Survey results!!!
In a national email survey sent to registered participants in the Reacts survey program run by SB Nation, fans of all 32 NFL teams were asked to identify which player from a list of nominees has been the Most Valuable Player of the 2024 season so far.
The results offer encouragement to Commanders fans.
While Jared Goff led the voting, Washington’s rookie phenom, quarterback Jayden Daniels, polled second, just 3 percentage points behind the Lions signal caller.
Traditionally, rookies are not considered contenders for the prestigious MVP award, so the seemingly serious consideration given to Daniels, even though he isn’t leading the poll, is remarkable. Typically, the Offensive or Defensive Rookie of the Year is perceived as the “MVP award for rookies”. In fact, the only player to have ever won both OROY and league MVP is Jim Brown, who was the recipient of both post-season awards at the end of the 1957 season. If Jayden Daniels were able to do the same, he would be the only player in NFL history to have ever equaled Brown’s feat.
It isn’t only fans, though, who are talking about Daniels as a legitimate contender for the end-of-season award. Sports talk shows on ESPN, NFL Network and traditional 3-letter broadcasters have been discussing the merits of Daniels as an MVP candidate for several weeks, and oddsmakers have been reflecting the increasing possibility of Daniels winning the award by shortening the odds related to his success from week to week.
Last week, respected retired defensive lineman and pass rusher, JJ Watt, spoke up on the Pat McAfee show, saying that “people don’t want to give a rookie MVP,” and then going on to state the case for why it should happen anyway.
“[Jayden Daniels is] the definition of a Most Valuable Player.”@JJWatt believes a player who turns “an entire organization around” should be MVP @PatMcAfeeShow pic.twitter.com/0WT3Kx9nsF
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) October 23, 2024
As the NFL enters Week 9 of its 18-week season, it’s still too early for definitive proclamations about Jayden Daniels. There’s too much football yet to be played and too many questions yet to be answered.
What isn’t really in doubt, however, is the incredible impact that Jayden Daniels has already had on the Commanders team, the franchise and the fans in Washington. It feels as if every superlative that could be used to describe a rookie quarterback two months into his first professional season can be applied to Daniels, and I have yet to hear or read a report or rumor from any source suggesting that he has come up short in any measurement, whether on or off the field.
Washington fans have been lost in the franchise quarterback desert for decades, but Jayden Daniels seems to have finally arrived like a fountain, offering plenty of cool, clean drinking water for every fan that has been parched from those decades of wandering.
It certainly feels like 2024 is going to continue to be a magical season.
Got the hail mary on film too. I was recording to catch the Bears celebrating.
Instead I caught a once in a life time moment, on the losing side
Enjoy, Commanders Fans pic.twitter.com/Bcw44uwRZx
— Sadeek (@SadeekCreates) October 28, 2024
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