As one of the premier quarterbacks of the 2024 NFL Draft class, Jayden Daniels is happily settled in with the Washington Commanders. But there was a time when he was still a doe-eyed prospect, trying to win over bad teams who were potentially seeking out their signal-caller of the future.
We saw this in the latest episode of Hard Knocks: Offseason with the New York Giants. It captures the moment the Giants may have decided they didn’t want Daniels — if he fell to them at No. 6 overall — during an interview at the 2024 NFL Scouting Combine.
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The sequence features New York head coach Brian Daboll grilling Daniels about a complicated play as the quarterback draws it on a whiteboard. Daniels doesn’t properly recite the play back to Daboll, forgets the pass protection, and seemingly only salvages the moment when he says he’d throw a touchdown against Cover 1 defensive coverage.
I might be in the minority, but I think it’s a little tasteless that a job interview like this is broadcasted on national television:
Brian Daboll put Jayden Daniels to the test at the Combine.
New episode of #HardKnocks Offseason with the @Giants premieres tonight at 9pm ET on @StreamOnMax. #Giants100 pic.twitter.com/DMtyT8xVZV
— NFL (@NFL) July 9, 2024
None of this is to say that what Daniels was trying to do is easy.
I’d venture to guess that most Americans couldn’t pass this kind of test on the fly. Still, for Daniels’s line of work, having an encyclopedic, photographic knowledge of your team’s playbook is a prerequisite to success. It’s not optional.
Furthermore, I’m sure the Giants gave Daniels some grace here. I find it hard to imagine many rookie quarterbacks would’ve thrived in this kind of situation. The schematic adjustment is arguably the most challenging transition for young passers to make from college. And New York knows that, too.
But, in my opinion, airing out a moment where Daniels doesn’t exactly pass with flying colors as he fights for his dream is pretty inappropriate.
