Football for the Washington Commanders is genuinely in a new age. Dan Quinn has taken over as head coach in lieu of Ron Rivera. Quinn is a defensive-minded head coach, but he has some new offensive weapons that should assist lead to a more prosperous run than his predecessors.
Running back Austin Ekeler and quarterback Jayden Daniels are two of these weapons. Ekeler played his first seven years of his career with the Los Angeles Chargers before being signed as a free agent. Naturally, Daniels was selected by Washington with the second overall choice in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft.
Daniels enters a division brimming with talented quarterbacks. The Philadelphia Eagles have Jalen Hurts, and the Dallas Cowboys have Dak Prescott (for the time being). The team’s biggest concern for the next season is how rookie NFL player Daniels will compare to those two MVP front-runners.
When Ekeler was a guest on the NFL Network yesterday, they asked him about Daniels. He seems unconcerned with the rookie quarterback’s performance in comparison to the division’s incredibly skilled arms.
Ekeler remarked, “He’s an absolute stud out there slinging it.” “I adore the leadership he shown right away. He calls me out in practice, saying things like, “Hey, Ek, this is what we need to do on this,” or “What did you see on this choice route?” He texts me about routes.
In the following weeks since we first met, Ekeler said, “He’s been bringing out all of the great qualities that I love to see from a quarterback. I’m excited for his development, and as you pointed out, we brought in a number of veterans to help establish the culture.
Playing with talented quarterbacks is nothing new for the running back for the Commanders. He has started every game of his career with the Chargers, starting as quarterback for either Justin Herbert or Philip Rivers.
Ekeler was questioned about his efforts to alter Washington’s culture, as well as those of the current Commanders players. He said in response, “We have a lot of new pieces and parts, so I’m thinking about how we can become the best team possible while we’re just together with each other.”
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“I don’t care about what happened last year,” he said. In this league, it is the only way we are evaluated—based solely on your recent actions against me. That was, however, in the past. We now have a fresh chance to advance as a group.
It appears like Washington is now receiving the changes that they have long been in need of.