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Dan Campbell Admits One Jayden Daniels Trait Will Give Lions a 'Handful'

The Lions will have their work cut out for them as they look to stop Jayden Daniels.

Josh Wilson

Campbell's Lions earned the NFC's No. 1 seed and a first-round bye
Campbell's Lions earned the NFC's No. 1 seed and a first-round bye / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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The Detroit Lions now know who they'll face in the divisional round of the playoffs: Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders. Detroit, earning a No. 1 seed in the NFC, got to kick its feet up and watch the first round, and now earns the benefit of home-field advantage all the way up through the NFC Championship game, should they make it that far.

Returning to work Monday and meeting with the media, Campbell gave his thoughts about the Commanders and the various weapons Detroit is now preparing for. One player who sticks out is Jayden Daniels, the rookie quarterback who has been a threat and game-winner all year long.

"He is dangerous. He poses a major threat. He does not play the position like a rookie quarterback. He's composed, he understands how to progress, he sees the field well, he can buy time with his legs, he's a dangerous runner."

That ability to run, in particular, sticks out to Campbell, who later spoke about the challenge of going up against such mobile quarterbacks in the modern NFL.

"[Mobile quarterbacks are not] easy to stop, and there's a reason for that. Look, we know we got our hands full. But we're gonna have a plan in place. ... And you know what? [Daniels] may make a run. He may pop a run or two. You know? That's just the nature of the game and the way that some of these guys are able to maneuver. But that doesn't mean that you win the game."

Daniels was the second-most active quarterback in terms of rush attempts this season with 148 (Jalen Hurts was No. 1 with 150). He fell just 24 yards short of the No. 1 QB, Lamar Jackson, in terms of rushing yardage. He also ranked top-five in rushing yards per attempt despite being such a frequent threat to go into track mode. He impressively fumbled the ball just five times, better ball protection than several mobile quarterbacks: Lamar Jackson (10), Jalen Hurts (9), Kyler Murray (8).

His ability to escape the pocket has generally boded well for team success, too. Here are his rushing stats in wins contrasted to losses:

Stat

In Commanders Wins

In Commanders Losses

Attempts per game

9.1

7.8

Yards per attempt

6.28

5.31

Fumbles

2

3

In the divisional-round win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Daniels was Washington's leading rusher, going 13 times for 36 yards.

The Lions host the Commanders Saturday at 8 p.m. ET.

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Josh Wilson
JOSH WILSON

Josh Wilson is the news director of the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in 2024, he worked for FanSided in a variety of roles, most recently as senior managing editor of the brand’s flagship site. He has also served as a general manager of Sportscasting, the sports arm of a start-up sports media company, where he oversaw the site’s editorial and business strategy. Wilson has a bachelor’s degree in mass communications from SUNY Cortland and a master’s in accountancy from the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois. He loves a good nonfiction book and enjoys learning and practicing Polish. Wilson lives in Chicago but was raised in upstate New York. He spent most of his life in the Northeast and briefly lived in Poland, where he ate an unhealthy amount of pastries for six months.

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