The 2025 NFL draft is now in the books, and what each young man will become in the NFL is a mystery we’ll talk about one day in the future. Their chapters haven’t yet been written, but Jayden Daniels turned the page on the first year of his NFL career, and fans already know he’s going to be a winner.
When he left LSU and entered the NFL draft, Jayden Daniels took the time to reflect on his journey, sharing his story from growing up in a football family to playing under a father figure in college. Now already a monumental success in the NFL, let’s take a look back at what Daniels had to say before he heard his name called.
Jayden Daniels heartfelt message to those that mattered most
Jayden Daniels’ rookie season was off-the-charts. He took the Washington Commanders to the NFC Championship game, dominating the Detroit Lions on their own field to get there.
He managed multiple comeback wins, including the Hail Mary against the Chicago Bears, and the five-touchdown comeback performance against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 13. The Commanders’ QB broke the rookie rushing record for quarterbacks with 891 yards on the ground. Then in the playoffs broke the all time rookie quarterback record for total yards, previously held by Andrew Luck in 2012.
Daniels is, by all accounts, already a superstar. But before he knew put on an NFL helmet for the first time, before he even knew he was headed to Washington, Daniels took the time to reflect via a post on The Players Tribune.
He started out thanking his grandfather, who brought football to his family and helped develop his dad into a D1 cornerback, and when Jayden was ready to play it was his grandfather taking him to practice and showning up for him every day. When he passed away around three years before Daniels made it to the NFL, he was devastated, and he lost his grandmother just a couple of weeks later.
Daniels reflected on his high school years, playing football at Cajon High School, where his parents had met one another. In his final year, they lost in the State Championship game, right in the dying moments, and Daniels cried.
“At the final whistle, when we lost, everything kind of hit me all at once. I thought, I’m not ever going to get these times back. We were all moving on to the next chapter of our lives, which would take us in different directions.”
Jayden’s next chapter took him to Arizona State, where he met head coach Herm Edwards and Antonio Pierce, who was coaching at Arizona State before he got the job with the Las Vegas Raiders. The two had recruited him, and Daniels built a special bond with Coach Herm.
“After my grandparents passed, I remember he was the first person who called me. He was like, “I know football is your thing, but really take this time with your family.” He said, “I don’t even want you to come back to school right now. Take care of you.”
Daniels felt like Coach Edwards was a true father figure to him; he looked after him, and he knew how much his family meant to him, which made entering the transfer portal extremely hard.
When he landed at LSU, Daniels just wanted to get his confidence back. Coach Brian Kelly and his offensive coordinator at the time, Mike Denbrock, believed in the QB. They wanted him, they wanted to help him, and he built a great connection with the program.
It was at LSU that he really got serious about his dream of playing in the NFL. His mindset flipped. He went all in.
‘Every day I would think, ‘Did I do enough today to be where I want to be in a couple of years? How can I get better on the little details and take my game to another level?“
He’d thought about it since he was 12 years old, reflecting on the kid who grew up in San Bernardino envisioning himself playing in the NFL. Daniels battled his way to one of the best college football seasons in history, and he made his dream a reality.
The Heisman Trophy winner was selected with the second overall pick in the 2024 NFL draft, and became a Washington Commander.
The next chapter for Jayden Daniels
Jayden Daniels broke records and won playoff games as a rookie quarterback. He threw walk-off touchdowns, put together fourth-quarter comebacks against division rivals, and won the Offensive Rookie of the Year in a landslide.
Daniels started out about as well as he possibly could have, but this Commanders team is poised for even bigger things.
In the aftermath of that phenomenal 2024 season, Washington went out and traded for San Francisco 49ers wide receiver Deebo Samuel, who joins Terry McLaurin in a high-performance offense run by offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury.
The Commanders refurbished their secondary with the mid-season addition of Pro Bowl cornerback Marshon Lattimore, and second-round draft pick Trey Amos is expected to lock down the other side of the field.
Josh Conerly Jr. adds first-round value to the offensive line, and if they can continue to give Jayden Daniels room to work, the Washington Commanders could be a real contender in 2025.
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