Jayden Daniels will go back to basics during the Week 11 matchup at the Eagles

Jayden Daniels, as expected, had a tough time against the Pittsburgh Steelers. It was arguably the worst performance of his professional career to date. The Washington Commanders need him to return immediately during their decisive NFC East title showdown with the Philadelphia Eagles Thursday night football.

It was a tough match, but Daniels still played well. There is room for improvement, but individual mistakes and defensive errors cost the bosses in crucial situations.

There is no time to linger. Let’s take a look at what Daniels did well against the Steelers and what the No. 2 pick needs to improve on the national stage in Week 11.

Keeps the ball out of harm’s way

Daniels finished the game with zero turnovers for the fifth straight week. According to Pro Football Focusit’s also the fourth straight week with zero turnoverable plays at all from the Heisman Trophy winner.

A lot of credit must go to Kliff Kingsbury for both creating a good game plan and Daniels for executing it. The signal-caller knew how tough the Steelers’ defense would be. He did a good job protecting the football.

The former LSU star is an extremely smart football player. Daniels already looks like a seasoned veteran on the field, even against elite defenses.

Do speed reading

Daniels went through his readings very quickly. This created more easy throws on short routes to open up big plays.

Not only did Daniels quickly read short routes, but he also deciphered what the defense was doing in all areas of the field. This kept the offense moving down the field and kept them in the game, where the Steelers’ offense also performed well.

Daniels is also possibly the best slot fade quarterback in the league. Another impressive tool to add to his ever growing collection.

Getting out of pocket

This is Daniels’ bread and butter. The Steelers’ defense was pressured all day. Since this was the best defensive line he’s played thus far, you can understand why he wasn’t able to gain his usual yards on the ground.

A big part of why Daniels is so good is being able to scramble out of a collapsing pocket and either extend plays to find an open receiver or rush for yardage. That successful formula needs to return to the Eagles as Washington looks to return to the NFC East summit.

Accuracy

This is not because of the 50 percent completion percentage in Week 10. The reason Daniels had a weak completion percentage is because of the number of drops by receivers, including Zach Ertz on 2nd and 11. That would have been a big first down.

Accuracy was an issue in this game because there were several instances where Daniels either missed his receiver or lost yardage potential after the catch because he didn’t hit his pass-catcher in stride.

This is something fans don’t have to worry about. However, that’s still something Daniels needs to improve upon entering Week 11 against a Philadelphia defense capable of punishing any mistake.

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