Kiper said Daniels and Williams – the draft’s top two picks – bring similarities to an NFL team, and all eyes will be on how Washington will build around the choice to move forward with Daniels as the franchise’s top pick.
“He can escape, he can create like Caleb Williams, and the job he did (last season), balancing being aggressive and not turning the ball over was phenomenal,” Kiper said. “Fumbles, interceptions, he didn’t do that.
“You go from a fourth-rounder (in Kiper’s projections a year ago) to the No. 2 pick overall. (Meanwhile), the Washington Commanders are making a lot of moves.
“When you talk about infrastructure, we hope it works out better for where we are right now with Caleb and Jayden than it did for Bryce Young. The infrastructure that we thought was in Carolina was actually in Houston. So sometimes, the best laid plans … But right now, it looks like he’s going to the right spot. Kliff Kingsbury, the offensive coordinator, Jayden Daniels a real good fit here with the Washington Commanders.”
