Jayden Daniels Takes On Leadership Role In Commanders’ 27-10 Victory

by Arop KualNovember 5, 2026, 1:49 pm >

The Washington Commanders’ slow start to the season could begin to turn around following a 27-10 victory on Sunday night over the Philadelphia Eagles.

In a tight division, the Commanders have not taken advantage of the situation, with an injured Eagles, an underperforming Cowboys, and division-leading Giants on their third quarterback. The Commanders’ win put them at 2-4-1, and it was quarterback Jayden Daniels‘ first win since October 5. 2025.

This season has been dreadful for the Commanders, who lost their quarterback for two games after he dislocated his elbow, then tied with the Giants at home after Daniels’ poor clock management.

Daniels put the Commanders two games behind the Giants with a performance in which he completed 16 of 29 passes for 217 yards and a touchdown. He also ran for 23 yards. In the second half, he completed passes for 53 yards and 30 yards to secure the win.

Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter!

A week of sports news in your in-box.
We find the sports news you need to know, so you don't have to.

“It’s a blessing,” Daniels said, “just to go out there and everything I’ve been through in my career so far, just to keep pushing and keep fighting through adversity to come out with a big-time win with these guys and knowing I could have had a different direction.”

Daniels season could have ended after dislocating his elbow in Week 2. After coming back from injury, he has thrown six touchdowns and zero interceptions, along with two rushing touchdowns.

“He showed a lot of toughness,” Commanders coach Dan Quinn said. “He took a real shot toward the end of the first half. To see him [go], ‘I’m good,’ and he comes back and then made a bunch of plays. … I always feel [his] poise and control.”

Daniels proved why he can be seen as the team’s leader. In the first three drives, the Commanders committed four penalties, missed a 55-yard field goal, had a three-and-out, and fumbled. After the turnover, Daniels would bring most of the offensive players on the sideline to get things back on track.

“It was complete BS, just how we started and what we were doing,” Daniels said. “At the point, it wasn’t our brand of football that we want to showcase. You just get frustrated and you go up and you got to speak your mind. That’s what I did and just helped snap everybody back into place.”

The Commanders would flip a switch, scoring the next 27 points.

“When you have your leader do that and stand in front of everybody, everyone feels that urgency, and we played better after that,” backup quarterback Marcus Mariota said. “He finds his voice, and he picks his spot.”

Commanders running back Austin Ekeler said it was the first time he’d seen Daniels pull everyone together like that during a game.

“He brought the offense up and was getting us mentally reset, ‘Hey, we know if we don’t stop ourselves, we can score points,'” Ekeler said. “It’s hard being a leader in this league, especially at quarterback. You have a lot on your plate. The older you get, the more you understand your role, so it’s cool to see him bring us up like that.”

Daniels lived up to his talk with the team. He led multiple scoring drives in the first half, throwing an 8-yard pass to receiver Stefon Diggs, putting the Commanders up 13-10 at halftime. In the second half, he threw for 121 yards, completing five of eight passes.