Commanders' Jayden Daniels Shows Promise Despite Loss

Despite Week 1 loss to the Buccaneers, Commanders’ rookie QB Jayden Daniels shows promise.

David Harrison | Sep 9, 2024

Sep 8, 2024; Tampa, Florida, USA; Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) runs the ball in for a touchdown against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers during the second half at Raymond James Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images / Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

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The Washington Commanders fell short of their goal to go 1-0 in Week 1 of the NFL season and fell to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Next week, the same Commanders will host the New York Giants who also fell in Week 1 and will be looking to avoid an 0-2 start.

As much as Washington will be the same team next week as it was in this one, it’ll also be different thanks to the experience gained by the whole squad but especially rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels. Despite the loss, some of his veteran teammates are actually drawing even more confidence in the young quarterback given how he performed in a very tough debut matchup.

Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels.

“He's going to put a lot of pressure on himself to be better,” tight end Zach Ertz said to Donna Hopkins of Pro Football Plus about Daniels after the game. “Just like I'm going to put a lot of pressure on myself to get better, but I think going against a (Buccaneers head coach) Todd Bowles defense in your first start is probably the hardest matchup you can have in this league. Obviously, I've played against Todd multiple times in my career, and what he does is some of the toughest things you'll see as a veteran player, and for him to be able to execute as he did - obviously, we didn't finish in the red zone with touchdowns like we needed to, which came back to bite us in the end - but I know this whole team is excited to play with Jayden, and I think he's going to be really good for a really long time.”

Offensive lineman Sam Cosmi also came out of the game encouraged by the poise and confidence his quarterback showed. Even when the game was well in hand for Tampa Bay Cosmi says it was Daniels keeping spirits and effort high, looking to take advantage of every rep they got in the game.

That attitude and approach is encouraging to NFL teammates, and should be the same for Commanders fans who are reeling following what many consider to be a highly discouraging loss to start the year, and are worried they’ve been sold another lemon this offseason.

Stick with CommanderGameday and the Locked On Commanders podcast for more FREE coverage of the Washington Commanders throughout the 2024 season.

More Washington Commanders News

• Commanders’ Rookie Daniels Shows Promise in Loss

• Jayden Daniels Scores First NFL Touchdown With Commanders

• Commanders QB Jayden Daniels Reveals Mindset Going Into NFL Debut

• Washington Commanders Week 1 Rankings Boosted by New QB Jayden Daniels

Published Sep 9, 2024

DAVID HARRISON

David Harrison has covered the NFL since 2015 as a digital content creator in both written and audio media. He is the host of Locked On Commanders and a graduate of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism at Arizona State University. His previous career was as a Military Working Dog Handler for the United States Army. Contact David via email at david.w.harrison82@gmail.com or on Twitter @DHarrison82.