After the last full spring practice of what needs to be his redemptive season, Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels said he still has “a long way to go” in learning the team’s new offense.
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His words may sound jarring, especially after the disaster of his second NFL season, which was ruined by injuries and the team’s overall ineffectiveness. But given all the Commanders are trying to accomplish this offseason, with a new offense and new defense and new coordinators to run both of them, Daniels is probably close to where he should be in understanding the new system. Even if that’s not where he eventually wants to be.
“I mean we only just installed how many [plays in] our practices?” Daniels said Wednesday afternoon. “I know we got a lot more to go but [we’ve] just built the foundation. You just continue to build off of it.”
This has been one of the quietest Commanders springs in recent years, two months free of holdouts or big coaching changes or general intuitional dysfunction. Aside from the adjustment to the new offense and defense, the practices have seemed happy and drama-free. Coaches and players alike talk about how optimistic the atmosphere is around the voluntary practices and this week’s mandatory minicamp.
A lot of that has been attributed to a healthy and wiser Daniels, who says repeatedly that the ruined season following his extraordinary rookie year “matured” him. The quarterback’s demeanor has led the rest of them to feel more enthusiastic, they say.
Earlier this week, Commanders Coach Dan Quinn was asked how Daniels has impressed him this offseason. Quinn didn’t hesitate to answer.
“I think it’s his ability to quickly process [the new offense]” Quinn said.
The system, created by new offensive coordinator David Blough, who was the assistant quarterbacks coach the previous two years, is heavy on running plays and requires the quarterback to stand under center a lot, an adjustment from the shotgun formation that Daniels is accustomed to running.
Quinn said he feels that Daniels has grasped well the things the coaches have asked of him this spring. That, he added, has made everything much better for the rest of the team.
“I think it forces the other players to elevate quickly too, knowing that he’s really on his game,” Quinn said. “So, when we check a play [or] we work different cadences, [or] different personnel groups they better [be in the proper place] because we can count on [Daniels] and [backup quarterback] Marcus [Mariota]to be in that same space.”
He described the fast tempo with which Daniels and Mariota are operating this spring as “a hidden advantage for us,” and puts everyone ahead as they try to install most of the new offense next month in training camp.
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Daniels was not in a reflective mood on Wednesday. His answers to questions were curt and almost dismissive.
When asked what lessons he had taken from last year into this spring he snapped, “I’m done talking about last year.”
Asked later about his personal goals for this season he said, “Win football games.”
Quinn said the coaches have gone through last season with Daniels, discussing the injuries and the disappointments.
“We talked about a lot of them [including] which parts of last year to we want to kick in the [butt] and get rid of and which … [lessons] do you want to bring forward? Not just for [this season] but for moving forward.”
Thursday is the last day of the Commanders’ minicamp and the team’s practice will be brief. Washington’s offseason program essentially ended Wednesday afternoon. Daniels said he plans to spend the next month studying the new offense and inviting several of the receivers to his home in California for a practice session.
He said he is excited about the way the receivers have developed and absorbed the new offense along with him. He added that all of them “are willing to work.”
But when asked who will go to California and when they will practice he said, “You’ll see it on social media or something.”
Otherwise, he has only one goal for the next month, “Get better,” he said.
Which really didn’t say much about what is going on in the mind of the Commanders most important player as he heads toward his most important season.
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