Who Should I Start? Jayden Daniels or J.J. McCarthy

Sunday, April 20, 7:14 PM

Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels recently expressed his desire to continue improving as a player in 2025 on "Gruden Goes Long." "For me, last year was last year. That's great, but it's a whole new year now," said the 24-year-old. "I still got to go out there, I've got to prove myself to my teammates, the organization, each and every day that I'm getting better." Daniels took the league by storm in 2024, capturing Offensive Rookie of the Year honors and guiding Washington to its first NFC Championship appearance since 1991. Encouragingly, the LSU product refuses to rest on his laurels heading into his second year, and the Commanders are building around their young star. The offseason acquisitions of wide receiver Deebo Samuel Sr. and offensive lineman Laremy Tunsil already serve to boost Daniels' prospects. Furthermore, Washington can stock up on more talent in the draft later this week.

Wednesday, May 7, 9:26 PM

Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell didn't really acknowledge whether former first-round quarterback J.J. McCarthy (knee) will face competition for the starting job in 2025. "J.J. is going to be in a great position to assume and ascend in our organization," O'Connell said on The Rich Eisen Show. "But right now, we really don't have any feelings on competition as much as we've got an obligation as coaches to put our players in position to attack that competition phase." Sam Howell and Brett Rypien are the other options in the QB room. O'Connell did say that McCarthy is "owning it" this offseason and will get plenty of reps with the starters. The 22-year-old missed his entire rookie season due to a torn meniscus in his right knee, but he's fully expected to be ready for the start of 2025. O'Connell said he's seen a difference in McCarthy's footwork, rhythm, timing and cadence from a year ago. The Vikes like him a lot, so he's expected to be the starter in Week 1, where he'll be a low-end QB2 in fantasy with upside.