The Washington Commanders struck gold with their second overall selection of Jayden Daniels in last year's draft. In just his first year on the job in D.C., Daniels helped lead the Commanders to their first NFC Championship Game appearance in over three decades.
While the Commanders weren't able to take down the Eagles in that championship game, it was still a magical season for the fan base, and Daniels played a huge role in it. The LSU product immediately injected life into the Commanders' franchise, something that hadn't been the case since the early 1990s.
With Daniels now cementing himself as a quarterback to watch for in the NFL, fans might wonder how the Commanders signal-caller prepares himself for a game each week. Well, lucky for those fans, Daniels recently spoke about just that.
Commanders QB Jayden Daniels reveals his pre-game ritual
According to the Washington Business Journal, "Washington Commanders’ Quarterback Jayden Daniels has maintained the same pregame ritual for as long as he can remember: waffles for breakfast, warm up with one of his coaches and a phone call to his father so they can pray before he plays."
“It’s something I’ve been doing my whole life,” Daniels said. “And then I’ll put the towel over my head and just get in that mode. When I take the towel off, it’s time to go out there and do whatever it takes to win the game.”
This is precisely the kind of tradition that makes sense for an NFL player. Daniels loads up on waffles in the morning before warming up with a coach and then speaking to a loved one on the phone. It makes sense that this would get someone psyched for a game.
This pre-game tradition has clearly worked, as Daniels excelled at LSU, and while it's only been one year, he's already exceeded expectations with the Commanders. Before Daniels got to D.C., the Commanders were not a good team, but with him under center, they already showed how good they can really be.
Keep eating those waffles!