Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders came away with a huge 36-33 win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 16. The rookie quarterback threw five touchdowns and led a game-winning drive for which the NFL world rightly praised him.
Daniels is viewed as the favorite for the Offensive Rookie of the Year award, and the second-overall pick is already considered among the top quarterbacks in the league. Former Philadelphia Eagles scout John Middlekauff recently even said that he would take the Commanders star over Jalen Hurts to be his team’s quarterback of the future.
John Middlekauff Makes Case for Jayden Daniels Over Jalen Hurts
Middlakauf talked about Daniels with Colin Cowherd after the Commanders’ win against the Eagles. Both picked the rookie over Hurts, who is in his fifth season in the league.
“The quarterback is pretty remarkable,” Middlekauff said about Daniels. “This guy is better as a rookie than [Lamar Jackson] was as a rookie, and his game is somewhat similar, right? I mean, his legs today, he made some huge plays with his legs.”
He added, “If you had to pick a quarterback for the next 10 years in that division, you wouldn’t hesitate to pick Jayden over Jalen, and Jalen is a good player.”
“That’s a Franchise QB…I’d take Jayden Daniels already over Jalen Hurts”@colincowherd & @JohnMiddlekauff discuss the Commanders QB in win over Eagles pic.twitter.com/x9hHpkrIMd
— The Volume (@TheVolumeSports) December 23, 2024
Cowherd further went on to say that Daniels is already better than the Eagles quarterback. “I’d take Jayden Daniels,” said the Fox Sports analyst. “Jayden is better already. I think I trust him more from the pocket.”
Daniels has had an impactful rookie season, and he has completely turned around the Commanders. Their fans finally believe in the team, which shows the remarkable turnaround for the franchise from the days Dan Snyder was the owner.
The new ownership group, which includes Josh Harris and Magic Johnson, struck gold by hiring Dan Quinn and drafting Daniels. Now, it’s important for them to go all-in next year and build a better roster to support their star quarterback.
Daniels Still Has a Lot To Prove in the NFL
Daniels deserves to be praised for the type of season he has had, but it might be premature to say that he is already better than Hurts. Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud was in a similar situation last year after he had a historic rookie season, but he has struggled in his second year in the league.
As a result, people should wait until at least the LSU product puts together the body of work other quarterbacks have done over a more extended period.
Taking Daniels over Hurts could be a case of recency bias. Hurts hasn’t had a good statistical season, largely because the team has prioritized running the ball with Saquon Barkley. But, as evidenced by his performance in the 2022 NFL season, Hurts can be an MVP contender and lead his team to a Super Bowl appearance, in which he arguably played better than Patrick Mahomes.
The Eagles signed Hurts to a five-year, $255 million contract extension in 2023, and despite the Commanders star’s great rookie season, they would not swap Hurts to get him.
Unless Daniels goes on a Super Bowl run, it would be hard to crown him over the Eagles quarterback and among the best quarterbacks in the NFC. However, there is no denying that the Commanders quarterback is special and has the potential to become a superstar in the league.
The rivalry between Hurts and Daniels in the NFC East will be worth watching for years to come. But as of now, it’s not wise to compare the two quarterbacks.