Jayden Daniels, Commanders Agree to 4-Year, $37.7M Rookie Contract Amid Minicamp
Tyler Conway@@jtylerconway
Featured Columnist IVJune 14, 2024
The Washington Commanders and quarterback Jayden Daniels agreed to a four-year, $37.7 million rookie-scale contract on Friday, his agent revealed (via NFL Network's Ian Rapoport).
Ian Rapoport @RapSheetThe <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Commanders?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Commanders</a> and No. 2 overall pick Jayden Daniels have agreed to terms on his rookie contract and Daniels has signed, per <a href="https://twitter.com/Agentbutler1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Agentbutler1</a>. <br><br>He gets a slotted 4-year, $37.75M fully guaranteed deal that includes a $24.3M signing bonus. The highest draft pick to sign. <a href="https://t.co/VfIbi2KY8U">pic.twitter.com/VfIbi2KY8U</a>
The Commanders also confirmed the signing:
Daniels' deal carries a fifth-year option for the 2028 season. The Commanders will have to make a decision about that option in the 2027 offseason.
Under the NFL's rookie wage scale, Daniels' full $37.7 million is guaranteed. Teams and players typically only have to negotiate the finer points of the contract, including offsets and bonuses.
Daniels is the reigning Heisman winner after throwing for 3,812 yards and 40 touchdowns against four interceptions while adding 1,134 yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground. He was the No. 2 pick in the 2024 draft, behind only USC's Caleb Williams.
When he was introduced to the Washington media, Daniels said he plans on modeling himself after Peyton Manning and Tom Brady despite his running prowess.
"How they market themselves, how they carry themselves as franchise guys," Daniels said. "Hopefully one day be in their shoes. You never see any off-the-field issues about them. They carry themselves with a high standard and I want to be in their shoes one day. Hopefully I get there, but I've got my own dream, my own road to take."
Daniels added that he feels "no pressure" to change the trajectory of the Commanders franchise by himself. The team has been searching for a franchise quarterback for decades without a consistent answer.
That said, the Commanders front office can't help but rave about Daniels.
"We knew it was Jayden for a while, and it would've taken a lot for it to not be Jayden," general manager Adam Peters said. "It was the building. The whole building was in.
"I honestly couldn't believe how good he was and saw him on TV, saw him on highlights and everything. But when you really study him as a quarterback, just as a quarterback, he's really, really good."