With just five games under his belt, Jayden Daniels has already established himself as an absolute weapon in the league. Already breaking records left and right, the rookie is even drawing comparisons to two-time league MVP Lamar Jackson. And one can’t deny that it’s not too far off.
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The Washington Commanders QB has led his team to a 4-1 record so far, amassing 4 passing touchdowns, 4 rushing touchdowns, and 2 interceptions.
The most spectacular stat, however, is his completion percentage, standing at 82.1% (before Week 5), the highest to have been achieved by any QB in the first four games. Former Broncos legend Peyton Manning sits at the second spot with a completion percentage of 81.8 (in a four-game stretch), achieved back in 2008.
Moreover, the 2023 Heisman Trophy winner currently stands third in offensive yards, closely following Jackson’s 1,166 yards with his 1,115.
In addition to his passing numbers, Daniels has also proven to be an exceptional dual-threat quarterback, already amassing 300 yards on the ground.
It’s no wonder why an anonymous coach had directly called the LSU product “Lamar 2.0” around the time of this year’s NFL Draft, as per Adam Schefter.
“If you pick Daniels, you’re getting Lamar 2.0, but he’s further along as a passer than Lamar was when he came out.”
The college stats validate these bold claims as well. Daniels is leading in almost every metric compared to Jackson. Additionally, we can’t ignore that the Ravens star attended Louisville, which doesn’t provide the same level of professional exposure as LSU.
That said, watching the quarterback perform at his usual best in Week 5’s matchup against the Browns, football fans seem to agree with the comparison even more. Thus, many flocked to social media to share their thoughts.
Jayden Daniels is better than Lamar Jackson. I’ve seen enough
— Nolan (@TheOnlyNoIan) October 6, 2024
Jayden Daniels > Lamar Jackson
— Paul’s Burner Account (@LifeOfFatPablo) October 6, 2024
One internet user even expressed that Jackson is over-hyped in the league and argued that Daniels might actually live up to the expectations.
Jayden daniels is who people think Lamar is
— Jacob Modellas1️⃣ (@jacobamodellas) October 6, 2024
Another fan commented how Daniels is the perfect blend of Tom Brady’s mindset, Patrick Mahomes’ throwing strength, Joe Burrow’s accuracy, Aaron Rodgers’ tact, and Jackson’s agility, all multiplied manifold.
If you combined Tom Brady’s mentality with Patrick Mahomes’ arm talent, Joe Burrow’s accuracy, Aaron Rodgers’ decision making and Lamar Jackson’s running ability and multiplied it all by 100, you’d get Jayden Daniels
— Joel Haas (@Joel_Haas1) October 6, 2024
All this praise pouring in for Daniels is not in the slightest bit unwarranted, as is evident by the number of records that the rookie has broken in his debut year.
Jayden’s record-breaking streak
The No. 2 overall pick of this year’s draft is already making waves in the league. Jayden has surpassed both Peyton Manning and Tom Brady in terms of completion percentage in a four-game stretch with 82.1%. However, there’s more.
In his latest outing, the rookie quarterback went on to achieve the most rushing yards ever scored in his position in the first five career games after Bobby Douglas, RGIII, and Steve Young.
Jayden also became the first NFL player to amass over a thousand yards in passing and over 250 yards on the run in his first 5 starts in the league, as per Jordan Schultz.
There’s another feature to the QB’s cap that was added into Week 4, as Jayden became the fourth QB after Cam Newton, Robert Griffin III, and Anthony Richardson to have run for 4 TDs in his first four games in the league.
Considering that the Commanders currently boast a Super Bowl drought longer than the Cowboys and a playoff dry spell of three years, fans are hoping that Jayden is able to maintain this trajectory.
