• Two game-changing runners: Jayden Daniels‘ early success as a rusher intently mirrors Jackson’s breakout 2019 season. He has been a dynamic runner, simply as he was all through his 5 school seasons. This 12 months, solely eight gamers—seven working backs and Lamar Jackson —have recorded extra rushes of 10-plus yards than Daniels.
• It’s not nearly their dashing means: Both gamers’ dropback-passing numbers are almost an identical, even right down to common time to throw. Daniels is barely extra conservative and correct in his method, whereas Jackson took just a few extra probabilities with the reward of extra big-time throws, however the general manufacturing is extremely comparable.
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Estimated studying time: 2 minutes
The hype across the first-ever matchup between Jayden Daniels and Lamar Jackson has been inescapable this week. And by the time the weekend rolls round, this matchup could have dominated each nationwide sports activities present, and we’ll be drowning in comparisons.
But regardless of the overplayed narrative, it’s a head-to-head battle that greater than lives as much as the hype.
Their similarities are simple to level out, as each are Heisman-winning dual-threat playmakers who’ve rotated their franchises.
An examination of their early-rookie-year statistics could be a bit unfair to Jackson, contemplating he didn’t begin till Week 11 of 2018 and will not have been totally able to commandeer an NFL passing assault at that time.
That mentioned, factoring in these begins plus his three years at Louisville, the quantity of high-level soccer he performed isn’t too completely different from the whopping 55 begins that Daniels made throughout his 5 years in school.
To create a extra balanced comparability, we’ll take a look at Jackson’s first 5 begins from his MVP-winning 2019 season, which higher replicate his profession trajectory. And at first look, Daniels’ efficiency this season means that the comparability could be extra legitimate than it initially appears.
Jayden Daniels 2024 vs. Lamar Jackson 2019 (Weeks 1-5)
| Metric | Daniels | Jackson |
| Passing grade | 77.7 | 70.4 |
| Rushing grade | 74.3 | 68.7 |
| Big-time throw % | 3.6% | 4.0% |
| Turnover-worthy play % | 2.2% | 2.4% |
He’s gotten there in a barely completely different method, however Daniels is grading out barely higher than Jackson did by the primary 5 begins of his first MVP season.
Daniels, whose group on paper isn’t as proficient as that 2019 Ravens squad, has been extra conservative as a passer, however his accuracy and effectivity stand out. Jackson attacked downfield extra usually and had a a lot greater common depth of goal; he additionally threw 11 touchdowns in comparison with Daniels’ 4.
Daniels and Jackson are plain threats on the bottom, elevating their groups’ dashing assaults to a different degree. It is smart that each would thrive in play-action conditions early of their careers, appearing as dynamic enhances to their offenses — and that has been the case for each gamers. Yet, after we study their manufacturing as dropback passers, the similarities turn out to be much more hanging, with each showcasing optimistic outcomes on this space.
Jayden Daniels 2024 vs. Lamar Jackson 2019 (Weeks 1-5), non-play motion
| Metric | Daniels | Jackson |
| Passing grade | 72.7 | 72.8 |
| Yards per try | 8.5 | 8.2 |
| Adjusted Completion % | 79.2% | 76.4% |
| Big-time throws | 4 | 7 |
| Turnover-worthy performs | 3 | 4 |
| Average time to throw | 2.79 seconds | 2.78 seconds |
Both gamers’ passing numbers are almost an identical, even right down to common time to throw. Again, Daniels is barely extra conservative and correct in his method, whereas Jackson took just a few extra probabilities with the reward of extra big-time throws, however the general manufacturing is extremely comparable.
We’ve already addressed twice now that Daniels has proven a conservative method. He will not be throwing downfield as usually as Jackson did early in his profession, however he holds the benefit in effectivity on 10-plus-yard targets.
Jayden Daniels 2024 vs. Lamar Jackson 2019 (Weeks 1-5), 10-plus-yard throws
| Metric | Daniels | Jackson |
| Passing Grade | 92.4 | 77.5 |
| Completion % | 61.5% | 45.6% |
| Yards per Attempt | 13.3 | 10.8 |
| Average depth of goal | 21.5 | 21.4 |
When Daniels has chosen to throw the ball vertically, he’s executed it at an elite degree. Not solely does his 92.4 passing grade on 10-plus-yard throws simply surpass Jackson’s 2019 mark, however it’s truly barely higher than Jackson’s 92.1 passing grade on such throws this season.
The ultimate half left to handle is how Daniels and Jackson examine as runners. They are clearly each explosive playmakers and create as a lot for themselves within the run sport as they do for his or her teammates. Again, a comparability of their statistics creates startling similarities
Jayden Daniels 2024 vs. Lamar Jackson 2019 (Weeks 1-5), Rushing Metrics
| Metric | Daniels | Jackson |
| Rushing Attempts | 56 | 50 |
| Yards per Carry | 5.4 | 6.2 |
| MTF per try | 0.23 | 0.20 |
| 10-plus-yard run % | 17.9% | 18.0% |
Daniels’ early success as a rusher intently mirrors Jackson’s breakout 2019 season. He has been a dynamic runner, simply as he was all through his 5 school seasons. This 12 months, solely eight gamers—seven working backs and Lamar Jackson—have recorded extra rushes of 10-plus yards than Daniels.
It’s doubtless too early to inform if Jayden Daniels will end the season as a professional MVP candidate. However, his manufacturing is eerily much like a participant who has already received two MVPs. But whether or not or not he wins any award this 12 months, Washington seems to have discovered a probably elite quarterback able to taking them to new heights.