Jayden Daniels of the Washington Commanders was the runaway winner of the 2024 Offensive Rookie of the Year Award after he completed arguably the best debut season in league history en route to guiding his club to the NFC Championship Game.
For a piece published Friday, three of 13 ESPN NFL analysts polled named Daniels as their early pick to claim MVP honors for the 2025 season.
“He was recognized as the Offensive Rookie of the Year and finished seventh in MVP voting (for this season),” Eric Moody explained. “The Commanders have roughly $59M in cap space, per Roster Management System, along with seven draft picks, so they can continue to build around him.”
Specifically, the Commanders have routinely been linked in stories with Cleveland Browns wantaway All-Pro pass-rusher Myles Garrett. In Friday’s article, Matt Bowen and Jason Reid predicted that Washington will sign Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Tee Higgins assuming Higgins reaches free agency. Seth Walder thinks the Commanders will target New York Jets cornerback D.J. Reed by the time the new league year opens on March 12.
According to Pro Football Reference, Daniels ended his first NFL regular season ranked fourth in the league among qualified players with a 70.6 adjusted QBR. Per the StatMuse website, he was seventh with 4,459 combined passing and rushing yards. He was also ninth with a combined 31 passing and rushing touchdowns.
“With a season of experience, including a postseason upset of the top-seeded Lions, the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year will continue his meteoric rise. The key in his ability to do so? The Commanders’ retention of offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury, providing Daniels the continuity to grow at a rapid pace,” Lindsey Thiry added.
As of Friday afternoon, DraftKings Sportsbook listed Daniels fifth among the betting favorites at +1000 odds to win the regular-season MVP Award for the 2025 campaign. To compare, Super Bowl LIX MVP Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles was sixth on the list at +1600 odds.
Recent history shows quarterbacks who enjoy excellent rookie seasons can and often do experience expected sophomore slumps. How Daniels spends his first NFL offseason as a full-time QB1 could determine if he avoids having somewhat of a disappointing follow-up campaign.
