Longtime NFL coach recalls first meeting Commanders QB Jayden Daniels
Marvin Lewis developed a relationship with Jayden Daniels from their shared time together at Arizona State. He's a huge fan of the person and player.
Former Washington defensive coordinator and longtime Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis met Jayden Daniels in 2019 and was impressed from the beginning. After being fired by the Bengals following the 2018 NFL season, he was hired by Arizona State in time to arrive in time to watch the 2019 spring ball season. "I was really impressed with how Jayden threw the ball and how he ran the offense," Lewis told Ben Standig on the latest edition of the "Last Man Standig" podcast.
Lewis also recalls that very early in the spring, head coach Herman Edwards asked Lewis, "Hey, when do you think I should announce Jayden Daniels as our starter? " To which Lewis replied, "As soon as we get back home. " Lewis told Standig that he (Lewis) also spent considerable time on the phone with Daniels in helping him prepare for the NFL Combine and the 2024 NFL Draft.
Lewis expressed that Daniels displayed a demeanor at Arizona State where "he gives you that grin and chuckle and moves forward. Nothing seems to rattle him very much. He has a great disposition that way.
" Lewis likes the way Daniels went when he left Arizona State for LSU; he had to compete for that starting job. He had to leave the comfort of being out west, where he had grown up, and had to compete in the SEC. He also likes how Daniels prepared for his rookie season and was up to the task.