Commanders stock report: Jayden Daniels makes debut, but a different quarterback shines

DETROIT — Maybe it was strategic on Washington’s part to stage Jayden Daniels’ return in Detroit.

After all, the last time he was here, Daniels went from an ascending NFL quarterback to a bona fide star. With an NFC championship game berth on the line, Daniels threw all over the top-seeded Lions in 2024: 299 yards, two touchdowns, no interceptions.

The double-digit underdog Commanders left Motor City as the toast of the league, and their quarterback the undoubted NFC Offensive Rookie of the Year.

So, after an injury-riddled 2025 season, maybe Washington just wanted Daniels to remember what it was like the last time he was fully healthy. Clean out the scar tissue.

But a staged appearance is all it was.

Daniels took three snaps in his preseason debut against the Lions on Saturday. He took a sack, was pressured and handed the ball off on third-and-long.

That was about his only contribution to Washington’s 17-13 loss to the Lions.

But maybe it was enough for Daniels to turn the page from the last time he was on a football field — a hit in Minnesota that knocked him out for the year. It was only his third game since October.

Here’s more on Daniels’ debut and other risers and fallers from Washington’s second preseason game.

Risers

Athan Kaliakmanis

There might not be another player on Washington’s roster who has helped himself more over the last two weeks than Kaliakmanis.

The seventh-round rookie out of Rutgers was buried on the depth chart to start camp behind Daniels, Marcus Mariota and Sam Hartman. But, in two preseason games, he has been Washington’s most impressive quarterback.

He gets the ball out to avoid pressure, pushes the ball downfield and is mobile enough to avoid sacks. He hit Jayden Bradley on a 30-yard seam route on Saturday and connected with Antionio Williams on the run. His arm strength is evident on throws to the boundary and off play action. He nailed Nick Nash down the sideline for 55 yards.

But, most important, the offense moved with Kaliakmanis in the game. He led an 11-play, 78-yard scoring drive to open the second half. He finished the game 11-of-14 passing for 162 yards. That’s after he went 6-of-10 for 87 yards against Miami last week.

It is still a question of whether Washington will take two or three quarterbacks on the opening 53-man roster. Traditionally, the Commanders take three. But, with a roster crunch at other positions, it might make more sense to take two this year.

Still, Kaliakmanis is cobbling together a compelling case to warrant a roster spot. Mariota is hurt. Does that make Washington want a little extra depth behind Daniels?

If he keeps playing like this, maybe Kaliakmanis will answer that himself.

Joshua Josephs

Washington has been waiting for its fifth-round pick to make an impact. Josephs, a pass rusher, has been flying under the radar. He hasn’t played poorly but hasn’t had a moment.

That changed in Detroit when Josephs lined up with the first-team defense. He blew up his block and forced Lions quarterback Josh Dobbs to scramble into Amik Robertson. Robertson quickly lowered his shoulder to pop the ball loose, and Josephs recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown.

The edge rusher out of Tennessee was known for his massive wingspan in college. Scouts liked how he could get pressure and bounce runs outside. This wasn’t a run, but it works for quarterback scrambles too.

It wasn’t all good for Josephs. He got caught biting on a read option from Dobbs, letting him spring loose on a 50-yard rushing touchdown. Josephs didn’t need to overpursue. Linebacker Sonny Styles was waiting to stop the run if Dobbs handed it off.

But it was an overall positive for the rookie.

Tyler Owens and the special teams safeties

Take a look at this play by Owens. He won’t get credit for a sack, but it is exactly the type of pass rush head coach Dan Quinn has been wanting to see out of his new defense.

Owens wasn’t the only safety to have a good day. Quan Martin came up with his second interception in as many weeks. Martin has three interceptions in his entire career. Now he has two in the preseason alone.

Percy Butler also made plays on special teams.

Washington has six safeties trying to make this team. It could take all six but more than likely will take five. Nick Cross is a lock to start. After that, Jeremy Reaves and Martin are fighting at free safety. The last three are Will Harris, Owens and Butler.

At first, it seemed Harris had the edge with his experience. But Owens and Butler are strong special teams players. If Owens is also making plays on defense, Harris’ position gets a little less secure.

Fallers

Pass protection

Quinn said the determining factor of whether Daniels would play in the preseason was the health of the players around him. Namely, Quinn wanted to make sure most of the starting offensive line was available.

Well, he played. The result was Daniels getting pressured once and sacked for a loss of 10 yards on the next play.

You could make the argument that Daniels was missing his starting center, Nick Allegretti. But the reality is, Allegretti has already missed most of training camp with a calf strain. By and large, the line that rolled out there in Detroit will be the one that goes against the Eagles on Sept. 13.

At the moment, that should give the Commanders serious concern about whether they can keep Daniels healthy for 17 weeks.

What is more worrying was some of the protection lapses came from players who are theoretically plus blockers. John Bates, a tight end Washington specifically brings in for added blocking help, missed an assignment that led to Daniels getting hit.

It’s not just the first-team offensive line, either. Hartman and Kaliakmanis were under pressure most of the game. Detroit had two sacks for 21 yards.

Quinn started to say he was concerned about the center depth this week. But, after the Laremy Tunsil injury at left tackle, Washington’s issues go beyond just that position.

Run defense

It didn’t seem to matter who the Lions handed the ball off to; they were going to have success.

Detroit rushed for 157 yards and averaged 6.8 yards per carry in the first three quarters. Granted, most of this wasn’t against the first-team defense. But it is still a concerning trend after Quinn said he wanted to see more from that side of the ball this week.