The Washington Commanders are reaching new heights, spearheaded by rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels, who has led the team to its first NFC championship game appearance since 1991. This victory ends a 32-year championship drought for Washington, surpassing even the Cowboys' 29-year wait. While Daniels' success marks a significant turning point for the Commanders, it also highlights the Cowboys' enduring struggles.
It's been 29 seasons since the Cowboys last made the NFC championship. Every other team in the conference has now done so in between. Who is this Jayden Daniels , and just how good is he going to be? After three decades of stumbling worse than the Cowboys, providing a regular NFC East foil on an annual basis, the Washington Commanders have hit the big time.
By playing in their first NFC title game this Sunday since Joe Gibbs’ last Super Bowl championship (1991 season), Washington has ended its 32-year championship game drought. It was the only one longer than the Cowboys’ 29-year dormant period in the NFC, and, by the looks of Daniels, this won’t be Washington’s last one, either. While rookie quarterbacks have never taken their teams to Super Bowls, others have reached conference title games. But those quarterbacks — the likes of Brock Purdy in San Francisco, Mark Sanchez with the Jets, and Ben Roethlisberger in Pittsburgh at the top of the list — had three top-ranked defenses to guide them. The rookie passers took on caretaker rolls for the most part. Nothing of the sort is happening in Washington (despite Dan Quinn’s presence) where the defense ranked 18th in points allowed this season. This is a team driven by Daniels, the No. 2 pick out of LSU last spring. He led the team in rushing during the season. He has gone toe-to-toe with two of the most prolific passers this postseason —, but Daniels threw five touchdown passes against the Eagles last month in a game Washington needed more than the visitors from Philly. He won’t likely throw five again Sunday, but who’s to say he won’t do what it takes to win? Eagles veteran defensive coordinator Vic Fangio has acknowledged Daniels is probably the finest rookie quarterback he has ever faced. Leading Washington to a significant upset of top-seeded Detroit last week, Daniels and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury were locked in. The team never punted in a 45-28 takedown of the Lions. Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) celebrates after an NFL wild-card playoff football game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Tampa, Fla., Sunday, Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Jason Behnken) Now it’s entirely possible Washington comes up short against the best defense it has seen in the postseason. Even that doesn’t rule out Daniels becoming the NFC’s version of Mahomes, who actually sat behind Alex Smith for all but the final game of his rookie season, then took the Chiefs to an AFC championship overtime loss to New England the following season. Kansas City hasn’t stopped going. leaning toward a promotion of Brian Schottenheimer that will inspire the tiniest of segments of Cowboys Nation. Keep in mind that if Daniels loses Sunday, it means Jalen Hurts is taking the Eagles to their second Super Bowl in the last three seasons. Philadelphia has conducted a massive defensive rebuild all while going to the playoffs four straight years under head coach Nick Sirianni. The Eagles aren’t fading away no matter what happens on Sunday. But the days of Dallas going back and forth on division titles with the Eagles while the Giants and Commanders self-imploded are over. Maybe not for New York just yet; we will see what kind of turnaround they make with the third pick in the draft, but it’s not likely to get Big Blue out of the cellar. Washington is for real, however, and has one of the best cap situations in the league with the potential to make upgrades on defense and the offensive line this spring. Meanwhile, Daniels is as cool as they come. In fairness, Dak Prescott had a great rookie season, too, leading the Cowboys to a 13-3 record, unseating an injured Tony Romo, refusing to yield his position and breaking a rookie record by throwing 176 passes before his first interception. But that team wasn’t Dak’s the way this team belongs to Daniels. Prescott benefited from having the NFL’s leading rusher break into the league at the same time. With Zeke piling up 100-yard games and a defense that ranked fifth in scoring average, Prescott’s year was still remarkable — both he and Daniels inherited teams that had won just four games the prior season — but he didn’t carry the same burden. A chart of teams illustrating how long it has been since their last championship game appearance says it all. Chicago has the second-longest streak at 14 years — not quite half as long as Dallas’ waiting period. The arrival of Jayden Daniels and the continued winning play of Jalen Hurts in the Cowboys’ division don’t point to a conclusion of this sorry streak any time soon
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