Dan Quinn immediately saw something special in Jayden Daniels as a rookie in 2024, and the head coach of the Washington Commanders is seeing the same thing from an “in control” member of the team’s 2026 NFL draft class.
Quinn believes first-round pick Sonny Styles shares the same qualities as Daniels. It’s a strange comparison on the surface, drawing a parallel between a versatile inside linebacker and a dual-threat quarterback, but Quinn is convinced Styles already has the intangibles to match NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Daniels.
Winning a similar award on the other side of the ball is in Styles’ sights because Quinn’s noticed how this year’s seventh-overall pick “looks ‘in control’ when communicating calls and checks with his teammates, and it reminds him (Quinn) of how quarterback Jayden Daniels operates in the backfield,” per Commanders.com Senior Writer Zach Selby.
Quinn also applauded the way Styles “has hit all the marks that you can hit at this time of year. The knowledge; the intensity to go for it. What we haven’t seen, and we will, is the blitz ability and making plays on the ball with the speed and length. But man, are we pumped with him.”
The implications of this comparison are exciting for a Commanders team that needs Styles to have the same instantly transformative impact Daniels had two years ago.
Expectations Getting Bigger for Sonny Styles
Having his name put alongside Daniels before he’s even played a snap in a competitive game in the pros only increases the expectations for Styles. The former Ohio State stud is getting used to such lofty comparisons, having already been likened to a decorated former Commanders starter who’s a likely Hall of Famer.
If Styles even comes close to justifying this level of hype, then he’ll deliver what the Commanders need from him in Year 1. Namely, to turn a feeble defense into a genuine force.
That won’t be easy after the Commanders ranked last in yards allowed and 27th in points in 2025, per Pro Football Reference. Numbers like those are why the Commanders didn’t hesitate to make Styles a top-10 pick.
GettyStyles is tasked with immediately transforming a dire Commanders defense.
Woeful stats also motivated Quinn and general manager Adam Peters to retool the defense during free agency. Many of the changes occurred across the front seven, where Styles will be joined by Super Bowl-winning linebacker Leo Chenal, as well as edge-rushers Odafe Oweh and K’Lavon Chaisson.
Those players will not only set a new tone for Styles and the rest of the defense. They will also form a nucleus of core disruptors key to putting the sophisticated pressure schemes of new defensive coordinator Daronte Jones into practice.
Styles’ role in this process is summed up by the 21-year-old already being “the odds-on favorite to wear the green dot this season. Styles’ schematic mastery must be high if he’s to assume such a large responsibility relaying play calls and making pre-snap checks,” according to Scott Bair of SB Nation’s Hogs Haven.
Trusitng him with this demanding a role so soon proves the Commanders view Styles as the same kind of instant impact player Daniels was during his spectacular debut campaign. Just like Styles, Washington’s QB1 is also trying to quickly master a new system.
Jayden Daniels Undergoing Change for Dan Quinn, Commanders
Getting used to spending more time under center is the challenge facing Daniels this offseason. It’s one of the big changes taking place after David Blough replaced Kliff Kingsbury as offensive coordinator.
Daniels has admitted there’s much to learn, but he’s applied himself to learning the nuances at minicamp. Those nuances will include borrowing a trick from a Hall of Fame passer.
All of the changes in alignment, concepts and mechanics are designed to help Daniels get back on track after an injury-wrecked, nightmare second season. Before 2025, Daniels was good enough to elevate the Commanders from rebuilding strugglers to legitimate contenders.
Quinn is hoping Styles will inspire the same dramatic shift in Washington’s fortunes this season.
Dan Quinn Compares Commanders’ Rookie to Jayden Daniels