At April’s NFL Draft, Caleb Williams was the consensus number one overall pick by the majority of experts and fans, but a small contingent of people threw their voices into the debate with two words.
Jayden Daniels.
The college star and 2023 Heisman Trophy winner spent the first three years of his collegiate career at Arizona State, where he became the first true freshman to start a season opener for the Sun Devils. That year, he threw for 2,943 yards and 17 touchdowns with only 2 interceptions.
His sophomore campaign was shortened to four games due to Covid, but the following year he started all 13 games, throwing for 2,381 yards and 10 TDs and rushing for 710 yards and 6 TDs. After his junior season, Daniels transferred to LSU, where he quickly made an impression on the SEC.
In his first year in Baton Rouge, Daniels led the Tigers to a 10-4 record and a spot in the SEC Championship Game while breaking records.
He set the school record for QB rushing yards (885) and rushing TDs (11) and set the team’s record for rushing and passing TDs in the same game six times, breaking Joe Burrow’s previous record of five. He also led the nation in QB rushing yards and threw for 2,913 yards with 17 TDs and 3 INTs.
The following year, in his “Super Senior Season” in 2023, Daniels added his name to the record books again.
He threw for 3,812 yards with 40 TDs and 4 INTs and was the SEC Offensive Player of the Year and First Team All-SEC. He was also a Consensus All-America, became the only player in FBS history to rush for 200 yards and pass for 350 yards in a game (234 rushing, 372 passing against Florida), joined Johnny Manziel as the only two players to pass for 3,500 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in a season in SEC history, and became only the third LSU player to win the Heisman.
So while Caleb was leading in the headlines, some were pleading not to overlook Daniels too quickly.
While it’s way too early to tell who will have the better career, the start of the 2024 season is showing us that those in the latter group were right in waving the flag for Daniels.
Washington’s rookie QB has electrified a long stagnant and frustrated fanbase that suffered under the ownership and leadership of former owner Daniel Snyder.
But once the team was acquired by a group led by Harris Blitizer Sports & Entertainment head Josh Harris for $6.05 billion, these fans were recharged.
