Jayden Daniels facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Jayden Daniels

Daniels in 2024
No. 5 – Washington Commanders
Position:	Quarterback
Personal information
Born:	(2000-12-18) December 18, 2000 (age 24) Fontana, California, U.S.
Height:	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Weight:	210 lb (95 kg)
Career information
High school:	Cajon (San Bernardino, California)
College:	Arizona State (2019–2021) LSU (2022–2023)
NFL Draft:	2024 / Round: 1 / Pick: 2
Career history
Washington Commanders (2024–present)
Roster status:	Active
Career highlights and awards
PFWA Rookie of the Year (2024) Pro Bowl (2024) Heisman Trophy (2023) Walter Camp Award (2023) AP College Football Player of the Year (2023) SN College Football Player of the Year (2023) SEC Male Athlete of the Year (2024) Davey O'Brien Award (2023) Manning Award (2023) Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (2023) Consensus All-American (2023)
Career NFL statistics as of 2024
Passing attempts: 480 Passing completions: 331 Completion percentage: 69.0% TD–INT: 25–9 Passing yards: 3,568 Passer rating: 100.1 Rushing yards: 891 Rushing TDs: 6
Player stats at PFR

Jayden Daniels (born December 18, 2000) is an American professional football quarterback for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He played three seasons of college football for the Arizona State Sun Devils and two with the LSU Tigers, winning the Heisman Trophy among other awards with the Tigers in 2023 after scoring 50 touchdowns and leading the FBS in total yards.

Daniels was selected by the Commanders second overall in the 2024 NFL draft. He made the Pro Bowl in his first season after having the most rushing yards and highest pass completion rate by an NFL rookie quarterback, with it also seeing a game-winning Hail Mary pass play by him known as the Hail Maryland while leading the Commanders to their highest win total and first NFC Championship Game appearance since 1991. His rookie season has been regarded as of one, if not the greatest in NFL history.

Early life

Daniels at the 2019 Under Armour High School All-America Game

Daniels was born on December 18, 2000, in Fontana, California, and raised in nearby San Bernardino. He began playing flag football at the age of five and contact football by seven, briefly playing the cornerback position before moving to quarterback. He also ran track and played basketball and soccer as a youth before starting his freshman year at Cajon High School in 2015. Daniels, initially needing a medical note to play due to being considered undersized for the position at 125 pounds (57 kilograms), started on Cajon's varsity team as a freshman. He led the team to the CIF Southern Section (CIF-SS) Inland Division playoffs that year before being eliminated in the semifinals.

In the first game of his 2016 sophomore season, Daniels broke the little finger of his right throwing hand attempting to recover a fumble but missed no games. He set a state record in 2017 with over 6,400 total yards during his junior season, leading Cajon to a Citrus Belt League (CBL) championship and an appearance in the Division 2-AA state finals. He led Cajon to another CBL championship as a senior in 2018 and an appearance in the CIF-SS Division 3 championship. He was named the men's recipient of the Ken Hubbs Award, given annually the top high school athletes in the greater San Bernardino area, following the season.

He played 53 games at Cajon and set CIF-SS records with 210 touchdowns and over 17,600 total yards. Daniels also participated in hurdling and the 100 meters, 200 meters, 400 meters, and 4 × 100 meters relay sprints at the school. He participated in the 2018 Elite 11 quarterback skills competition, sitting out of the finals due to a practice injury, and passed for a game-winning touchdown in the 2019 Under Armour High School All-America Game. Daniels was ranked a four-star prospect and the top dual-threat quarterback of his class by college recruiting website 247Sports and received 25 college football scholarship offers before choosing the Sun Devils of Arizona State University (ASU) in December 2018. He graduated from Cajon and enrolled at ASU in January 2019.

College career

Arizona State (2019–2021)

Daniels (center) with the Arizona State Sun Devils playing against the Oregon Ducks in 2019

Daniels, named the starter for the 2019 season, was the first Sun Devils freshman quarterback to start opening week. He suffered a minor knee injury against the UCLA Bruins and missed the following game. Daniels earned player of the week honors after passing for 408 yards and three touchdowns in an upset win against the Oregon Ducks. He was named the most valuable player (MVP) of the 2019 Sun Bowl in a win over the Florida State Seminoles. Daniels set the Sun Devils' freshman total yards record and was named a semifinalist for the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) freshman of the year award.

