Commanders veterans rally around Jayden Daniels ahead of Week 6 acid test

Jayden Daniels is gearing up for the sternest test of his young career so far. The quarterback is quickly emerging into one of the league's most exciting players under center following a relentless opening to the campaign over the first five weeks. Everyone associated with the Washington Commanders will be hoping this is the start of something special rather than just a flash in the pan.

We'll find out more about Daniels' short-term trajectory this weekend when he goes toe-to-toe with Lamar Jackson and the Baltimore Ravens. This might be an early window game, but the entire NFL world will be captivated by the mouth-watering clash between two in-form teams who could make some noise in the postseason based on early impressions.

Daniels is treating this as another game and ignoring all the ongoing hype surrounding his sensational start. He's got a veteran's head on rookie shoulders - something that's served him well so far within a structured support system that's helping him ignore the outside noise.

The Heisman Trophy winner out of LSU also has teammates who are rallying around ahead of his biggest professional moment to date. They all believe in Daniels. They are all striving to be better for the signal-caller. They are convinced this is the guy who can help them achieve heights not seen in Washington for some time if everyone else meets their end of the bargain.

Commanders veterans have complete faith in Jayden Daniels after phenomenal start

Frankie Luvu lifted the lid on what makes Daniels so special when speaking to Ari Meirov from The 33rd Team. The linebacker centered on the player's exceptional work ethic and poise beyond his years as reasons why everyone is fully bought in. This is a sentiment being echoed around the locker room and represents an outstanding building block for future success.

"That boy Jayden Daniels is like that. From the moment he got into the building through OTAs, due was in the building like 4 am or 5 am working out. Me and Bobby [Wagner] would go in at like six, and Jayden was already in there. Jayden was getting his workout in. He just carries himself like a pro. He's not like a rookie. He's ahead of everybody. He's put the work in and planted that seed in the preseason and his fruition is coming to life. I'm just happy to be on a team with him. We've got a quarterback who's going through his reads, he's poised in the pocket, he's releasing the ball. Dude's only a rookie, but he's a vet with the way he's playing right now.   "

- Frankie Luvu

There's a sense of excitement across the roster where Daniels is concerned. However, there's also a desire to protect the rookie amid constant adulation and growing attention from the national media.

Luvu wasn't the only one waxing lyrical about Daniels in the build-up to this one. Veteran tight end Zach Ertz has been around his fair share of gifted quarterbacks throughout his career. He gets the sense Washington has something special on its hands and is confident everyone will continue to follow him into battle with supreme confidence.

Some are anointing Daniels among the elite quarterbacks with barely a quarter of the campaign in the books. That might be a little premature, but it'll be hard to keep pushing back on this notion if the signal-caller outduels Jackson this weekend at M&T Bank Stadium.

Jackson got to the mountaintop quickly and sustained his greatness. He's a two-time NFL MVP and widely regarded as one of the greatest-ever dual-threat weapons under center at 27 years old. All that's missing is an elusive Super Bowl ring, but Patrick Mahomes has a lot to do with that.

There's no doubt Daniels has a similar skill set. He wants to carve his own path and not be the next anything. He's already announced himself on an NFL stage. Beating Jackson would take the first--year-pro to a different level entirely.

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