Is Jayden Daniels the best rookie QB of all time? Dan Quinn says, 'He is the Terminator'

Houston Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud recently gave Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels high praise.

“I’m so proud of him,” Stroud said earlier this month. “In my opinion, he’s had the best rookie year of all time.”

Stroud and Daniels are friends. They are both from the Inland Empire, a metropolitan area that borders Los Angeles County. Stroud has an acute knowledge of the history of rookie quarterbacks. He registered the third-most passing yards by a rookie in NFL history. He became the fourth qualifying rookie quarterback in NFL history to record a passer rating of 100 or higher on the way to winning NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year in 2023.

Daniels is the prohibitive favorite to win the award this year after breaking the NFL rookie quarterback single-season rushing record and leading the Commanders to the playoffs for the first time since 2020. However, it’s his performance this postseason that has put him in the conversation for the best rookie quarterback of all time.

The Commanders quarterback has a playoff-high 567 passing yards and four touchdowns.

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When the Commanders take on the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, Daniels will become the sixth rookie quarterback all-time to start in a conference championship game. He can become the first rookie quarterback ever with five playoff touchdowns, and he’s just six yards shy of the most playoff passing yards ever by a rookie quarterback.

If the Commanders win the NFC championship game, Daniels will have the most wins by a rookie QB (including the postseason) in NFL history, and he’ll become the first rookie starting quarterback to start a Super Bowl.

“I just think for me football is fun. It's like a safe haven for me. Everything I've been through personally in my life. I'm not really going out there and not stressing about the moment because, at the end of the day, I get to do what I love each and every week, win, lose or draw,” Daniels said to reporters this week. “It's just a blessing to be one of those kids that are able to fulfill their dream and live out their dream of playing on Sundays in NFL.”

Daniels’ poise and composure have been lauded throughout his rookie campaign. It’s a big reason why the quarterback has enjoyed so much success. He led the Commanders into two hostile environments – Tampa Bay and Detroit – in the playoffs and came away victorious. The magnitude of the postseason hasn’t phased him. Commanders head coach Dan Quinn likened him to the fictional character “The Terminator.”

“He is an elite lead competitor. He really is. It's one of the things I admire most about him, that he just doesn't back down from the moments,” Quinn said. “But one thing that he does do, if you watch him in the game, he can stay in it a really long time. … And some of the times you see him excited or maybe just smiling at the end, when we're going to victory formation, because, like, on the sideline, like, you know, he is the Terminator. Like, there's not a lot of stuff that's going to go on externally. He can really stay in it.”

If Daniels performs like the Terminator on Sunday and the Commanders advance to Super Bowl 59, many people will join Stroud’s belief that Daniels is the best rookie quarterback of all time.

"He's got rare, in the moment skills that have allowed us to be into this spot," Quinn said. "When it's mental chaos going down and two minutes, in these tight moments where it could feel that tight, he's got the experience of somebody that's played a lot more football than a first-year player.”

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'He is the Terminator': Is Jayden Daniels best rookie QB of all time?