For the 2020 season, Daniels and the Sun Devils played only four games due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He led the Pac-12 in completion percentage (65.4) the following season and the team to an appearance in the 2021 Las Vegas Bowl. Due to significant coaching staff turnover following the season, in which several had been fired following an NCAA investigation into the team for COVID-related recruiting violations, Daniels entered the transfer portal in February 2022. His mother Regina was later implicated in helping arrange unofficial visits for recruits by paying for flight tickets.

LSU (2022–2023)

Daniels won the Heisman Trophy with the LSU Tigers in 2023 after accounting for 50 touchdowns and nearly 5,000 total yards.

Daniels transferred to Louisiana State University to play for the LSU Tigers in March 2022, winning a competition over Garrett Nussmeier to be named the starter prior to the 2022 season opener. He led the Tigers to an appearance in the 2022 SEC Championship Game against the Georgia Bulldogs. Daniels, entering with a sprained ankle, left the game following a sack by Jalen Carter late in the second quarter. He returned for the 2023 Citrus Bowl, catching a touchdown pass from wide receiver Malik Nabers in a 63–7 win over the Purdue Boilermakers. Daniels was named a semifinalist for the Davey O'Brien Award and voted the team's most valuable player (MVP) after accounting for 28 touchdowns and nearly 3,800 total yards.

Daniels was named a team captain for the 2023 season. In a game against the Alabama Crimson Tide, he sustained a concussion from a hit by Dallas Turner. Daniels returned against the Florida Gators the following week, setting an SEC record with 606 total yards and becoming the first player in Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) history to have 350 yards passing and 200 yards rushing in a single game. He tied another SEC record a week later against the Georgia State Panthers with eight touchdowns. Daniels won the 2023 Heisman Trophy after scoring 50 touchdowns, leading the NCAA with nearly 5,000 total yards, and setting the single-season passer rating record. He was the third LSU player to win the Heisman behind Billy Cannon in 1959 and Joe Burrow in 2019. Daniels sat out of the 2024 ReliaQuest Bowl in January to prepare for the NFL draft. He played 55 career games in college, finishing top ten in FBS history with 16,000 total yards and the only with 12,000 passing yards and 3,000 rushing yards.

Statistics

Professional career

Washington Commanders

Daniels in his debut with the Washington Commanders in 2024. That season, he set the NFL record for most rushing yards and highest pass completion rate by a rookie quarterback.

Daniels was selected second overall by the Washington Commanders in the 2024 NFL draft. He was the second of six quarterbacks (QB) taken in the first round, tying the 1983 draft for the most in NFL history. In his rookie offseason, Daniels and former LSU teammate Malik Nabers received training from the league on its gambling policy for proposing a friendly $10,000 bet on who would be named Offensive Rookie of the Year. He acquired uniform number 5 in a deal with Tress Way, who had worn it with the team since 2014. He signed his four-year rookie contract, worth $37.75 million fully guaranteed, on June 14, 2024.

Daniels was named the Commanders' starting quarterback by the end of training camp. He scored two touchdowns in his debut, with his first NFL win occurring the following week. In September, he set the NFL rookie completion percentage record (91.3%) against the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday Night Football and was named Offensive Rookie of the Month after completing the highest percentage of passes (82.1) over a four-game span in NFL history. Daniels suffered a rib cartilage injury on the opening drive against the Carolina Panthers in October and sat out the remainder of the game. He returned the following week against the Chicago Bears, throwing a game-winning 52-yard Hail Mary pass as time expired to wide receiver Noah Brown on a play known as the Hail Maryland. Daniels was considered a potential winner of the NFL Most Valuable Player (MVP) award around midway through the season.

Daniels finished the regular season with the most rushing yards (891) and highest completion percentage (69%) by a rookie quarterback. He also had an NFL rookie-record 12 touchdown passes in the fourth quarter or overtime for the season, with five of them occurring in the final 30 seconds or overtime being the most by any player since 1970. Daniels also finished the season with the highest points per game (28.5) by a rookie quarterback, with the Commanders finishing fifth in the league in total scoring. He was selected to the 2025 Pro Bowl Games, becoming the fourth rookie quarterback since 1970 to make an initial Pro Bowl roster. The Commanders finished with a regular season record of 12–5, their best since 1991, with the team defeating the Buccaneers and Detroit Lions in the 2024–25 NFL playoffs en route to the NFC Championship Game. His rookie season has been regarded as the greatest in NFL history.

