Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels’ lack of discernment in the last two games certainly raises questions.
Daniels attempted to run the ball with no timeouts remaining for the Commanders against the Giants. As a result, he was tackled, and the clock kept running, preventing the Commanders from attempting the game-winning field goal.
Monday, against the 49ers, Daniels drifted to his right on a fourth-and-2 and nonchalantly threw the ball out of bounds. What made it worse was the replay showing Washington receiver Antonio Williams wide open in the middle of the field.
Both were plays that an NFL quarterback simply doesn’t make. High school quarterbacks are grilled repeatedly to understand these situations. It was shocking to watch Daniels
show such poor judgment on both plays.
But this is not the first time Daniels has been in tight situations in the NFL. In his rookie 2024 season, the Commanders won five games on their last possession. Close games and tight situations- time remaining, down, and yardage- were constantly at the forefront. Yet, Daniels in that rookie season showed nothing close to what he has done in the last two weeks of this 2026 season, Daniels’ third in the league.
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Former offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury was the bad guy. He wasn’t good for Daniels’ future. The Commanders needed to make a move following a 5-12 2025 season, and Kingsbury was made the fall guy. Kingsbury was fired shortly after the 2025 season finale. The Commanders said they needed to go in a different direction and have Daniels under center more. Daniels needed to run much less and be under center to make the play-action fakes more effective.
All those close games in 2024, and yet Daniels pulled nothing- no plays whatsoever like he has the last two weeks? So what kind of coaching was Kingsbury giving Daniels week to week? What kind of teaching was going on under Kingsbury's direction?
Whatever it was, the Commanders’ offensive coaches should learn from it, because it seems Kingsbury had Daniels much more prepared for critical situations.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Here's where Jayden Daniels and Commanders miss Kliff Kingsbury
