Greatness in the NFL often carries a hidden cost. Jayden Daniels proved as a rookie that he could redefine the quarterback position, becoming only the third first-year player in league history to pass for more than 3,000 yards while rushing for over 600. He won Rookie of the Year, carried Washington to the NFC Championship, and showed the kind of toughness that builds legends — even playing through a broken rib and delivering a walk-off Hail Mary to beat Chicago. But with every breathtaking play came a bruise, a sack, or a scramble that raised the question Craig Morton now asks out loud: How long can this last?

Morton, a Super Bowl quarterback for the Denver Broncos, knows the violence of survival in the pocket better than most. Over 18 years, he was sacked 405 times and estimates he absorbed more than 1,000 hits, leaving him with severe back issues that sometimes put him in a wheelchair. At 82, watching Daniels reminds him of his own battles. “Jayden Daniels is phenomenal,” Morton said bluntly, “but he’s going to get killed.”

It’s not just an old quarterback’s pessimism. The numbers back him up. Daniels ran the ball 148 times for 891 yards in 2024, more than some starting running backs, and was sacked 47 times. Add in the punishment of playing through a fractured rib after a 46-yard run against Carolina, and you start to see why Morton is sounding alarms. He isn’t questioning Daniels’ talent, toughness, or will to play through pain — he’s questioning whether that style can be sustained in a league designed to break quarterbacks down.

The Commanders, meanwhile, are betting their franchise on the idea that he can survive it. They extended Terry McLaurin with a three-year, $96 million deal, shed K.J. Osborn, and doubled down on giving Daniels weapons in Kliff Kingsbury’s offense. Daniels himself responded by adding noticeable muscle this offseason to better absorb hits. The stage is set for Year 2 to be even bigger. But Morton’s warning cuts through the optimism: in the NFL, the hits you don’t see and the ones you play through are the ones that can shorten a career.

Jayden Daniels’ protection plan takes shape in Washington

With Morton’s cautionary words hanging in the air, the focus sharpens on Washington’s strategy to protect its most valuable asset. Securing Terry McLaurin was more than just retaining a Pro Bowl receiver; it was a crucial step in safeguarding Daniels. McLaurin, who set a franchise record with 13 touchdowns last season, is the ultimate safety valve. His ability to create separation gives Daniels a quick, reliable option to get the ball out of his hands, theoretically turning potential scrambles and sacks into positive gains. Daniels’ own enthusiastic Instagram comment on the deal—“Lemme hold sum $. LFGGGGGGGG,”—playfully underscored a serious truth: his success is directly tied to his WR1.

Beyond McLaurin, the offensive architecture is designed to provide Daniels with a diverse set of weapons. With Deebo Samuel operating as a dynamic WR2 and Noah Brown providing a reliable presence in the slot, the Commanders believe they have the personnel to evolve their offense. The goal must be to harness Daniels’ dual-threat ability without making it a necessity on every down. This puts immense pressure on the offensive line and the play-calling to create a system where Daniels’ legs are a strategic weapon, not a last resort.

But depth is thinner now. The Commanders cut K.J. Osborn, a veteran who was supposed to provide Daniels with an outlet as a WR3 but never logged a catch in Washington. That leaves Samuel and Brown to round out the starting trio, supported by rookies and unproven depth pieces like Luke McCaffrey and Jacoby Jones. For a quarterback who thrives off dynamic play extensions, the line between hero-ball and hospital visits remains razor thin when weapons taper off.

Ultimately, the Commanders find themselves at a crossroads, balancing the explosive present with the hope of a durable future. Jayden Daniels has already proven he is an elite talent capable of rewriting record books. The question that will define his career, and one that Craig Morton’s aching body forces us to ask, isn’t about his skill. It’s about his sustainability. Washington has its franchise quarterback, but as one of the game’s toughest survivors can attest, the path to a long and legendary career is paved with the hits a quarterback manages to avoid.