Week 4: Jayden Daniels, Washington Commanders
/Washington Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels has been named the DC Touchdown Club Pro Football Player of the Week for the second consecutive week after leading the visiting Commanders to a 42-14 win over the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
One week after setting an NFL rookie record for completion percentage in a single game, Daniels was incredibly accurate once again. He completed 26 of 30 passes for 233 yards and one touchdown, while also rushing eight times for 47 yards and another score.
On the opening possession of the second half, with the Commanders leading 17-7, another passing attempt resulted in a 47-yard pass interference penalty. Daniels scored on a nine-yard keeper on the following play as Washington began the break things open en route to its first 3-1 start since 2011.
“It feels good that we’re able to execute the game plan, but we still have room to grow from there,” Daniels said. “We’re not a finished product at all.”
The trip was a return to where Daniels began his college career, with the Commanders spending the week in the Phoenix area and practicing at Arizona State University. While there were a few extra interviews to talk about being back in a familiar place, Daniels remained focused. Commanders Coach Dan Quinn said he noticed Daniels and the team’s other quarterbacks spending many late nights in their meeting room, just down the hotel hall from Quinn’s temporary office.
“I was really proud of him,” Quinn said. “I knew there would be extra stories with being back at Arizona State, but you never would have known that [watching him this week]. … He stayed steady all the way through.”