NFL

Jayden Daniels Becomes 2nd Rookie QB To Beat a No. 1 Seed In Playoffs

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Jayden Daniels throws the ball for the Washington Commanders.

Washington’s Jayden Daniels made history in the Commanders’ 45-31 victory over the Detroit Lions. Daniels joined Baltimore’s Joe Flacco as the only rookie quarterbacks to beat a No. 1 seed in the NFL postseason.

Jayden Daniels Makes History In Commanders’ Win Over Lions

Daniels added another accomplishment to his record-setting season.

Daniels and the No. 6 Commanders went into Detroit and defeated the No. 1 Lions in the Divisional Round of the playoffs.

Daniels joins Flacco as the only two rookie quarterbacks to defeat a No. 1 seed in the postseason.

Flacco and the No. 6 Ravens defeated the No. 1 Tennessee Titans 13-10 in the Divisional Round of the 2008-2009 NFL Playoffs. Flacco completed 11 of 22 passes for 161 yards and one touchdown in the victory.

Daniels’ numbers were significantly better than Flacco’s stats. Daniels completed 22 of 31 passes for 299 yards and two touchdowns in Saturday night’s win. The rookie also rushed for 51 yards on 16 carries.

With the victory over the Lions, Daniels now has 14 wins, including the regular season and postseason. That ties him with the Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback for most wins by a rookie quarterback in NFL history.

Daniels joins Flacco, New York Jets quarterback Mark Sanchez (2009), and San Francisco 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy (2022) as the only rookie quarterbacks to win two playoff games in one postseason.

To date, a rookie QB has yet to win three playoff games.

Jayden Daniels Could Make More History In NFC Championship

The Commanders advance to the NFC Championship to play the No. 2 Philadelphia Eagles.

Six rookie quarterbacks have started in a conference championship game. Besides Daniels, the list includes Tampa Bay’s Shaun King (1999), Rothlisberger (2004), Flacco (2008), Sanchez (2009), and Brock Purdy (2022).

If Daniels wins, he will become the first rookie quarterback in NFL history to win a conference championship and start in the Super Bowl.

The Eagles host the Commanders on Jan. 26 at 3 p.m. ET on Fox.