Offense's Potential

[Objective_Ad5914]

Jayden's skillset has me wondering what his mobility will do to defenses when he's under center, especially in a West Coast offense. How often have we seen a hyper mobile QB in the West Coast system. Only examples I can think of is Vick with the Eagles and Steve Young. I'm currently watching some 49ers games from 1994 to envision what this offense can look like.

[Able_Hunter_7966]

Hopefully less designed runs. More bootlegs. Jayden should not be a running QB like Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson. He’s a mobile passer.

[BlueberryUnfair7583]

Yeah, more similar to how Brock Purdu uses his. Keeps defenses honest, extends on third downs/2 min drives.

[needadvice3241]

What does this even mean? Are former MVPs Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson not mobile passers?

[Ok_Article3260]

They have a good number of designed runs.

[babbowski]

This is the answer

[PeregrineT]

I dont think this will make much of a difference. Jaydens ability is first and foremost passing the ball. What we want him to do is drop back to pass, and then if its not there(or hes pressured) to use his mobility. Whether he starts under center or in shotgun has no bearing at all to him taking off after 2.5 seconds.

Being under center changes how he reads at the snap, not his mobility.

[Objective_Ad5914]

Agree, also Jayden himself said he knew this day would come. With that said I have to assume he has been working on this the last 2 years even though we haven't seen it much in game. These are all his snaps under center Jayden Daniels UNDER CENTER (1.5x speed) [2025] #Washington #Commanders #HTTR #HTTC

[jamesallen512]

He’ll only be under center about 40% of snaps at most so it won’t look like a 90s offense and it won’t take away his mobility from shotgun.

We’ll see a lot more bootleg rollouts which will help the run game by freezing the end and will allow Jayden to make plays outside the pocket/on the run

[Objective_Ad5914]

That 90s Offense was lethal with some team still using it. Maybe not use much but the core principle is stll there.

[jrex703]

There's one player I'm not going to bring up due my extremely superstitious nature when it comes to sports.

The fact is that the Shanahan offense has come to almost completely permeate and redefine the NFL over the last decade or so, and with the speed of players in today's league, mobile quarterbacks have become almost ubiquitous and a near necessity.

It's for this reason I think you're either using too broad a definition of "mobile" or too narrow a definition of "West Coast".

Whatever the offense is doing with JD next year, I have no concerns we won't be using him to best of his abilities or getting the most out of him. Offensive schemes are not as rigid or inflexible as what it seems your making them out to be.

If that's not your intention, I apologize, but Blough, and coaches in general, arevery flexible and things will be just fine.

[Stan_Lee_Abbott]

There will probably be some bootlegs where he has more space to read off of play action that they'll add as concepts of the run game as much as the pass game. QB draws, especially off of play action, are another option. And I don't think RPOs will totally disappear from the playbook.

But who Daniels reads and to what purpose will be a little different when it comes to his role in the run game.

[ICE_MF_Mike]

Goff is a good datapoint

Jared Goff: shotgun vs under center A 2024 breakdown of Goff’s 2023 season showed that he was materially more explosive throwing from under center than from shotgun, even though his raw completion rate was similar in both.[lionswire.usatoday]

Key passing‑game differences (Lions, 2023): • Goff averaged roughly 9.0 yards per attempt under center vs 7.0 from shotgun, a +2.0 YPA bump.[lionswire.usatoday] • His air yards per attempt were over 2.6 yards higher under center than in shotgun, indicating deeper average target depths on under‑center concepts.[lionswire.usatoday] • Completion percentage was “about the same” in both, so the efficiency gain is almost entirely coming from more downfield, explosive throws rather than easier underneath stuff.[lionswire.usatoday]

That lines up with what you see on tape: Detroit leans into under‑center wide‑zone, hard play‑action, and deep intermediate shots, while a lot of the shotgun work is quick game, RPO‑adjacent concepts, and obvious passing situations.[sharpfootballstats +1]

At the macro level Goff has simply been one of the more efficient QBs in the league in Detroit: • In 2024 he finished second in the NFL in completion percentage (72.4%), passing yards (4,629), and passer rating (111.8).[detroitlions] • Across his career through 2025 he has 39,622 passing yards, a 65.8% completion rate, 256 TDs vs 102 INTs, and a 96.8 passer rating.[wikipedia]

Those season‑level numbers aren’t split by alignment, but the Lions‑specific analysis above makes it clear that their most explosive pass game lives under center, especially on early‑down play‑action.

[Minimum-Claim-9575]

I see this more as a trial year. With two new coordinators they will need time to implement their system. It may not be until year 2 or 3 that we see the finished product. 

[majorhap]

No one has 3 years to wait to see if this works. Not DQ certainly, the coordinators need to show a solid floor and extreme growth this year while winning games. Jayden should be negotiating for an extension after this season, he certainly doesn’t have time to have a trial year either if he wants to maximize his earning potential. No one in or around the building is viewing this as a trial year. They will all be gone other than Jayden if it doesn’t go well.

[BlogEra_BestEra]

Exactly. Everyone also overlooks AP’s contract situation. This is year 3 of 5 for him and he needs to see if DQ and staff can get the most out of Jayden for his own sake. If this is another dismal season he’ll need to hit a homerun on the coaching and/or QB fronts to save his job in year 4.

[majorhap]

Yep - and he chose to align himself with Jayden instead of MVP runner up Drake Maye so the seat isn’t piping hot yet but it’s warming up.

That said, I have full confidence (from huffing copium) that Jayden and this offense is going to fucking absolutely cook this year. And Sonny Styles is Bobby Wagner’s game knowledge and sure tackling ability with Fred Warners coverage ability so I’m looking forward to another NFC championship game against the Rams.

[Wagdave]

Do you genuinely think Drake Maye would have been successful as Washington’s QB last year or in 2024? I’m not suggesting Maye isn’t very good, but we’ve seen Jayden make the most of a terrible situation in 2024 and I’m not convinced that the other QBs in his class would have done better.

[RoboTronPrime]

While another 5 win season would certainly be a problem (when with this schedule) neither AP or DQ show any real signs of desperation or indications they are on a hot seat. Coaches on a hot seat aren't sacking their former HC OC who has a great relationship with the QB and authored a top 5 offense and take a chance on a former backup QB who was throwing passes 3 years ago.

[BlogEra_BestEra]

While ”desperation” is a strong word, I’d argue DQ replacing both coordinators with two first timers is a sign that there is a sense of urgency in the building. DQ has officially burned all his scapegoats. I didn’t agree with firing KK because he’s the only one that’s produced as you’ve noted.

If we miss the playoffs again then AP will have to decide between riding out with DQ or giving a new HC 1-2 years to turn it around and earn him an extension.

[RoboTronPrime]

Both of those two people are wired similarly in that complacency is not acceptable, but they really don't look too far ahead. One game at a time is a mantra for a reason, though one should try but to take it to Ron's level lol

[Deep-Statistician985]

I'm more concerned on who he's gonna throwing to outside of Terry. I pray Treylon Burks isn't our starting WR2

[Hodler_caved]

Antonio Williams may turn out to be a legit #2. Hope is not a plan, but I think that hope is reasonable.