Statistics

Highlights and awards

Daniels is the only college football player to pass for 350 yards and rush for 200 in the same game, doing so against the Florida Gators in 2023.

College

Awards

• Heisman Trophy (2023)
• Walter Camp Award (2023)
• AP College Football Player of the Year (2023)
• Sporting News College Football Player of the Year (2023)
• Davey O'Brien Award (2023)
• Manning Award (2023)
• Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award (2023)
• Consensus All-American (2023)
• SEC Male Athlete of the Year (2024)
• SEC Offensive Player of the Year (2023)
• Best College Athlete, Men's Sports (2024 ESPYs)
• First-team All-SEC (2023)
• 2022 LSU Tigers MVP
• 2019 Sun Bowl MVP
• 7× SEC Offensive Player of the Week
• 2× Pac-12 Offensive Player of the Week

Records

• FBS single-season passer rating record: 208.0 (2023)
• Only player in FBS history with 12,000 passing yards and 3,000 rushing
• SEC single-game touchdowns: 8; tied with Joe Burrow (2023)
• SEC single-game total yards: 606 (2023)
• LSU career quarterback rushing yards: 2,019
• LSU single-season total yards: 4,946 (2023)
• LSU single-season quarterback rushing yards: 1,134 (2023)
• LSU single-season quarterback rushing touchdowns: 11 (2022)
• Only player in FBS history with 350 yards passing and 200 yards rushing in a game
• Arizona State freshman passing yards: 2,943 (2019)

NFL

Awards

• Pro Bowl (2024)
• NFC Offensive Player of the Week (2024: Week 3)
• PWFA Rookie of the Year (2024)
• Offensive Rookie of the Month (September 2024)
• 11× Rookie of the Week

Rookie records

• Quarterback rushing yards in a season: 891
• Completion percentage in a season: 69%
• Single-game completion percentage: 91.3%
• Commanders rookie total yards: 4,459
• Commanders rookie passing yards: 3,568

Player profile

Daniels is considered a dual-threat quarterback for his vision and accuracy as a passer and his speed and ability to evade defenders as a runner, with his style of play compared to Lamar Jackson and Randall Cunningham. His calm demeanor and composure, particularly in late-game situations, are also regarded as strengths. His physique is described as "slender" and "lanky" at 6 feet 4 inches (1.93 metres) tall and weighing around 210 pounds (95 kilograms). Daniels cited Kobe Bryant, Michael Vick, Donovan McNabb, and Reggie Bush as inspirations growing up, choosing 5 as his uniform number after McNabb and Bush. He uses virtual reality (VR) as part of his training, using software designed by German company Cognilize that incorporates custom game plans and allows for speed adjustments and opposing players, teams, and their stadiums to be represented. He began the practice at LSU in 2023 and continued to use the technology in the NFL. Daniels warms up before games with a basketball; he learned the routine from childhood friend C. J. Stroud and cites it as helpful preparation as footballs feel smaller and lighter afterwards.

Personal life

Daniels' mother Regina Jackson in 2024

Daniels was born to Javon "Jay" Daniels, a college football cornerback in the late 1990s for the Washington Huskies and Iowa State Cyclones, and Regina Jackson. Jackson became an NFLPA certified agent in 2024. He has an older sister named Bianca. Daniels' paternal grandparents died within a month of each other from COVID-19 in early 2021. He is a Christian.

Daniels earned an undergraduate degree from Arizona State in December 2021 and pursued a Master of Liberal Arts degree at LSU. In college, he signed name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals with Raising Cane's, Powerade, Beats by Dre, and Urban Outfitters. Daniels was featured on The Money Game: LSU, a six-part NIL-focused docuseries by Prime Video that followed him, Angel Reese, Flau'jae Johnson, Livvy Dunne, and Alia Armstrong through LSU's 2023–24 sports season.

In 2024, San Bernardino mayor Helen Tran presented him with the key to the city and declared January 20 "Jayden Daniels Day", with Cajon High School additionally renaming their football stadium after him. Daniels threw the ceremonial first pitch at a Washington Nationals baseball game in June 2024 and presented the Best Play Award to Lamar Jackson alongside Livvy Dunne and Lil Wayne at the 2024 ESPYs the following month.