Falcons show Jayden Daniels huge respect with roster move

   
Week 16 NFL Takeaways: Commanders Have Built Program for Jayden Daniels to  Succeed

Sep 29, 2024; Glendale, Arizona, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) looks on after beating the Arizona Cardinals at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Kartozian-Imagn Images

The Atlanta Falcons are paying Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels a pretty big compliment with one roster move they are making this week.

The Falcons announced Thursday that they are signing quarterback Emory Jones to their practice squad. The move was made solely to bring in a player who could emulate Daniels’ skillset during practices, the team added.

Jones is an undrafted rookie out of Cincinnati who spent training camp with the Baltimore Ravens, but did not make the team’s final roster. He was regarded as a good athlete with good ball placement coming out of college, and the Falcons clearly feel he can capably emulate Daniels on the scout team.

It is not all that often that a team will bring in a quarterback specifically for one week of scout team duty, and it is even more rare when it is done for a rookie. That is the kind of impact Daniels has made, though. Despite two interceptions on Sunday against the Philadelphia Eagles, he also threw five touchdown passes to defeat one of the NFC’s top teams, and has been impressing teammates and rivals all year long.

The stakes are high for the Falcons on Sunday, as they can solidify their grip on the NFC South with another victory. They will need to hold off the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the division, as a wild card is out of the question for them.