Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels addressed the media on Aug. 19. Here is a full transcript of the press conference.
On his thoughts of being officially named the starting quarterback:"Just a blessing that DQ [Head Coach Dan Quinn] and AP [General Manager Adam Peters] trust me to go out there and lead the team, lead the franchise to hopefully win some games. So, big ups to them. It's a blessing. Something I dreamt about as a kid to be at this moment, to experience this moment, Nothing that I can say too much."
On if he liked the process of not being named starter right away:
"Yeah, I mean, everything in life is, you gotta earn it. Nothing's given. So, what DQ and them preach here is competition, and you you gotta earn your right to stay. You gotta earn your right on the field and into position. So, [to] be able to go out there and compete, it makes everybody better. So, what they preach, they hold true to that."
On his takeaways from the Miami Dolphins game on Saturday:
"Just trying to execute the offense at a high level, stuff that I hit after the game, talking to you guys, just go out there and just trying to execute a little tempo here and there. Push the tempo. But, go out there and just trusting myself, trusting my eyes."
On fulfilling a dream he has wanted since being a kid:
"It's a surreal moment. It's nothing but God, wouldn't be here in this position without him. So, big ups to the man upstairs."
On what he felt immediately after being told he is the starting quarterback:
"Just joy and happiness to be able to, like I said, to live out a dream that I dreamt about. But also, man, it is just, I couldn't be here without anybody. I couldn't do it on my own, family, support system, the organization here, [Managing Partner] Mr. [Josh] Harris, all them for drafting me. And even the people in the quarterback room. I mean, shout out to [QB] Marcus [Mariota] for taking me under his wing, being a great mentor, [QB] Jeff Driskel, man, they're looking out for me and helping me out a lot."
On the culture of the team and connection between teammates:
"We enjoy being around each other. We, I mean that's the camaraderie we build in the locker room. [To] be able to go out there and see each other have success and want success for each other. That's big, it's big in the locker room. It's a brotherhood and we love each other. We want the best for each other. We're gonna push each other."
On how he has earned the trust of his teammates without being a leader:
"I mean, I just say I'm a rookie, so I gotta come out here and prove it. What I did in college doesn't matter. There's guys that's been in this league that are proven, so for me it's just knowing my role. They weren't looking at me because I got drafted where I got drafted to come here and be a leader. We got great veterans around and like I said, even Marcus, for him be able to go out there and take me under his wing, helped help mold me to be prepared, stuff like that. Giving me pointers after plays or we might see this look, you might have to do this and stuff like that. So, we got great veterans around."
On who was the first person he called after being named starter:
"Really nobody. I mean, I had meetings so I couldn't do all that. But, I'm pretty sure my phone is blowing up right now."
On what it means that his effort as a teammate is being noticed:
"It means a lot. I mean, I want to be remembered for the person I am, not just what I did on the football field. So [to] be able to be good and kind to my teammates, show them that I care for them and I'm always here for them. It means a lot."
On what it means for the rookies to have a presence on the team:
"Yeah, I mean we want to come in here, we just want to put our head down and go to work. We gotta earn our role. We gotta earn everything that comes. Nothing's gonna be given to us just because we got drafted. There's guys that's been proven in this league, like I said before. And you know, for us it's like we're gonna take that approach. Our whole class, man, we just going out there, we're going to work. We don't really have too much to say and we're just gonna show up on the field."
On the work he is doing with Offensive Coordinator Kliff Kingsbury:
"I mean, kind of just the sample size of how he's calling plays throughout these preseason games. We want to get the ball in our playmaker hands as fast as possible, take the shots when it's there, and be very good in the run game. We want to be physical front, and I feel like that's what we were showing, just a little sample size and we gotta keep building off from that."
On if he is taking a moment to appreciate being named starting quarterback:
"Nah, I mean, you gotta enjoy every moment possible because you never know it could be your last. So, you gotta enjoy your moment, and then later on, I mean, tomorrow we'll be back to work. We gotta get back to work. We got focus on this last preseason game and go from there."
On if he pretended to be surprised by the announcement:
"I didn't pretend. Like I said, nothing's given in this world. Marcus is a great vet for me not even for me, but for [QB] Sam Hartman also, man, he looks out for us. Everybody in that room looks out for each other. So, when they told me I was really surprised because I didn't know what I was getting talked to about. I thought they was gonna talk to me about my routine from this past game again. So, it was a surprise to me."
On if he feels relieved by the announcement:
"I mean, not really. It is like more excitement and joy. It wasn't like a relief like, 'Oh, okay'. I'm gonna still take the same approach every day to get better. And that's what we preach, especially in the quarterback room. We gotta get better each and every day."
On if he practices sliding:
"Nah, I haven't."
On the best lesson QB Marcus Mariota has shared with him:
"Me and Marcus kind of got a similar story. I mean blessed enough to win the Heisman [Trophy], blessed enough to get drafted at the same spot. And coming in early, I know that he had a lot of expectations on him, especially coming out as a rookie to get drafted that high. And he kind of felt like he had to wear the cape and stuff like that. So, he's just given me his experience through his time through the league, his knowledge, and he's been instrumental in my development so far here. Without him I wouldn't be in this position right now. So, I mean, I appreciate Marcus always."
On if he has noticed and enjoyed the media attention from the announcement:
"Nah. I mean, nah, I ain't really seen none of that. So that's a first of me hearing that. But I mean, it's social media you see some stuff, you don't see things. I don't go looking for stuff, man. So, for me it is like people could talk about me as much as they want, good and bad. All that matters is what's going on in that building, how I come every day to work, how my teammates view me, how my coaches view me, the people around, and how can we get better each and every day as a team."
On if he felt it was important to prove himself before being named starter:
"A hundred percent. For me it is like what DQ and them said early on, man, they got a plan. And they didn't want to go out there and 'Oh hey, you're the starter'. I didn't come here. I haven't earned anything. What I did in college was great, now it's time for a new new slate, clean slate. So coming in, I gotta come here. I got prove not only to myself, not only to the coaches, but to my teammates, earn respect from those guys because some of those guys were drafted in the same position as me. They had to work for everything they had. For me to come in there and DQ and them were gonna preach competition and you know, you gotta earn everything, man. They can't come in and just give me the job right away, so I gotta go earn it."
On what can be expected from the offense this season:
"Man, I think we have the pieces to go out there and be a solid offense. I can't say what to expect because it's different from game to game, and teams and schemes and stuff like that. So, I mean, you could expect just energy and effort from the guys, going out there, flying around and we wanna make plays. And that's what I feel like the guys can do."
