Jayden Daniels' MNF Breakout Just The Start

Washington Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels put forth an unbelievable performance in Monday's 38-33 upset primetime victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. Daniels completed 21-of-23 passing attempts for 254 yards, two touchdowns, and zero interceptions. The dual-threat scrambler added 39 rushing yards and a third score to his offensive totals.

It was the best rookie QB showing of the season thus far, one-upping Bo Nix, who was outstanding for the Denver Broncos on Sunday. Lou Anarumo and the Bengals' defense had absolutely no answer for Daniels' playmaking ability. To truly summarize how incredible Daniels was, he scored more touchdowns (3) than he threw incomplete passes (2).

The Commanders became the first offense in the Super Bowl era to go two consecutive games without punting or committing a single turnover. Daniels also set an NFL record for the highest completion percentage (91.3%, minimum 20 attempts) in a game ever for a rookie. Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury deserves a round of applause. Kingsbury has Daniels showcasing weekly progress.

Kingsbury was in his bag all evening long. Daniels' first career touchdown pass was a play-action fake to offensive lineman Trent Scott. That should make for one helluva trivia question.

Daniels' first touchdown blew open the Commanders' first-half lead to 21-10. Daniels faked the handoff to Brian Robinson Jr., who had already scored a rushing touchdown of his own. The reigning Heisman winner fooled Bengals defender Joseph Ossai, easily galloping into the end zone.

Daniels' biggest throw doubled as his most impressive. The Commanders were facing a critical 3rd-and-7 while nursing a 31-26 lead with 2:15 remaining in the fourth quarter. A defensive stop would have awarded Joe Burrow and the Bengals an opportunity to string together a game-winning (or tying) drive. 

Instead, Daniels took a shot inside the pocket from a blitzing defender from an aggressive Cover 0 defensive alignment while delivering an accurate 27-yard bucket shot to Terry McLaurin for a game-icing touchdown.

It had a completion probability of 10.3%, according to Next Gen Stats. That's the most improbable touchdown of the 2024 season thus far and was the most improbable completion by the Commanders in the NGS era (since 2016).

Expectedly so, the analytics reflect extremely kindly on Daniels' display. He was aggressive, with his average completed air yards of 7.4 ranking fourth-best among all Week 3 quarterbacks, per NGS. Daniels' 55-yard pass to McLaurin was the longest completed air distance (LCAD) pass of the week.

Unsurprisingly, Daniels' quarterback rating of 141.7 finished second in Week 3, trailing just Josh Allen (142.1). What's even more impressive about Daniels' record-setting 91.3% completion percentage is that his expected percentage was just 70.5%. His Completion Percentage Above Expectation (CPOE) of +20.8 was the week's best mark.

Data collected by RBSDM was even more favorable. They had Daniels' CPOE at a ridiculous +28.4. Daniels posted an Expected Points Added (EPA) per play of 0.78, and 27.2 overall, two elite results.

Monday's performance was arguably one of the greatest single-game showings by a rookie quarterback in NFL history. Daniels was simply breathtaking. He should be considered the overwhelming favorite for Offensive Rookie of the Year honors.