Jayden Daniels couldn’t have asked for a better start to his sophomore NFL campaign with the Washington Commanders. Last season’s Offensive Rookie of the Year has opened 2025 with a clinical and composed victory.
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Daniels’ rookie year was indeed standout. He threw for 3,568 yards and 25 touchdowns to lead the Commanders to the NFC Championship. The quarterback has started his second season carrying that momentum, finishing with 301 total yards and a touchdown, outplaying veteran Russell Wilson in a 21-6 win over the Giants on Sunday.
But while his performance turned heads, fans couldn’t help but notice something new on the back of his helmet: A Japanese flag below the Stars and Stripes.
The decal sparked immediate curiosity on social media. Daniels, like most players, only carried the American flag on his helmet in his rookie season. So why the sudden addition?
Commanders QB Jayden Daniels is rocking the Japanese flag decal on his helmet this season to honor his grandmother pic.twitter.com/Hulx3iELUD
— Football Forever (@fballforeverhq) September 7, 2025
It turns out that the Commanders’ star was paying tribute to his maternal great-grandmother, who was Japanese. The QB confirmed this after the game with a short but heartfelt explanation: “My great-grandmother is Japanese, so I’m showing love to her.”
Daniels’ mother and agent, Regina Jackson, shared this on social media as well. Quoting a post by NBC4’s JP Finlay about the backstory, she replied with heart emojis.
— Mz Jackson (@LovelyMzJackson) September 7, 2025
Daniels donning the Japanese flag may not be a one-off gesture either. Thanks to the NFL’s Heritage Program, players are now allowed to permanently display national flags that represent their heritage. Just that the flag has to be positioned below the USA flag. The policy change was introduced in 2024.
These decals are only allowed for a limited number of weeks. But still it found a lot of takers last season, with over 450 players and coaches (across all 32 teams) represented 73 different countries, including 19 African nations.
Daniels, now that we know his ancestral connection, is only the second quarterback of Japanese heritage in NFL history, following Arthur Matsu, who broke barriers in 1928 as the league’s first Asian American player.
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So while Week 1 was about putting up numbers and starting the season with a divisional win, it may have inadvertently become something more meaningful for Daniels. He upheld his identity, heritage and honored those who came before him.
