Jayden Daniels was the number two pick in the NFL Draft for a reason. Now, he’s tasked with leading the turnaround of the Washington Commanders with both his arms, and his legs. A Heisman Trophy winner, Daniels took the college football world by storm last year at LSU and is now the face of a franchise that is under new ownership and a new coaching staff.
Todd Bowles may be a defensive mastermind, but he isn’t perfect and is faced with the task of not allowing Daniels to start his NFL career off the same way the last highly sought after quarterback did with Washington. I’m speaking of course about Robert Griffin III who was taken number two overall by Washington in the 2012 NFL Draft. Griffin started off his NFL career with a 320-yard, two touchdown performance on the road in New Orleans, where he came away with the win.
Now, twelve years later, Washington has a Heisman winning quarterback taken second overall in the NFL draft starting his career on the road against an NFC South opponent. Bowles is not interested in letting history repeat itself.
When asked about Daniels’ ability to not just throw, but to be a running quarterback, Bowles said;
“Any time you face a dual-threat quarterback, it’s going to be a problem. He can beat you with his legs or his arm. He was taken that high for a reason. He’s very accurate, very calm in the pocket, has a good mastery of the offense from what we’ve seen…It’s going to be tough trying to keep him in the pocket and trying to cover those guys.”
Bowles’ defenses in Tampa have had their share of struggles against rushing quarterbacks. Last year, they allowed Jalen Hurts to throw for 277 yards and a touchdown while rushing for another 28 yards and a score in week three. Josh Allen threw for 324 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for another 41 yards and a touchdown.
In 2022, Mahomes threw for 249 yards and three touchdowns while adding another 34 yards on the ground. Lamar Jackson had 238 yards and two touchdowns with 43 rushing yards.
This is a problem when no one has film on a player at the NFL level, you’re not sure exactly what he’s going to be able to do within the offensive scheme he’s now a part of. For Bowles and the defense, it’s about getting pressure early and often to force Daniels to be uncomfortable and start to bail on plays sooner than he should. Think of Justin Fields last season. The pass rush was relentless and it caused Fields’ internal clock to speed up and force early throws and turnovers. For Daniels, the more comfortable he gets early in the game, the longer the day could be for the Bucs.
Jayden Daniels was the number two pick in the NFL Draft for a reason. Now, he’s tasked with leading the turnaround of the Washington Commanders with both his arms, and his legs. A Heisman Trophy winner, Daniels took the college football world by storm last year at LSU and is now the face of a franchise that is under new ownership and a new coaching staff.
Todd Bowles may be a defensive mastermind, but he isn’t perfect and is faced with the task of not allowing Daniels to start his NFL career off the same way the last highly sought after quarterback did with Washington. I’m speaking of course about Robert Griffin III who was taken number two overall by Washington in the 2012 NFL Draft. Griffin started off his NFL career with a 320-yard, two touchdown performance on the road in New Orleans, where he came away with the win.
Now, twelve years later, Washington has a Heisman winning quarterback taken second overall in the NFL draft starting his career on the road against an NFC South opponent. Bowles is not interested in letting history repeat itself.
When asked about Daniels’ ability to not just throw, but to be a running quarterback, Bowles said;
“Any time you face a dual-threat quarterback, it’s going to be a problem. He can beat you with his legs or his arm. He was taken that high for a reason. He’s very accurate, very calm in the pocket, has a good mastery of the offense from what we’ve seen…It’s going to be tough trying to keep him in the pocket and trying to cover those guys.”
Bowles’ defenses in Tampa have had their share of struggles against rushing quarterbacks. Last year, they allowed Jalen Hurts to throw for 277 yards and a touchdown while rushing for another 28 yards and a score in week three. Josh Allen threw for 324 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for another 41 yards and a touchdown.
In 2022, Mahomes threw for 249 yards and three touchdowns while adding another 34 yards on the ground. Lamar Jackson had 238 yards and two touchdowns with 43 rushing yards.
This is a problem when no one has film on a player at the NFL level, you’re not sure exactly what he’s going to be able to do within the offensive scheme he’s now a part of. For Bowles and the defense, it’s about getting pressure early and often to force Daniels to be uncomfortable and start to bail on plays sooner than he should. Think of Justin Fields last season. The pass rush was relentless and it caused Fields’ internal clock to speed up and force early throws and turnovers. For Daniels, the more comfortable he gets early in the game, the longer the day could be for the Bucs.
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