00:00I have set the odds on Jaden Daniels starts in 2026, the over-under number at 13 and a half.
00:09He played and started in 20 games in his rookie year and just seven last year.
00:14So the average of the two seasons in terms of number of starts is 13 and a half.
00:20Over or under on how many games Jaden starts in 2026.
00:26This will really reflect how you feel and your confidence level in his ability to stay healthy,
00:32whether or not it's a legitimate concern for you or not.
00:35I'm going over 13 and a half.
00:39Last year, at least based on his college career and his one year prior to last year in the NFL,
00:46last year is the aberration.
00:48It's not the norm.
00:49He started 52 of 54 games in two different places in college at Arizona State and LSU.
00:56And he started all 20 football games, even though he got banged up midway through that season.
01:01But he played hurt in 2024 with the injured ribs for at least two or three starts.
01:09And he started all 20 games.
01:11So last year, at least based on history, is the outlier.
01:15Now, if you want to say, look, college is different from the NFL and running as much as he has
01:21in his first two seasons at the NFL level,
01:24the numbers are going to start to tilt in the opposite direction.
01:27And he's going to be less available than he was in college or less available than he was his rookie
01:33year.
01:34Maybe you see this last season as the beginning of a trend for him.
01:38I don't.
01:39And I also think that the offense that he'll be plugged into this year will be slightly more protective.
01:46Although, remember, you know, more quarterbacks get injured in the pocket than outside of the pocket.
01:53That's just a fact.
01:54More of this, I should say, more of this serious quarterback injuries where you're out for seasons, you know, or
02:03the rest of the season,
02:04those happen inside the pocket more so than they happen outside of the pocket.
02:10I don't expect Jaden to become a different quarterback in his mentality.
02:14I do think there is some growing to be done.
02:17I've said this a million times.
02:19First and 10 in a scoreless first quarter is much different than fourth and four down six in the fourth
02:27quarter in terms of the way you treat that down.
02:30Like, I've got to get the first down or we lose the game.
02:33That's a different mindset and should be treated as such more so than first and 10, a little bit of
02:38pressure.
02:39Do I really need to take on a linebacker and a safety in the open field to get an extra
02:45two yards rather than going down or getting out of bounds?
02:48So I do want to see that growth and that development from him in his third season.
02:53But the career, you know, numbers on Jaden is he's available.
03:00Last year, he wasn't.
03:01I'll go over 13 and a half starts in 2026 and expect him to be a healthier quarterback and, by
03:12the way, have a very good season.
03:14I feel good about the opportunity for him to remind everybody what he is talent-wise and production-wise at
03:23the position.
03:24Max, are you going over 13 and a half starts or under 13 and a half starts for Jaden Daniels?
03:30As a homer and an optimist, especially when it comes to everything that Jaden does, I feel like I have
03:37to take over here.
03:38But I am concerned, and I do want to see a lot of the same things that you just mentioned
03:42in terms of his growth and his learning process.
03:45You don't really need those extra two yards.
03:47You don't need to sell out for it and put your body on the line because that's only going to
03:51cost you further down the line.
03:52I think that last year, I mean, you could see it a little bit in quarterbacks as he's, you know,
03:57dealing with this injury.
03:58I think he's learning from this experience, and he's going to take it and hold it with him this entire
04:03next season and actually take protecting himself a lot more seriously.
04:07So that's really what I need to see from him, but I'm going to go over 13 and a half
04:10games here.
04:11All right, 301-230-0980, you can vote on it as well.
04:15I just retweeted it, so if you want to vote on our Waldorf Honda X Twitter poll of the day,
04:23over 13 and a half starts for Jaden or under 13 and a half, you can vote on it again
04:31at Team 980 or at Kevin Sheehan DC because I just retweeted it.
04:36All right, let's start with our guy Bobby in North Carolina.
04:41Bobby, over or under 13 and a half starts for Jaden in 2026, and why?
04:48Kevin, hey, bud, I'm going over, not even close.
04:52He's going to post, and the number one reason I think that he's going to go over is he's going
04:59to feel like this year he doesn't have to do everything by himself
05:03because our defense is going to be remarkable better to me.
05:06On paper, we've got a whole lot better personnel.
05:10The scheme is going to be a whole lot better, so therefore I think our defense is going to be
05:14a lot, lot better,
05:16hoping they give him short fields to play on and create more turnovers and everything.
05:23So therefore, he's not going to have to be Superman on every single play.
05:27So therefore, I think he might make smarter decisions as far as when to get down and get out of
05:34bounds and things like that.
05:35But I don't have a problem.
05:36That's not his M.O., Kevin.
05:38You've talked about it for a couple years now.
05:41He just doesn't get hurt.
05:43You know what I'm saying?
05:43Or if he does, he posts it the next week.
05:46So he's going to go over, and the defense is going to be the reason why because they're going to
05:51probably carry this team early on too, Kevin, I think,
05:54because they're going to be, I think, significantly better on what they run out there.
05:58That would be interesting if the defense carried this team early on because I'll tell you this.
06:04If the defense was better and ahead of the offense and it was a marked difference and they weren't winning
06:12games,
06:12or let's just say they were 2-2 or something like that, there would be great concern about David Blau
06:19and Jaden Daniels and Adam Peters
06:21and what he put around the team, and yet I think a lot of NFL people believe that when you
06:28have that significant a change
06:30in an offensive approach, it takes time.
06:34And the real evaluation of where they are offensively should come later in the season,
06:39like it did with Chicago last year when Caleb Williams had to adapt to a completely different offense
06:47than the one he played in his rookie year.
06:51Yeah, it's going to take time, Kevin.
06:53I mean, he's going to be playing under center more.
06:55You know, there's a whole lot of – I mean, I think this is going to be a good offense
06:58for him.
06:59He's going to run more boots, run that zone read concept that's going to help him,
07:03but I just think it's going to take a few weeks for the offense, you know,
07:07and then try to figure out who he's going to be throwing to besides Terry.
07:10That's going to take time.
07:11So that's why I'm saying this defense, if we need to get off to a good start,
07:16it's going to be because of the defense, you know, to keep us in some games,
07:20and that way, you know, maybe we'll make a play or two down the stretch
07:23and steal a game or two early on, you know.
07:25And just thinking about what you're saying, Bobby, thanks, by the way, for the call as always.
07:30If they started off really well defensively against Philly and Dallas and Seattle
07:37and maybe an Indy team that's back to where they were last year offensively
07:40before Daniel Jones got hurt, I'd feel better about the overall prospects for the team,
07:46even if the offense was slow developing.
07:49I'm expecting the offense to be a good offense this year, the key being Jaden Daniels.
07:55But the thing that would alarm me early in the season is if the offense is at the 2024 level
08:02and we're not seeing it from the defense and we're not seeing major improvement.
08:06Because to me, that would limit the upside of what they have.
08:10I felt throughout 2024, if you guys remember this, I thought the playoffs were a possibility,
08:15but I didn't think winning games in the postseason was a possibility
08:20because I just didn't think they were good enough defensively to hold up over a couple of games.
08:24And they won two games on the road.
08:26And then, of course, the defense got absolutely shellacked in the championship game.
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