Jayden Daniels' NFL Debut Receives Mixed Fan Reviews

Jayden Daniels impressed in his NFL debut with solid stats, but Commanders fans have mixed feelings.

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

How well did Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels do? 

For starters, he produced more yards of offense for the Commanders than any other rookie quarterback did for his team in Week 1. 

And even though his team didn’t win, there are more in Washington leveraging Daniels’ play as reason to be optimistic instead of leaning on his inexperience as a reason not to panic - looking at you Chicago Bears. 

A 70 percent completion rate, 184 yards passing, 88 yards rushing, and two touchdown runs later, and 71 percent of Commanders fans polled by the Locked On Commanders podcast rated Daniels’ first performance in the NFL as ‘Good’.

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

“Jayden looked good and more importantly promising,” wrote one respondent. 

Another said, “The game didn't look to big for JD. I'm happy about that.”

But not everyone thought is was a good outing for the rookie. Six percent graded it as ‘Excellent’ while 21 percent said it was ‘Average’ and two percent said it was ‘Poor’.

“It was his first game, so I know he can improve,” one fan wrote after voting that Daniels’ performance was less than ‘Good’. “I just don't see how people thought it was a good performance. He had 100 yards passing and 3 fumbles going into garbage time.  Again, people get so sensitive over calling it what it was. I'm excited and rooting for him but that was a poor performance. I don't care how much he ran all over the field, that will not last. Looking forward to Week 2!”

Daniels will get his next opportunity to impress on Sunday in the Commanders’ home opener against the New York Giants team that surrendered 21 points stemming from offensive touchdowns to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 1.

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

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