Full disclosure: We won’t have boots on the ground in Ashburn, VA, for Wednesday’s OTA, so we’ll rely on Commanders beat reporters like Nicki Jhabvala, John Keim, JP Finlay, Zach Selby and Ben Standig to be our eyes, ears and question askers. Follow those respected reporters if you don’t already.
Jayden Daniels spent his first two NFL seasons working under offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury. He’s learning a whole new scheme this offseason, with David Blough taking over as Washington’s offensive play caller and designer.
The third-year quarterback and former No. 2 overall NFL draft pick will be asked to do some different things in this scheme, including increased work under center, making this offseason program even more important than it normally is.
Daniels understands the assignment and has enjoyed watching Blough working in his new role.
“It’s fun,” Daniels said during a press conference following Wednesday’s OTA session. “It has been great to see his offensive mind, his creative mind just flowing. We’re building this thing together.”
Daniels went into further detail about his working relationship with Blough, who was previously his assistant quarterbacks coach.
“It’s a collaborative thing,” Daniels said. “That’s not just with me, it’s the whole quarterback room and everybody on the offensive staff – we all have ideas and Blough has an open-door policy.”
Daniels isn’t worried about additional time under-center and in the huddle as Blough builds an offense with some philosophies shared with what Ben Johnson is running in Chicago.
That system is heavily predicated on playaction, zone runs and attacking the middle of the field and big plays on the outside.
While there’s new terminology, new concepts and new offensive concepts, Daniels seems to be picking things up fast.
“I always notice and admire him, just the work ethic, the coming back to get it right,” head coach Dan Quinn said in his pre-practice press conference. “His mental quickness is always something that just jumps out to me, of like learning a system so quickly and fast. And so, I think I saw that a few years ago and I’m feeling those same instincts now as you guys will see at practice, you know, more huddle and it’ll look different.
“You’ll see him under center more, but you see the same intent, you see the same communication. And I think it’s the mental quickness that just makes things that are difficult look easy. And I know they’re not, you know, with some play calls and how he goes about it, but that’s one of the things I really respect.”
Quinn is looking for balance between the run and pass, efficiently on early downs and a significant increase in explosive plays. All those things would be welcome after last season’s offensive struggles.
Daniels can execute all those initiatives when, of course, he’s healthy. That wasn’t the case last season, when he dealt with a series of injuries and setbacks. Health has returned and must be sustained for the long haul if the Commanders are to find solid form.
Daniels is focused on learning this new system during this offseason program and is optimistic that he’ll be able to execute it well once it’s mastered. Blough is a first-time play caller, but the star quarterback believes Washington can thrive in this system.
”I’m just excited to see Blough in action for the first time and be able to see how he calls plays and his rhythm and his cadence of things,” Daniels said.
“…I love the offense. I love what Blough’s doing and what he’s creating and designing different things. For me personally, it’s about how I can get better as a football player.”
