WAS Washington Commanders · QB· #5

Jayden Daniels

Age
25
Height
6'4"
Weight
210 lbs
College
LSU; Arizona State
Drafted
2024, No. 2 overall (WAS)
Experience
3rd NFL season

46

Overall grade

28th of 40 quarterbacks

Below typical

about average; 50 is average

Grades updated Rechecked every few hours on game days

The read

Jayden grades about average among quarterbacks so far, with no number far from the middle.

Not playing lately: He played in 2 of his team's first 3 games, then did not play in the last 1 game.

Written from his numbers, not from film. 3 games are behind the season figures.

How he stacks up

Every graded stat at a glance, against all the quarterbacks in the league.

  • Accuracy over expected+1.7 pts19th of 38small sample
  • EPA per dropback−0.0224th of 40small sample
  • Bad throws15.4%24th of 38small sample
  • Sack rate7.2%27th of 40small sample
  • Success rate39%34th of 40small sample

Left is the worst at his job, right is the best, and the line down the middle is average. The bubble is his percentile: 90 means better than nine in ten qualifying quarterbacks. Faded bars are still small samples.

How he has progressed

Where he has ranked among quarterbacks after each week, and every game behind it.

WorstMiddleBestrecent12345Week 1: 55th percentileWeek 2: 47th percentileWeek 5: 41st percentile41st

Season rank slipped: 55th to 41st percentile since Wk 1.

The line is his season-to-date rank among players at his position after each week, from 100 (the best) to 0 (the worst). It rises when he passes other players, not when he has one big game. Early weeks are noisier because fewer plays are behind them. The shaded weeks are the recent stretch.

EPA per dropback game by game
WeekOpponentThat gamedropbacksSeason rank after
1vs PHI+0.023555th pct
2vs DAL+0.011747th pct
5vs NYG−0.083141st pct

One game is a small sample: a single stat over 28 dropbacks can swing on a handful of plays. Shaded rows are the recent stretch.

The numbers, in context

Each one against every quarterback with at least 40 dropbacks. Right on the strip is better.

EPA per dropback

Typical

−0.02

24th of 40 quarterbacks · bottom 43%

Expected points added: how many points the play added to (or took from) the offense's scoring chances, given the down, the distance and the field position. Sacks, scrambles and throwaways all count, so it is everything he does when he drops back, not just the completions.

The box score: Passing yards and touchdowns ignore down, distance and sacks, so a 6-yard checkdown on 3rd-and-12 looks like a good play.

Does it show up in winning? Across 151 games league-wide, teams won 84% of the time when their quarterback was in the best third on EPA per dropback, and 28% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: −0.08 (31) vs +0.02 before−1.9grade points downWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 83 dropbacks · true level likely −0.30 to +0.26

Success rate

Well below typical

39%

34th of 40 quarterbacks · bottom 18%

How often a dropback gains enough to keep the offense on schedule: about 40% of the yards needed on first down, 60% on second, all of them on third and fourth.

The box score: Yards per attempt cannot tell a gain that helped from one that did not.

Does it show up in winning? Across 151 games league-wide, teams won 74% of the time when their quarterback was in the best third on success rate, and 36% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 42% (31) vs 37% before+7.6grade points upWithin the noise

Small sample: could move a lot · 83 dropbacks · true level likely 30% to 47%

Accuracy over expected

Typical

+1.7 pts

19th of 38 quarterbacks · top 50%

His completion rate compared with what each throw was expected to be, given depth, pressure and where the receiver was. +3 means he completes 3 more of every 100 throws than an average passer would on the same throws.

The box score: Completion percentage rewards the quarterback who throws short and punishes the one who throws deep.

Does it show up in winning? Across 145 games league-wide, teams won 70% of the time when their quarterback was in the best third on accuracy over expected, and 31% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: +8.1 pts (23) vs −1.7 pts before

Small sample: could move a lot · 67 throws · true level likely −7.2 pts to +10.5 pts

Bad throws

Below typical

15.4%lower is better

24th of 38 quarterbacks · bottom 40%

The share of his attempts that Pro Football Reference's charters called a bad throw: off target, not just incomplete. Fewer is better.

