ARLINGTON, TX. — We’ve seen enough Jayden Daniels commercials to know he isn’t a natural thespian.
The smile is warm, and the Washington Commanders’ star comes across as likable whether pitching soup or laundry detergent. Unlike his creative passes or exciting runs, his line reads are a bit wooden.
That hardly makes him unique among athletes-turned-pitchmen. Daniels is there for his popularity and sway among fans – plus a fat paycheck – not because his acting might lead to a Clio Award.
These ads help, however, when assessing Daniels’ primary interactions on the mic for his day job. Whether hanging at the Heisman House or hawking an energy drink, the third-year pro is trying to perform. Daniels chats weekly with local reporters without that same sense of playing a part.
A natural introvert, he rarely expressed himself beyond required sound bites during his first two seasons, even when teed up for a potentially emotional or intricate response. However, his directness has notably increased entering his third season, even if there’s no sense he took classes this offseason at the Actors Studio.
Daniels might act blasé when asked about an athletic exploit or praise from a famous face. That’s what made recent comments about the gratitude he felt after returning to regular-season action last week for the first time since Dec. 7 feel so authentic, even in his usual low-key tone.
“It’s a blessing,” Daniels said last week. “As I said, I don’t take (playing) for granted.”
He missed 10 games last season due to three separate injuries. Facing Philadelphia in Week 1 was Daniels’ first regular-season action since a season-ending re-injury of his dislocated left elbow in Week 14 last year at Minnesota. It was also the first game he started and finished since an Oct. 13 home loss to the Bears.
Forget whether his emoting is enough to stop a Hollywood casting director in their tracks. Daniels opening up, even a little, is character development.
“When you have something for so long, you kind of start taking it for granted,” Daniels said last week. “Obviously, that happened to me last year. I got football taken away from me. So, now, just humbled and grateful just to be able to play this game I love.”
That’s what made what happened Sunday in Dallas feel particularly cruel.
The Commanders losing 37-20 to the Cowboys and opening a regular season with an 0-2 record for the first time since 2019 is challenging enough.
Another game in what’s become a one-sided rivalry where Dallas QB Dak Prescott lit up the scoreboard with four touchdown passes — two to receiver CeeDee Lamb in a dominant performance — is an unwanted case of history repeating itself.
But losing the franchise-altering quarterback to another dislocated left elbow, one likely to sideline him for multiple weeks, poured an entire bag of salt into Washington’s latest open wound.
Daniels will miss Sunday’s home game against Seattle Seahawks, and coach Dan Quinn said he does not expect to have another update until later this week.
“It sucks, and you can’t even really put it into words,” said Marcus Mariota, who returned to a familiar role of replacing Daniels at quarterback. “You watch that kid battle through all that he’s been through last year, and it’s just very, very unfortunate.”
Trailing 17-10 with three seconds remaining in the first half, Washington held the momentum after withstanding an early 14-point Dallas lead.
Daniels, after throwing two touchdown passes in the fourth quarter of the 24-22 road loss at Philadelphia, had the offense humming in Dallas. He finished the half having completed 11 of 17 passes for 96 yards, including a 3-yard touchdown to Stefon Diggs.
After a quiet showing with his legs against the Eagles, Daniels was assertive and smart on his six carries for 69 yards on Sunday, sliding at the end of those runs rather than taking on contact.
Quinn confirmed the dislocation after the game and said X-rays showed no fracture.
“I was just disheartened for him,” Quinn said of his young quarterback. “I know what he’s gone through. He’s in good spirits tonight. Knowing that, we all wanted to play so well for him. To see him in that spot, it stung for the guys.”
Mariota led a 31-yard drive to open the second half, culminating in the second of two field goals by rookie kicker Drew Stevens. After Dallas matched those three points on its next possession, the first of four consecutive Cowboys drives ending with points, the Commanders couldn’t hold up much longer.
Subsequent injuries to left tackle Brandon Coleman (finger), defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw (shoulder), and right guard Sam Cosmi (concussion protocol) followed.
Diggs’ second touchdown, a 20-yarder from Mariota, pulled Washington closer at 30-20 with 9:03 remaining, only for Lamb to cap his 153-yard, eight-reception performance with a 24-yard touchdown with 3:07 left.
“Put it on the defense,” cornerback Amik Robertson said. “Not even the defense. The secondary. We got to be better. That’s as simple as that, because most of the shit that they got, we gave it to them, bro. And I get tired of saying the same thing. But we got to look in the mirror and have an understanding of who we want to be when we go out there.”
Cosmi went down soon after. By then, seeing the clock hit zero qualified as relief. No more damage could be done on this day.
The run defense held Dallas’s backs to 40 yards on 17 carries. Diggs is up to three touchdowns in two games. White had 83 scrimmage yards on 13 touches, including six receptions on six targets. The Cowboys did not register a sack — all encouraging notes. None felt particularly significant after the team’s most significant player went down with another significant injury.
“Adversity is not new to this team, it’s not new to this organization, not new to myself,” McLaurin said. “ … I don’t really try to get bogged down in the current situation, ride the highs and the lows. We have a long season. I know we’re gonna bounce back.
“We’re gonna support (Jayden). … We gotta find a way to get in the win column. This one hurts because we lost our brother. It hurts because we lost. It hurts because we’re 0-2, but the season’s not over.”
McLaurin is right. 15 games remain.
But after Daniels spent months working his way back, talked openly about appreciating the game differently because football had been taken away from him and then had it taken away again two weeks into the season, the sense of doom felt all too familiar.
Ben Standig is the founder and publisher of Last Man Standig, where he covers the Washington Commanders and NBA’s Washington Wizards. He has covered the Commanders full-time since 2015, with previous work appearing in The Athletic, the Associated Press, USA Today, NBC Sports Washington and other national and regional outlets.