Jayden Daniels heads into the 2025 season coming off an incredible rookie campaign. In his first season, Daniels led the Washington Commanders to the NFC championship game for the first time in decades, excelled in the clutch by throwing multiple game-winning touchdown passes, and set the rookie quarterback rushing yards record. He proved unfazed by the moment, whether it was throwing a Hail Mary to defeat the Chicago Bears or taking down the No. 1 seeded Detroit Lions in the postseason.
Daniels proved he can succeed in the NFL, but also set a high bar for himself going forward. Daniels isn't just expected to replicate what he accomplished his rookie season, but to build off that near unprecedented success for a rookie. That can be challenging, especially when a number of great rookies deal with a sophomore slump after their first NFL season.
The positive for Daniels is he doesn't appear to get affected by outside pressure easily. On top of this, Daniels is working to combat facing a slump in his second year in the pros, including by eliminating some of his bad tendencies as a quarterback.
“I’m sitting down and watching film and trying to eliminate some tendencies, as much as possible,” Daniels told Yahoo Sports's Jori Epstein. “Talking to the coaching staff on areas that they feel like I need to improve on and having conversations so we can all hit at full speed.”
Fortunately for Daniels, he seems to be surrounded by a strong coaching staff on the Commanders that were key to helping him thrive as a rookie. Ahead of his rookie season, the Commanders helped him become elite at reading and processing defenses by using virtual reality technology. Now, Washington can turn the focus to getting rid of his tendencies and addressing any other key areas he can improve, which should only make him harder to defend.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Jayden Daniels Shares Strategy to Avoid Sophomore Slump After Incredible Rookie Season.
