Kyle Shanahan isn’t approaching Jayden Daniels like a quarterback on shaky ground.
That matters, because the Washington Commanders enter Monday Night Football carrying the label of a dangerous underdog, especially with a bye week sitting right after this game. Plenty of people have spent the last week piling on Daniels after Washington’s overtime mistake in Week 5. Shanahan, though, sees the bigger picture, and he’s giving the Commanders the kind of respect a quarterback like Daniels demands.
Daniels looked sharp in his return against the New York Giants, even if it took a little time for the timing with his receivers to settle in. Once he found his rhythm, the Giants had no answer.
The biggest takeaway was his movement. There were real questions about how limited he might look while wearing a brace on his dislocated elbow, but he didn’t appear bothered by it and never seemed to be thinking about it.
That is a huge development for Washington. If Daniels keeps moving like that, the Commanders become a much tougher team to deal with. And they’ll need every bit of that, because San Francisco is the harshest test they’ve faced so far.
The 49ers are 5-0, they have the look of a legitimate Super Bowl contender, and they are heavily favored to extend that run to six straight wins. But Shanahan isn’t talking like a coach expecting a walkover. He’s talking like someone who knows Daniels can flip a game on its head.
“Jayden's got a chance to be one of the better quarterbacks in this league, without a doubt. You take away the running element of him, just the way he plays in the pocket.
So natural with how accurate he is. How strong his arm is.
How poised he is going through progression. How fearless he is hanging in there and taking a hit.
“He's got the speed and the coordination to win games only with his legs. He's got all the tools to be as good as there is.”
That’s not empty praise. Shanahan is one of the league’s top offensive minds, and his teams are usually buttoned-up no matter how many injuries he has to juggle. When he speaks that highly about Daniels, it carries weight.
And for Washington, it also reinforces the idea that one rough moment doesn’t erase what Daniels brings to the table. Around the league, the view of him hasn’t changed much: he’s still the same problem for defenses, the same playmaker who can drag a team back into a fight.
The Commanders know they’ll need him at his very best to have any chance against San Francisco. They’re facing a formidable opponent, but being overlooked can sometimes loosen a team up. With no real expectations hanging over them, Washington may get to play with a little more freedom.
In Other News...
Jayden Daniels Faces A Huge Monday Night Test Washington Needed
Jayden Daniels is back in the lineup just in time for one of the toughest assignments on Washingtons schedule, a Monday night trip to face the undefeated 49ers at Levis Stadium. The matchup has San Francisco favored by 7.5 points, and plenty of analysts are leaning toward the home team, but Washington is still expected to make things interesting if Daniels can help steady an offense that has needed him back.
The Commanders are carrying some injury concerns into the game, which only adds to the challenge of keeping pace with a 49ers team that has looked complete on both sides of the ball. Still, there is some positive momentum around Washingtons preparation, and one offensive situation in particular could matter a lot in how this night unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
Commanders Face One Huge Offensive Question Before 49ers Showdown
The buildup to Sundays Commanders-49ers matchup has been shaped as much by the injury report as by the standings, with both teams carrying a long list of absences into Week 6. Washington already knows it will be without Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Marcus Mariota, Charles Omenihu and Javontae Jean-Baptiste, while San Francisco has its own heavy hits to absorb with Nick Bosa and Deebo Samuel ruled out and other players still in question.
For Washington, the biggest offensive swing may come down to Stefon Diggs, who is questionable with a hamstring injury after practicing on a limited basis. His status looms large for a Commanders offense that could use every available playmaker against a 49ers defense missing Bosa, even as San Francisco waits on a few more late-week decisions of its own. [Read more 🡒]
Giants Sit Atop An NFC East Mess That Just Got Worse
The NFC East has spent the last stretch looking less like a race and more like a weekly inventory of missed chances, and Washington is in the thick of it again. The Cowboys loss to the Packers added to the divisions recent slide, while the Commanders head into their matchup with the 49ers as underdogs, with the Giants sitting atop a messy standings picture that could still shift fast.
Washingtons next result carries more weight than just one game, because the divisions latest stumble has left every outcome tied to the larger scramble around it. A win would tighten things up and give the Commanders a path to climb, but another loss would only deepen the pileup at the bottom of the NFC East and keep the Giants in the safest spot for the moment. [Read more 🡒]