He just missed returning to the state of his salad days at LSU as his Washington Commanders lost an opportunity to play in Super Bowl LIX Sunday night in New Orleans by losing the NFC Championship Game to Philadelphia two weeks ago.
But dual-action hero quarterback Jayden Daniels still had a rookie year for the ages.
Daniels, who won the Heisman Trophy at LSU in the 2023 season after transferring from Arizona State following the 2021 season, shredded the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year balloting with 49 of 50 possible first place votes.
“I just think my coaching staff and the whole organization making it as comfortable for me to just allow me to be myself,” Daniels said after accepting the trophy during the NFL Honors ceremony at the Saenger Theatre in New Orleans Thursday night.
Greatness at every level.
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) February 7, 2025
THAT KID JAYDEN IS THE NFL OFFENSIVE ROOKIE OF THE YEAR 🏆 @LSUfootball pic.twitter.com/NtTKsLbgB8
“Crazy, crazy,” Daniels said. “First and foremost, I want to thank God for allowing me to be in this presence of greatness and being on this stage. I want to thank my mom (Regina Jackson), who’s in the stands tonight. I want to thank my family back home. Washington Commanders – thank you for changing my life and drafting me.”
Daniels changed the life of the Commanders, who had been a long suffering franchise, by being the main reason Washington went 12-5 in the 2024 regular season after a 4-13 finish in 2023. It was Washington’s most wins since 1991 and first winning season 2016. Daniels also led the Commanders to their first playoff win since 2005 with a 23-20 victory at Tampa Bay in the Wild Card round and first NFC title game since 1991 after upsetting the heavily favored Detroit Lions, 45-31.
The Fontana, California, native finished the regular season with the most rushing yards (891) and highest completion percentage (69 percent) by an NFL rookie quarterback in history. He was also the first NFL rookie quarterback to throw 12 touchdowns in the fourth quarter or overtime periods of the postseason in history, including five in the final 30 seconds of a fourth quarter or overtime.
Daniels’ 822 passing yards, five TD passes and 135 rushing yards were the most by a rookie quarterback in NFL history in the playoffs. And his 14 total wins tied former Pittsburgh quarterback Ben Roethlisberger for most victories in a season by a rookie starting quarterback.
The No. 2 pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, Daniels threw for 3,568 yards and 25 touchdowns with a 100.1 passer rating in the regular season.
JOE BURROW WINS 2ND COMEBACK PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Former LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, meanwhile, won the NFL Comeback Player of the Year after leading the league in passing yards with 4,918 and in touchdowns with 43 for Cincinnati. Burrow, who led LSU to the national championship in the 2019 season and won the Heisman Trophy that year, came back in 2024 from a wrist injury and surgery and other injuries in 2023 that caused him to miss seven games. He played all 17 games in 2024 and received 31 first-place votes.
It was Burrow’s second Comeback Player of the Year award as he also won it in 2021 after injuring his knee in the 2020 season. Without that injury in week 11, he likely would have won the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award that season.
Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen won the NFL Most Valuable Player award. Philadelphia running back Saquon Barkley won the Offensive Player of the Year award. Denver cornerback Patrick Surtain II won the Defensive Player of the Year, and Los Angeles Rams edge rusher Jared Verse of Florida State won Defensive Rookie of the Year.
Former LSU wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase of the Cincinnati Bengals won the FedEx Air and Ground Player of the Year award after leading the NFL in catches with 127, receiving yards with 1,708 yards and touchdowns with 17.
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