Jayden Daniels is ready to dominate for surprising Commanders
The conclusion of the first month of the NFL season means that real football will start to be played on an every-week basis. This is not meant to diminish the remarkable opening of the 4-0 Minnesota Vikings or bolster the 1-3 Bengals. The 32 teams in Roger Goodell’s kingdom have been playing football that counts in the standings, but some weaknesses show up in September that disappear for the rest of the season.
The most obvious area is tackling, but there are plenty of other areas that improve significantly, including blocking, route running and understanding every play and assignment in the playbook. The regular starters did not play in the preseason. Now they have four games under their collective belts and the majority of them are ready to play at peak efficiency.
There clearly are some players who are there already, and the most notable at this point is rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels of the 3-1 Washington Commanders. He has been brilliant as he starts his career and he will get even better from here because he has all the tools necessary to succeed at his position. He has already won over his coaches and his teammates.
The numbers are brilliant, including an 82.3 percent completion percentage. That's a number that will be impossible to sustain as nobody has ever come close to that before — including Joe Montana, Tom Brady, Steve Young or Aaron Rodgers.
However, Jayden Daniels has a 3-1 touchdown to interception ratio, and he will make more big plays because he has one of the best receivers in the league in Terry McLaurin, and the two are just starting to get to know each other. Supporting pass catchers like tight end Zach Ertz and versatile running back Austin Ekeler will also help Daniels grow.
Jayden Daniels is third in the league with a 107.4 passer rating and that's an incredible figure for someone in his first go-round in the NFL. His ability to escape the pass rush is rare because of his quickness and he can clearly run with the ball. He has 218 rushing yards and 4.7 yards per carry average, but that’s not something that offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury wants to see become a regular part of the Daniels game.
The Daniels-Kingsbury marriage could turn out to be brilliant for Washington head coach Dan Quinn. Few have the insight into how to launch an attack like Kingsbury, and Daniels is a brilliant student who performs at a very high level.
“This is a very dangerous combination because you have two very hungry and talented people in Kliff and Jayden,” said one AFC executive. “Look at what CJ Stroud did last year as the No. 2 pick in the draft. He was motivated by that and Daniels has the same outlook – and perhaps better tools. Kingsbury is all about outthinking and outexecuting opposing defensive coordinators. The chess game is on and he is winning.”
While the Commanders are growing and finding success, the rest of the NFC East is falling apart. The Cowboys are one of the three or four most talented teams in the league, but Mike McCarthy falters in the biggest games and the defense is off this season. Nick Sirianni was considered one of the best leaders two years ago, but now there’s a dark cloud following him around, the Eagles blew a game against the Falcons in Week 2 and lost touch with the Bucs in Week 4. Brian Daboll and the Giants appear to be something of a lost cause.
It should all play into the hands of the Commanders and their surprising combination of Jayden Daniels, McLaurin, Kingsbury and Quinn.
Derrick Henry set to take Ravens on a long run
It seemed like such an obvious move when the Ravens signed Derrick Henry in the offseason to a two-year, $16 million contract. Critics may have looked at the deal and thought the Ravens overpaid for a 30-year-old running back, but they might have made the best signing of the year.
While the running game appears to have diminished greatly in the NFL over the past decade, don’t tell that to Ravens head coach John Harbaugh. Henry is the game’s best power back when healthy, and he pummeled the Buffalo Bills in Week 4 and sits atop the league’s ground gainers.
Henry torched the Bills with an 87-yard TD run on his first carry of the game in Week 4 and finished with 24 carries for 199 yards and 2 touchdowns. Most fans who follow the game were not even born when Earl Campbell had his legendary Monday night performance against the Miami Dolphins — Nov. 11, 1978 — but it was basically the same as Henry's remarkable show.
The Tyler Rose carried the ball 28 times for 199 yards and 4 touchdowns, and the last of those was an 81-yard rumbling sprint down the far sidelines of the Astrodome. Campbell was a tank of a running ack, but a tank nobody could catch.
The Ravens are off to a relatively slow start at 2-2, but they were focused on the task at hand in beating the Bills by a robust 35-10 margin.
The combination of Lamar Jackson and Henry along with a defense that is led by old-school middle linebacker Roquan Smith will likely turn this team into a juggernaut by season’s end. The Ravens are as strong fundamentally as any team in the league.
Smith has 35 tackles, 3 passes defensed and 1 interception. He is joined by perhaps the best safety in the league Kyle Hamilton, who has 28 tackles and one fumble recovery. Opponents also have to take note of outside linebacker Kyle Van Noy who has already registered 6.0 sacks, 1 pass defensed and 1 forced fumble.
This and that …
The heat is being turned up around Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. Much has been made of his slow start, but long-time observers know that there is nothing wrong with the player who has been Patrick Mahomes' most dependable receiver throughout his career. However, the Rashee Rice injury means Kelce must become the focus of the passing game in the weeks ahead. Kelce has caught 15 of 21 passes that he has been targeted for 158 yards, but has not been into the end zone. That should change this week when the Chiefs host the Saints on Monday night football. …
Plenty of credit to Jared Goff for his perfect game after completing all 18 of his passes for 292 yards and 2 touchdowns, including a spectacular 70-yard catch and run by Jameson Williams in the third quarter of the 42-29 triumph over the previously unbeaten Seahawks. However, Aidan Hutchinson was credited with 10 QB pressures on Geno Smith during the 54 snaps he was on the field. Hutchinson did not have a sack, a tackle or a batted pass, but his presence was felt throughout the game, and he has a chance to dominate in the weeks to come. …
Xavier McKinney is in his fifth year in the NFL and his first with the Packers. He is coming into his own, as the safety has 4 interceptions in his first 4 games with the team. He also has 17 tackles and 1 tackle for loss. Quarterbacks are quickly learning that McKinney can read their eyes, put himself in the right position and make a game-changing play.
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