The Commanders spent the second overall selection in the 2024 NFL Draft on Jayden Daniels, hoping the LSU product would quickly establish himself as a franchise quarterback.
He is off to a good start in his quest to prove Washington right.
Commanders coach Dan Quinn officially named Daniels the team's Week 1 starter on Monday, Aug. 19.
"As much as we knew Jayden would get there, Adam [Peters] and I were most excited about watching how he would," Quinn said of Daniels emerging as the starting quarterback. "The how has been absolutely outstanding.
"He went through the whole thing," Quinn added. "He didn't miss a beat. He hit the targets that we had put in front of him. We talked about the practices against other teams, the games — he's ready and he's earned the right to do that."
Dan Quinn on officially naming Jayden Daniels QB1 and the fun of watching him develop all summer. pic.twitter.com/ARr4Q4jKfU
— Ben Standig (@BenStandig) August 19, 2024
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Daniels' selection as the team's starting quarterback was hardly a surprise. He was chosen as the team's quarterback of the future, and after five college seasons at Arizona State and LSU, came into the NFL as a well-polished prospect.
Daniels showcased he was ready for the limelight with a strong preseason during which he completed 12 of 15 passes for 123 yards. He will look to carry that success over to the regular season to remain atop the Commanders' quarterback depth chart.
MORE: Why the Commanders drafted Jayden Daniels, explained
Commanders QB depth chart
The Commanders currently have five quarterbacks on their 90-man roster. They seem likely to carry three on the 53-man roster for the 2024 NFL season while keeping one on the practice squad.
Here's what to know about the pecking order in Washington with Daniels now firmly entrenched as the starter.
1. Jayden Daniels
Daniels is a dual-threat rookie who will add a much-needed playmaking element to Washington's offense. The No. 2 overall pick shined in his preseason action, showing off his high-end arm talent and great mobility.
Against the Jets, Daniels completed 10 of 12 passes for 78 yards, including a 42-yard completion in stride to speedster Dyami Brown.
Jayden Daniels launches it DEEP on his second throw
— NFL (@NFL) August 10, 2024
📱: Stream #WASvsNYJ on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/tGSoMxc4gI
Later in the game, Daniels scored his lone touchdown of the preseason — a 3-yard run — to give the Commanders an early lead.
Daniels was favored to win the starting quarterback job and lived up to expectations in the four months since Washington drafted him. Now, he will look to emulate what Robert Griffin III accomplished as a rookie in 2013 and get the Commanders back in playoff contention.
2. Marcus Mariota
The Commanders signed Mariota to replace Jacoby Brissett and serve as a veteran backup behind Daniels. Mariota has a 34-40 record in 74 career starts and has averaged 2,988 yards, 18 touchdowns and 10 interceptions per 17 games played.
Mariota provides the Commanders a backup similar to Daniels, as the Oregon product has dual-threat abilities. As such, the 30-year-old is a strong alternative to the rookie, even if his arm is weaker than that of the No. 2 overall pick.
The only way Mariota will fall out of the No. 2 quarterback role is if the groin injury that has hampered him this preseason lingers into the regular season. He threw only one pass during the preseason and completed it for a 6-yard gain.
MORE: How Jayden Daniels compares to Lamar Jackson, Robert Griffin III as a prospect
3. Jeff Driskel
Driskel is another mobile, veteran quarterback who has played tight end at times during his NFL career. The former Florida and Louisiana Tech quarterback is playing for his eighth organization over nine years but seems like an ideal fit as a third-string option behind the oft-injured Mariota.
Driskel has just a 1-10 record in 11 career starts but has completed 58.6 percent of his passes for 2,394 yards, 16 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. His mobility is his greatest strength, as the 6-4, 235-pound passer has averaged 5.2 yards per carry on 80 career scrambles. That's why the Texans moved him to tight end in 2021 before moving him back to the quarterback position.
4. Sam Hartman
Hartman went undrafted in the 2024 NFL Draft but quickly landed with the Commanders. He was a productive six-year player at Wake Forest and Notre Dame, but he faces arm strength limitations for the NFL level.
That said, Hartman still completed 63.5 percent of his passes as a super senior for 2,689 yards, 24 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He could develop into a Colt McCoy-like backup if all goes well, so he is a strong practice squad candidate behind Mariota and Driskel.
Getting Hartman to the practice squad shouldn't be too difficult. He's dealing with a shoulder injury that knocked him out of Washington's first preseason game. He didn't play in the team's second while dealing with that malady.
5. Trace McSorley
The Commanders are McSorley's sixth different team since being drafted by the Ravens in 2019, but he doesn't seem likely to stick in Washington. He was largely signed because the team needed another quarterback on the roster once Hartman was hurt to take snaps late in preseason games.
Perhaps McSorley can show out and earn a practice squad spot elsewhere, but the 28-year-old doesn't look like anything more than a temporary, preseason role player for the Commanders.
