• The dual-threat quarterback a coach dreams of: Daniels fits the mold of a modern-day quarterback who can take any run to the house while also delivering accurate passes all over the field.
• A propensity for taking sacks: Daniels currently runs very tall, which leads to him taking some big hits. He’ll need to learn to protect himself better at the next level.
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PFF Grades and Stats
- 94.7 PFF overall grade
- 8.4% big-time throw rate
- 1.6% turnover-worthy play rate
- 79.6% adjusted completion rate
- 20.2% pressure-to-sack rate
- 94.0 PFF clean-pocket grade
- 82.2 PFF pressured grade
Background
Jayden Daniels, 23, is a 6-foot-4, 210-pound quarterback out of LSU. Daniels started his career at Arizona State before transferring to LSU after three seasons. He won the Heisman Trophy in his second season with the Tigers after totaling nearly 5,000 combined passing and rushing yards.
Strengths
Daniels is an elite athlete. He can take any run to the house, which is part of what makes him such an intriguing prospect. His effortless speed and burst are just natural. He truly looks like he’s gliding around the field when he takes off to run. That ability elevates the floor of a quarterback, adding an aspect the defense has to constantly account for.
6'4 just gliding vertically and horizontally pic.twitter.com/a5ax4CiJD4
— Ted Nguyen (@FB_FilmAnalysis) February 23, 2024
Daniels is not just a fantastic athlete in terms of running the ball, but he also can make any throw, especially the deep ball. In his last season at LSU, Daniels earned a 99.2 passing grade and recorded a 69.1% adjusted completion percentage on 20-plus-yard throws. Those were both the highest marks in the FBS, and they didn't come on a small sample size, either. He completed the fifth-most deep throws in the FBS. He has a tremendous feel for what each throw needs.
Jayden Daniel’s 2023 tape showed dramatic improvement attacking defenses downfield.
His overall feel, accuracy, ball location and pocket mechanics got much better.
He also has every “club” in the bag. A lot to love 👇🏼 https://t.co/KgM7L6ZvHR pic.twitter.com/AmDxcuNJuV
— Brett Whitefield (@BGWhitefield) February 19, 2024
Daniels didn’t live in the all-too-familiar world of RPOs and deep shots that a lot of college quarterbacks thrive in. LSU put a lot on his plate in terms of pre- and post-snap processing, and he delivered. There are plenty of examples of him identifying blitzes and then setting up protections correctly, just as there are plenty of examples of him working through full-field progressions. He doesn’t simply look for one read and run; he has a willingness to stay in the pocket and read the entire play out before taking off.
Full field progression by Jayden Daniels. This is the good stuff. pic.twitter.com/iKAAT5uMgz
— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) February 23, 2024
Weaknesses
Daniels' frame and reckless nature with his body are huge concerns. He takes far too many massive hits for someone his size. He currently runs very tall, which leads to some of those big shots. He’ll need to learn to protect himself better at the next level. There are examples of him sliding and running out of bounds, but there are also too many instances of him trying to do it all and getting punished as a result.
Jayden Daniels taking comically huge hits, a thread: pic.twitter.com/RHMPKLQ94w
— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) February 23, 2024
Daniels takes too many sacks and struggles to play with consistent anticipation in the passing game. He tends to be very cautious with his throws and decisions, resulting in him holding the ball and taking sacks. There are examples of him playing with great anticipation, but it isn’t consistent enough. Too often he waits for receivers to be open instead of anticipating it.
His pressure-to-sack ratio at LSU was 30.8% in 2022 and then 20.2% in 2023. While it is encouraging that he improved on that number in 2023, it’s still worrisome. Pressure-to-sack ratio is a very predictive stat, one that many quarterbacks struggle to escape from when entering the NFL.
Summary
Jayden Daniels is a game-changing type of athlete on the run and in the pocket. It’s the combination one dreams about when building an ideal quarterback in this generation.
He can break any run for a touchdown and is also able to stay in the pocket and drop dimes all over the field. While his running ability elevates his floor, his smaller frame and reckless nature in the running game put him in unnecessary danger, leading to big hits that could force him off the field. Pair that with a lack of consistent anticipation causing him to take far too many sacks, and you have a reason for concern.
The high-end tools are there, and Daniels has shown the ability to play with anticipation; he just needs to be more consistent with it to elevate himself into a franchise NFL quarterback.
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