Commanders’ Jayden Daniels Will Play in Rookie QB Showdown

Getty Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Football fans are going to get the rookie quarterback showdown they’ve been looking forward to since the preseason, with Washington Commanders rookie and No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels given the green light to play against the Chicago Bears and No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams in Week 8 after a touch-and-go week of Daniels nursing a rib injury.

“Daniels was listed as questionable to play, and the Commanders waited to see how he was feeling Sunday in pregame warmups before making the determination that he could start,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter wrote on October 27. “Daniels did not practice Wednesday or Thursday but was a limited participant Friday and went through Washington’s walk-through practice Saturday.”

The Commanders are 5-2 and in first place in the NFC East.

Daniels injured his rib when he landed awkwardly at the end of a 47-yard run on the first play from scrimmage against the Panthers and lasted just one series before he exited the game.

Daniels returned to the sideline in street clothes as backup quarterback Marcus Mariota stepped in to lead Washington to a 40-7 win.

“(Daniels) really pushed it today,” Washington head coach Dan Quinn told ESPN’s John Keim following Friday’s practice. “We’ll let our eyes decide how he responds over the next 48 hours. That’ll guide us and we’ll make the best decision for him and the team.”

Battle Between Top 2 Picks in 2024 NFL Draft

Even before both players showed they had the goods to be elite NFL quarterbacks, the Week 8 showdown between the Commanders and Bears has been circled on calendars since NFL schedules were announced.

Before the season, Yahoo! Sports’ Frank Schwab listed the game at No. 9 on his list of the Top 10 regular-season matchups in 2024.

“Maybe this isn’t a matchup between teams we’ll see in the playoffs this season, but we get to watch the top two picks of the draft square off,” Schwab wrote. “No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams starts a brand new era with the Bears. The Commanders grabbed their quarterback of the future with the second pick in Jayden Daniels.”

While that was almost entirely focused around the rookie quarterbacks — and the last 2 Heisman Trophy winners — the bigger storyline now is that both teams actually are in the playoff hunt.

Williams Shakes Off Early Struggles as Starting QB

Williams was named the Bears’ starting quarterback almost immediately after he was drafted — unusual even for the NFL but a move that had most fans going “Yeah, we get it.”

In the first 3 games of the season, Williams had 2 touchdown passes and 4 interceptions as the Bears got off to a 1-2 start. In 3 consecutive wins since then, Williams has 7 touchdown passes and 1 interception. He’s also been using his feet — he had a season-high 56 rushing yards on 4 carries in a Week 6 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Williams is also being reunited with Commanders offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, who was USC’s senior offensive analyst during Williams’ final season in 2023.

“Tremendous person, competitor, freaky talent,” Kingsbury told ESPN on October 26. “Watching the stuff he would do in practice and in the games, his ability, his feel, really, really special.