Washington Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels continues to grow up in front of our eyes. Daniels put on another impressive performance to lead the Commanders to a road victory over the Arizona Cardinals. His precise passing on a critical possession sealed Washington’s third straight win.
The Commanders had controlled much of the game. However, a third-quarter touchdown by Cardinals running back James Connor inched the momentum toward the home team. Washington’s led was cut to 27-14 late in the third quarter.
Needing a score to halt any momentum building for Arizona, Daniels put on a clinic on the ensuing possession. The Commanders marched 70 yards down the field on 12 plays to seal the game with a touchdown. Washington overcame three huge penalties on the drive.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Jayden Daniels lasered a pass through several Cardinals defenders for a Terry McLaurin sliding catch. Three plays later, Daniels zipped the ball to receiver Olamide Zaccheaus for a 14-yard gain.
An overzealous Zaccheaus drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for taunting. The Commanders got the first down but backed up 15 yards. Daniels kept chucking away with back-to-back completions to running back Brian Robinson and then again to Zaccheaus to get another first down.
A holding penalty on right guard Sam Cosmi backed up Washington another ten yards, creating a 1st-and-20 from Arizona’s 31-yard line. Again, Daniels erased the yardage hole two plays later, finding rookie wideout Luke McCaffrey for a 17-yard pickup and first down following a Robinson five-yard rush.
The Commanders picked up a third penalty on the drive for too many men in the huddle. A screen to Robinson got them back to the ten. However, on third-and-goal, Daniels dropped back to hit a crossing McLaurin at the back of the end zone after the wide receiver got a step on cornerback Sterling Thomas for a ten-yard touchdown pass.
Jayden Daniels was a perfect 7-of-7 for 73 yards on the drive. That didn’t include his two-point conversion in which he threw another dart on the money to tight end Zach Ertz. The touchdown and two-point conversion extended Washington’s lead to 35-14.
Cardinals’ fans headed for the exit right afterward.
The drive ate up over six minutes of game time. With Arizona getting the ball back with 8:30 remaining in the game, victory was all but official for the Commanders.
The Commanders’ defense forced a fumble on the ensuing drive as linebacker Frankie Luvu punched the football ball out of the hands of Cardinals wide receiver Michael Wilson.
Washington’s reserve running back Jeremy McNichols added icing on the cake with a 15-yard touchdown.
The 42-14 final score added to Daniels’ impressive resume through four games. While it doesn’t count as a game-winning drive, sealing the deal with a perfect scoring drive was just as remarkable.
Washington has only punted once in the past three games. While Daniels finally threw the first interception of his career in the second quarter, the rookie bounced back to steer the ship back on track.
Daniels finished the game 26-of-30 passing for 233 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. He also added 47 rushing yards and a touchdown on the ground.
