We’ve heard a bit of debate this week, especially today, about the Commanders’ No. 2 draft pick, and whether or not Jayden Daniels or Drake Maye is the right choice for Washington assuming Caleb Williams goes No.
1.
Dane Brugler from The Athletic joined Grant & Danny Tuesday and gave his very in-depth thoughts on Daniels vs. Maye overall, reminding everyone that ‘mock drafts are about possibilities, not certainties’ – and if the Bears, or whoever ends up at No. 1, sees Daniels or Maye as the top QB for them, it could all be moot.
But assume Williams does go No. 1, as he has Williams-Maye-Daniels as 1-3 on his QB board…is Grant still justified in thinking Daniels, whom he liked when the Commanders were pegged to pick later in the Top 10, is the right target?
“Daniels’ processing has improved, but he will still leave his reads too quickly. He has a very good understanding of where to go with the football – a lot of times it’s the first read, and while he can do full-field reads, when he does, sometimes he leaves them too quickly,” Brugler said. “His accuracy is good, but when he sometimes has to add some of those RPMs, he’ll miss a little high, and his placement could be a little more precise. The other thing is that he is impressive when he runs, but he’s a maniac with his body, and taking hits in the NFL is still a much bigger thing than taking hits in the SEC, so he has to learn to take care of his body.”
Daniels can fix that, assuaging some of Danny’s fears about him being an oft-injured enigma like Lamar Jackson, or worse, RGIII, although it has to be learned – and Brugler does expect him to weigh in a little heavier than his LSU playing weight come the Combine.
But what type of system would be the best for Daniels?
“I don’t know if there’s anything specific in terms of concepts, but look at what Todd Monken has done in Baltimore to tap into what Lamar Jackson does rally well,” Brugler said. “You can give him more opportunities to use his legs when he has to, but he is a pass-first quarterback, so it’s less about systems, and more about the play-caller and coordinator understanding his strengths and game planning around that.”
Take a listen to Brugler’s entire segment above!
