‘Hard to duplicate’ – Jayden Daniels return can’t ease mounting Washington pressure

2025 was a year to forget for the Washington Commanders, and all eyes will be on how they bounce back.

2024 seemed like the start of a brand new era in Washington. Led by Rookie Jayden Daniels, the team finished 12-5 and made a deep playoff run.

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But, in year two under the tandem of general manager Adam Peters, and head coach Dan Quinn, things didn’t go exactly to plan.

They finished the season with a 5-12 record and missed the playoffs. largely due to several injuries to key players.

The response will be crucial, given the Commanders have invested heavily this offseason, and already have multiple stars on their roster.

Defense was the target during the first wave of free agency, and they made a big splash, headlined by the four-year, $100 million signing of Odafe Oweh.

But, speaking exclusively to talkSPORT, ESPN’s John Keim believes a healthy Jayden Daniels is the main key to the Commanders success moving forward.

“I think there’s some definite pressure,” Keim told talkSPORT’s Will Varney.

“I think there is pressure all over the organization, to deliver a strong offseason, on Jayden Daniels to go back too… It’s hard to duplicate that rookie year, but build off that.”

“When you talk to people here, when you talk to people around the league, I don’t get the sense that people are afraid like, ‘Oh, he was just a one-hit wonder.’

“Like people figure him out. I don’t get that sense at all. It’s just about health. But there is pressure like, ‘Can you stay healthy?’ That’s the big key for him.”

Daniels missed a total of 10 games in his second year. A left knee sprain he suffered in Week 2 kept him on the sidelines for two weeks.

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But the major blow occurred in the 14-38 loss to the Seattle Seahawks in Week 9. Daniels suffered a dislocated elbow on a sack late in the game.

Quinn’s decision to leave Daniels in the game for the fourth quarter, in which he had already received several hits, came under intense criticism from fans.

Daniels would later return in Week 14, but re-aggravated the injury after falling and landing on the same elbow, which ended his season.

“So, I do think there’s pressure all over, but yes on Dan Quinn and Peters because like you had such a good first year, but the second year was so bad,” Keim added. 

“It wasn’t just the injuries. It was really bad otherwise. Like they weren’t competitive in a lot of games.

“Obviously Jayden Daniels, to me, that’s a big hit, of course. We saw the first year. As long as he’s healthy, he’s going to be fine.”

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Washington selected Daniels with the No.2 pick in the 2024 Draft, and his debut season in the NFL was nothing short of incredible.

Daniels guided the Commanders to a playoff berth, threw for 3,568 yards and 25 touchdowns, adding an additional 822 yards and five touchdowns in the playoffs.

Daniels rookie season saw himself win multiple awards, including NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, Moment of the Year (the infamous Hail Mary) and even received MVP votes.

For Daniels, 2026 will be the third-season into his rookie deal, he will want to prove that he should be within the highest-paid quarterback list.

But, for Peters and Quinn, it could be job saving. 

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