A magician’s final act is the climactic moment in a magic trick where the seemingly impossible thing that was made to disappear is brought back leaving the audience in a sense of wonder.
Enter the “Amazing” Jayden Daniels, front and center, with under two minutes remaining in the game. Like a magician, Daniels begins by making the ordinary look extraordinary.
From the beginning of the game, Daniels cut a 14-0 deficit to 14-7 with a 6-yard pass to Jamison Crowder. Down 21-7 in the second quarter, Daniels lofted a pass deep to the left side into the arms of Terry McLaurin for 32 yards and a touchdown. Granted, even a magician needs an assistant and McLaurin adjusted to make the brilliant catch.
Down 27-14 early in the fourth quarter, Daniels hit former Eagles receiver Olamide Zaccheaus in the end zone for a 4-yard touchdown and then at just over 9 minutes to play in the game, Daniels threw again to an open Zaccheaus on a botched coverage for 49 yards and a 28-27 lead. Suddenly, Daniels had made the Eagles lead disappear.
But the final act is Daniels in his element.
Eagles backup quarterback Kenny Pickett, who replaced Jalen Hurts in the first quarter after leaving the game due to a concussion, drove his team to a field goal and a 30-28 lead. Like Houdini putting himself into a straight jacket to show he can escape from it, the Commanders committed 5 turnovers in the game, including Daniels throwing an interception tipped to Eagles safety Reed Blankenship with 3:06 remaining in the game. The Eagles drove to the Washington 22-yard line.
On third and five, Pickett threw a pass to a wide-open Davonta Smith who would have likely scored a touchdown but he dropped the ball much like Saquon Barkley dropped a ball against the Atlanta Falcons late in a Monday Night Football game that resulted in a 22-21 loss.
In this case, instead of a touchdown, the Eagles settled for a field goal and a 33-28 lead.
The “Amazing Daniels” methodically drove the Commanders offense down the field against a top Eagles defense and with 10 seconds remaining in the game, Daniels and the Commanders were at the Philadelphia 9-yard line. Daniels dropped back and fired a bullet to Crowder in the end zone to give the Commanders the lead to stay, 34-33. Jeremy McNichols scampered for the 2-point conversion and the Commanders pulled a 36-33 win out from under the Eagles’ eyes.
The magician makes the ordinary extraordinary. For Daniels, a fourth and four at the Philadelphia 39-yard line against one of the top defenses in the NFC, turns into a 5-yard scramble for a first down to keep a 96-yard drive alive. The final result was the 32-yard pass to McLaurin to cut the deficit to 21-14 deficit at the half.
Down 27-14 at the Philadelphia 41-yard line, Daniels ran 29 yards on 4th and 11 and finished the drive with a 4-yard TD pass to Zaccheaus for a 27-21 score early in the fourth quarter.
Daniels had a 5 TD performance, the most TD’s thrown by a Washington quarterback since Mark Rypien did it during the 1991 Super Bowl season nearly 33 years ago. Daniels has led this Commanders team to a 10-5 record after 15 games, the best record for a Washington team since the 1991 Super Bowl season under Hall of Fame head coach Joe Gibbs.
Many of us want to know the “sleight of hand” that a magician uses to make the trick happen. How is the magic done?
Daniels gave away his secret following the game. He said responding when his back is to the wall is what he lives for because he loves the game of football. As he describes it, anyone who loves the game wants to be in those situations.
Daniels also understands the game. He said he will enjoy the win for 24 hours and it’s onto the next opponent: the Atlanta Falcons. A win next Sunday night against the Falcons and the Commanders will return to the playoffs for the first time since 2015. Also, by clinching the playoffs before the last game of the season means there’ll be an opportunity to rest players for a week before the start of the wild-card playoffs.
Maybe the love for the game also brings a respect for the game. Every game, every opponent requires another week of film study, practicing two-minute drills and touchdown passes like the one Daniels threw to Crowder with six seconds remaining in the game to make the magic happen.
But Daniels is more than a magician. He is a consummate professional grounded in not only a love for the game but a true joy in winning and doing anything he can to make that happen. That leadership builds confidence within the entire team—offense, defense and special teams.
Under Daniels, there’s always a chance of winning and next week could bring another magical moment to Northwest Stadium with a win to clinch a wild card playoff berth. As Daniels put it following the game, today was a Christmas gift. Maybe next week will be a New Year’s wish come true
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