Almost everyone expected Jayden Daniels to be a pretty good player coming out of LSU last year. That’s why the Washington Commanders took him No. 2 overall without much fuss. But surely, no one expected him to be that good. He was electric in the regular season, and as clutch and successful as a rookie QB has ever been in the playoffs.
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And it seems the team around Daniels only got better this offseason. They beefed up the trenches on both sides in a big way, and they really went to work on the receiver room, trading for Deebo Samuel, signing Noah Brown and Michael Gallup. They even drafted Jaylin Lane in the fourth round to play alongside lone Pro Bowler Terry McLaurin.
Against all odds, they met the division rival Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship Game last year. While they did get their butts kicked, all of those offseason moves suggest they could even improve on last year’s overachieving campaign. However, longtime Eagles beat writer Elliot Shorr-Parks says not so fast.
Shore seemed almost dismissive when discussing Washington’s prospects in 2025 during his appearance on the 94 WIP Morning Show.
“No, I don’t really think [the Commanders are a team to keep an eye on]. The Commanders are obviously a good team, but we’ve seen time and time again in the NFL, that when you have a great year, it is super super hard to do it again the next year, and that’s especially true when you’re counting on a young quarterback that has had one year of success,” the veteran journalist said.
Shorr-Parks, who has been on the Eagles beat since 2012, brought up the example of his own team’s young QB, Jalen Hurts. He had a big year in 2022, followed by a regressive one in 2023. He believes that if that can happen to Hurts, it can happen to Daniels as well.
“But if we think Jayden Daniels is going to take a step back, which is likely, that means the Commanders are as well. I don’t love the Deebo trade, I like them going out and fixing their lines, but I think there’s gonna be some regression for Jayden Daniels and that will lead to some regression for the Washington Commanders.”
If we look at some of the other recent QBs to win Rookie of the Year, we see that it is pretty difficult to build on that success right away in Year 2. Teams have tape on you now; they know more tendencies. C.J. Stroud wasn’t awful last year, but he clearly regressed from his ROY season in 2023.
Dak Prescott threw nine more interceptions in his second year than he did in his ROY-winning 2016 season. Robert Griffin III, Cam Newton, and Sam Bradford all struggled mightily in their second years after winning OROY. Matt Ryan wasn’t great in his second year either. In 2007, Vince Young threw nine TDs and 17 INTs the year after winning that trophy in 2006.
There are a couple of recent exceptions, however. Justin Herbert followed up his OROY season with his only Pro Bowl nod in 2021 as he threw for over 5,000 yards. Kyler Murray also earned a Pro Bowl nod in his second year after winning the award. Big Ben Roethlisberger won a Super Bowl in his second year after winning OROY, though he didn’t exactly have a great year himself.
So while there are exceptions, it certainly seems like Year 2 for an OROY like Jayden Daniels is usually a tougher one.
