While Quinn and the coaching staff won’t commit to a starting quarterback at this point in the offseason, we know Daniels has handled the majority of first-team reps, and he’s left coaches impressed with his effort on and off the field. In an article published by ESPN’s John Keim, quarterbacks coach Tavita Pritchard said Daniels is “a student of [the game]” while adding that Daniels “loves talking about it, loves watching it, loves playing it, loves practicing it.” Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury also credited Daniels for having a high football IQ. With OTAs and minicamp now over, the next stop for Daniels is training camp, which is scheduled to begin in about a month. Given his draft capital, reps with the first team, and high praises thus far, it would be a surprise if Daniels wasn’t under center for the Commanders in Week 1 when they take on the Buccaneers. Fantasy managers looking for a reliable quarterback at a discount can look to Daniels, whose rushing upside helps make for a strong fantasy floor and a potentially high-end QB1 ceiling if he’s able to put everything together early in the season.

Daniels’ deal is fully guaranteed and includes a $24.3 million signing bonus. The 2023 Heisman Trophy winner has impressed early this offseason and should be closing in on the starting job over Marcus Mariota at some point in training camp. Daniels threw for 3812-40-4 in his final season with LSU and added another 1,134 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground. The dual-threat quarterback hopes to help a new regime usher in a winning culture that’s largely been lacking in Washington since they won the Super Bowl in 1991. Daniels’ rushing ability makes him a legitimate threat to finish as a top-12 fantasy quarterback in his rookie season if he and the offense can gel in their first year under Dan Quinn and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury.

This comes days after No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels opened mandatory minicamp with the first-team offense. Reports out of Commanders camp have been mostly positive regarding Daniels and his early progress with the team and learning a new offense, with several teammates praising his leadership capabilities. The 2023 Heisman Trophy winner enters the season with lofty expectations from both the Commanders and fantasy managers. Daniels threw for 3,812 yards and 40 touchdowns last season at LSU, but it’s his rushing upside (135-1134-10) that has people excited. Currently going as a fringe QB1/QB2 in fantasy drafts, Daniels has the skillset to finish as a top 10 fantasy quarterback in his rookie season if he’s able to get ahead of the learning curve that comes with making the leap from college to the NFL. Quinn also said that the plan in the spring was to give both Daniels and Marcus Mariota first-team reps, so it’s possible both players take snaps with the starters early in camp. We would still expect Daniels to win the Week 1 job when all is said and done.

The 2023 Heisman Trophy winner enters the league as one of the most polarizing — but high upside — elite prospects in recent memory. Already 23 years old, Daniels (6’4/210) was a 2019, pre-pandemic enrollee at Arizona State, largely muddling through his three campaigns in Tempe before a transfer-infused step forward at LSU in 2022. He then went supernova for the Heisman, posting a ludicrous 40:4 TD:INT total through the air while churning up 135/1,134/10 with his legs. Those absurd numbers speak to a boom/bust skill-set that focuses on deep passing and tucking-and-running whenever possible. Daniels handles pressure well but also invites it with his play style, and has shown blatant disregard for his body. The highlight-reel hits he took all too often in the SEC will threaten to land him on the injury report in the NFL. Daniels is going to have to rein in his game without losing the wild hair spark that makes him special. It can be done, though it is the kind of transition that has proven difficult to pull off. Either way, Daniels’ dual-threat game should make him an instant fantasy superstar as long as he can stay on the field. Real-life progress doesn’t even need to follow for the time being, but if Daniels can clean up his game, he’s in rarefied air when it comes to ceiling. In Washington, Daniels will operate in Kliff Kingsbury’s horizontal raid offense. He could easily lead all QBs in rushing yards this season. Daniels’ propensity to run will hurt target volume for Terry McLaurin and the rest of Washington’s pass catchers.