The box score: An incompletion also blames him for a drop or a throwaway.

Does it show up in winning? Across 124 games league-wide, teams won 66% of the time when their quarterback was in the best third on bad throws, and 39% when he was in the worst third.

Small sample: could move a lot · 52 attempts · true level likely 6.9% to 23.9%

Sack rate

Below typical

7.2%lower is better

27th of 40 quarterbacks · bottom 35%

Sacks as a share of his dropbacks. It is the quarterback and the line together. Fewer is better.

The box score: A sack total depends on how often he drops back.

Does it show up in winning? Across 151 games league-wide, teams won 55% of the time when their quarterback was in the best third on sack rate, and 37% when he was in the worst third.

Last 2 games: 16.1% (31) vs 1.9% before−38.7grade points downA clear change

Small sample: could move a lot · 83 dropbacks · true level likely 2.3% to 12.2%

How he plays

Tendencies: how his game differs from the quarterbacks around him. These are not better or worse, only different, and often say as much about the offense or defense he plays in as about him.

Average depth of throw

Style

8.9 yds

Throws it deep, more than most quarterbacks. A typical one is 8.0 yds.

How far past the line of scrimmage the ball travels, on average. It is a style, not a skill.

Small sample: could move a lot · 75 throws

Deep throws

Style

16%

Throws deep often, more than most quarterbacks. A typical one is 11%.

The share of his throws that travel 20 or more yards in the air.

Small sample: could move a lot · 75 throws

Play-action dropbacks

Style

23%

Right around the middle of quarterbacks: a typical one is 23%.

How often a dropback starts with a fake handoff.

Small sample: could move a lot · 52 dropbacks

Blitzed

Style

21%

Is rarely blitzed, and more so than almost any of the quarterbacks. A typical one is 32%.

How often defenses send an extra rusher at him.

Sample still growing · 52 dropbacks

Leaves the pocket

Style

23%

Plays outside the pocket, and more so than almost any of the quarterbacks. A typical one is 18%.

How often he is outside the pocket when he throws or is sacked.

Small sample: could move a lot · 52 dropbacks

Playing time

He has played in 2 of his team's 4 games with snap counts, on the field for about 78% of the team's offensive plays when he plays.

Not playing lately. He played in 2 of his team's first 3 games, then did not play in the last 1 game.

Each column is a game: the share of his team's offensive snaps he played. 80% means about 8 of every 10 plays. “Out” means he did not play; a question mark means snap counts are not posted yet. Shaded games are the recent stretch.

Game by game

Every game this season: how it ended for his team, how much he played, his box score, and the advanced numbers from that one game. One game is a small sample, so read the right-hand columns as a snapshot, not his level.

Jayden Daniels game by game
GameResultSnapsAttCmpYdsTDIntSackedEPA/dropbackSuccessCPOEBad throws
Wk 1 vs PHIL 22–24100%3517153101+0.0234%−4.6 pts14.3%
Wk 2 vs DALL 20–3755%171196100+0.0141%+3.5 pts17.6%
Wk 5 vs NYGT 27–27–3117178005−0.0842%+8.1 pts–

The box score

The traditional totals, with where each ranks among quarterbacks. A total rewards volume, which is why the advanced numbers above matter.

Jayden Daniels box score totals
StatTotalRank
Pass attempts8330th of 40
Completions4531st of 40
Passing yards42731st of 40
Passing touchdowns231st of 40
Interceptions thrown033rd of 40
Times sacked625th of 40

Players with a similar profile

The quarterbacks whose grades are closest to his across the same stats. Similar means similar numbers, not the same style of play.

Ranks are among players at the same job who have enough plays to be graded. Grades and rankings come from play-by-play, charting and snap-count data, so they cannot see blocking, route running or assignments. See how the grades work.

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Data: nflverse play-by-play, CC BY 4.0. Also FTN charting, Pro Football Reference advanced stats, snap counts and injury reports, all through nflverse. Calculations and charts by Raiders Rundown.