Jayden Daniels awakened last week in his return from injury, and the Bears’ defense lacks one thing to stop him
Jayden Daniels will look to carry momentum over after a big win last week.
The vibes were low without quarterback Jayden Daniels, and his return sent a jolt through the entire Washington Commanders team last week.
Of course, Daniels saved the franchise last season, but he needed to come back to save the momentum of the year, even though Marcus Mariota did a great job filling in. It felt like something was missing, and Daniels fixed everything.
We saw a deep throw to wide receiver Luke McCaffrey and a touchdown to Deebo Samuel to put the nail in the coffin, and Daniels will have plenty of opportunities against this Chicago Bears defense on Monday night.
Jayden Daniels is officially back
The passing game has been lacking explosive plays with Daniels out, and we missed seeing those patented throws that took the league by storm last year. Daniels quickly reminded us all how special he can be with his precision throws. The third and 16 conversion to wide receiver Jaylin Lane woke Daniels up, and he put on a masterclass after that. The bomb to McCaffrey was exactly what everyone needed, and we expect more of the same moving forward.
Offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury was impressed with Daniels in his return, and he did everything the coaching staff wanted to see against the Los Angeles Chargers.
“Yeah, I thought he protected the ball well,” Kingsbury said. “It’s a good defense that we faced, and I liked that we started slow and he was really unfazed by that. Just continued to play at a high level, had some good throwaways, and kind of knocked the rust off and led his team to a victory.”
Even without Terry McLaurin and Noah Brown, Daniels utilized McCaffrey and Samuel to the fullest in the most impressive win of the season on the road against the Chargers. We still don’t know if McLaurin will be back, but Daniels will have ample opportunities against the Bears’ defense on Monday night.
The Bears’ defense gets a boost, but is it enough?
We already know how bad the Bears’ defense is when it comes to stopping the run, but there are players Daniels can target in the passing game. The Bears have four defensive backs allowing 100+ passer rating when targeted, but Kyler Gordon is set to make his season debut this week, giving them a major boost. The main problem for the Bears is that they lack a pass rush and have the fewest sacks in the league, with only five, and the worst pressure rate in the league at only 25.2%. Daniels will have time in the pocket to make plays, and he excels there already this season.
Daniels has a 66% completion percentage with 439 yards, a touchdown, and no interceptions this season when he has a clean pocket, with more of that coming up against the Bears. The Commanders will lean on the run game, of course, and it’ll open up downfield shots for Daniels and the offense. Expect the explosive plays to continue for Daniels, and the lights are never too bright, especially when they play at home.