Jayden Daniels’ stellar rookie season gave staunch Washington native and Commanders’ fan Kevin Durant a future to look forward to. For decades, the franchise from the nation’s capital had to settle for mediocrity due to the lack of a quality quarterback.
A few have promising performances on the field but turned out to be duds in the long run until the emergence of a 24-year-old Californian native. The second overall pick in the 2024 draft led the Commanders to their first NFC Championship game since 1992.
During a recent episode of his Boardroom show, NBA legend Kevin Durant invited New York Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers for a chat. Everyone knows that the Giants and the Commanders fans don’t see eye to eye because of the intense divisional rivalry.
Nabers is well aware of the animosity, but personally, he could not bring himself to badmouth Jayden Daniels. The pair shared a locker room while representing the LSU Tigers in college.
Man, it’s hard to trash-talk. You [Commanders] got my best friend at QB.
Malik Nabers told Durant
Later, Durant, who was recently traded from Phoenix to Houston, shared Nabers’ message on X with the caption,“Yessir, big season ahead.”
Daniels won Durant over very early in his career. In an interview with Kay Adams , KD revealed:
I was a fan of the Heisman winner. He’s like the KD of college football with his body type. We feel like we got a player that could take us somewhere now… A guy that size that could move that well at that position, you tend to look at that body frame as like a wide receiver or skill position.
Daniels arrived in Death Valley following three years in Arizona with the Sun Devils. He instantly struck a chord with Nabers, and he became Daniels’ most targeted receiver in college. Nabers racked up 1,569 yards and found the end zone 14 times in two years.
Jayden Daniels gets compared to a 3x Super Bowl MVP
It’s hard for a rookie to step into the big shoes from day one. A majority of them struggle to fit in because of the lofty ambitions of NFL franchises. Daniels broke that glitch. He played against the big boys, similar to a seasoned veteran.
Daniels can experience a sophomore slump like the Texans’ CJ Stroud, but FS1’s Colin Cowherd predicted that the reigning OROY has all the tools to play in the stratosphere as Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes.
During a recent segment of The Herd, the longtime sports analyst claimed,
I think [Jayden Daniels is] our next superstar in the NFL. I thought last year was the greatest rookie season by far… There is an argument that over the next 20 years, they’re going to become the Kansas City of the NFC. That kid was bizarrely good as a rookie.
The Commanders’ brass is serious about challenging the Philadelphia Eagles’ dominance in the NFC. They went out and signed Deebo Samuel from the San Francisco 49ers. Samuel is the perfect utility man, who can play in several positions.
More importantly, they are close to extending Pro Bowl WR Terry McLaurin’s contract. McLaurin has put up five consecutive 1000-yard seasons, and last year he scored 13 touchdowns.
The Commanders play three preseason games against the Patriots, Bengals, and Ravens before welcoming the Giants to Landover in week one.
