How can Commanders QB Jayden Daniels improve in Week 7 vs. the Panthers?

Jayden Daniels had his first true test since becoming unlocked in Week 3. It was a loss, but fans should not be upset about this. The team hung in the game and the rookie quarterback looked great.

Only losing by fine margins to one of the best teams in the league is a moral victory. This team is still young and meshing together. Being in that tight of a contest with the Ravens proves the Commanders can hang with the best of them.

There's a lot to be looking forward to going into Week 7 at home against the Carolina Panthers. Let's look at what Daniels did well and what he can improve on at Northwest Stadium this weekend.

Jayden Daniels' impressive traits in Week 6

Manipulating the defense

One trait that separates the good quarterbacks from the average is manipulating the defense with eyes and body. Daniels is already doing it despite his lack of NFL experience.

A good example of this came on a third-down conversion to Noah Brown. It wasn't the greatest throw, but it was on the run. Daniels scrambled and used his eyes to make defenders move up, leading to a fantastic completion to move the chains.

Ball placement and anticipation

There were countless examples of Daniels displaying perfect ball placement and anticipating where his receiver will be at the Ravens. It's another sign of the poise beyond his years.

An example of this early in the game was a first down conversion to Austin Ekeler on third and short. Kliff Kingsbury called a mesh concept with a wheel route for the veteran running back. Daniels anticipated him being open immediately and launched an outstanding pass, giving the dual-threat room to attain extra yardage.

How can Jayden Daniels improve in Week 7?

Breaking the defense's contain

This was the first game in a while where it seemed Daniels left something to be desired rushing the football. We can't fault the signal-caller much for this. It's a great thing that he's looking downfield for an open receiver before tucking the ball and taking off.

This is also a testament to the Ravens having a good defensive plan to not let Daniels rush enough. It is something the Heisman Trophy winner out of LSU improves on against an easier opponent in the Panthers.

Adapting to new scenarios

In the past few weeks, Daniels hasn't had a lot of tough scenarios. Against teams like the Cleveland Browns and Arizona Cardinals, the No. 2 pick was able to just roll out of the pocket and find open throwing lanes quickly.

The Ravens made this more challenging. There were a couple of scenarios where Daniels made mistakes due to this.

One of those was a third and six where Daniels scrambled to his right and launched a pass to Brown. It was a pass that sailed over his head and should have been intercepted.

Part of the problem was that Daniels and Brown were not on the same page. That's part of adapting to new situations where you don't have a receiver completely wide open off-script.

This will take time. After all, Daniels is still a rookie.

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