Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels picked up an admirer after Thursday’s joint practice with the Jets.
It was the first time that Daniels has faced an opposing NFL defense in any setting and reports from the session said that there were highs and lows for the rookie in rainy conditions in New Jersey. Some of the lows could be attributed to the new circumstances and the highs left Jets cornerback Sauce Gardner with a complimentary assessment of where the first-round pick is headed.
“I just told him like, ‘Man, you’re gonna be real good,’ Gardner said, via the Commanders website. “It was great to just be able to line up against him. As a corner, you wanna go against a rookie quarterback, but he’s one of those guys like he’s developed obviously . . . but he had some great throws out there.”
Daniels will get another chance to work against the Jets defense in Saturday’s preseason game and seeing some more of those good moments will help build optimism for the regular season in Washington.