Jayden Daniels’ dynamic regular season is over. The Washington Commanders’ rookie quarterback was pulled in the second half of Sunday’s game against the Dallas Cowboys in what team officials called a “coach’s decision.”
Daniels finished Sunday’s game with six completions on 12 attempts with 38 passing yards. He added another 27 yards as a rusher.
With a playoff berth already in hand, Commanders coach Dan Quinn likely decided to protect his quarterback for a postseason run.
Daniels, the No. 2 pick in this year’s draft, is widely considered a shoo-in for the NFL’s Rookie of the Year award. He threw for 3,568 yards with 33 total touchdowns and nine interceptions, leading an efficient Commanders’ offense to its best record since the 1990s. He also set an NFL rookie quarterback record with 864 rushing yards.
Back-up quarterback Marcus Mariota relieved Daniels in Sunday’s game, tossing a touchdown pass to tight end Zach Ertz in his first drive of the day.
Daniels and the Commanders will face the Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Rams or Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the first round of the playoffs, depending on the results of Sunday’s games.
• Liam Griffin can be reached at lgriffin@washingtontimes.com.
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