Dan Quinn Comfortable With Jayden Daniels Playing Zero Preseason Snaps

Jayden Daniels preseason — Commanders head coach Dan Quinn discussed Jayden Daniels' preseason workload, the struggling run game, and eight recent roster moves, including the release of Jake Moody. | Philip Hughes | HTTR4LIFE LLC

There is a real possibility that Jayden Daniels could enter the 2026 regular season without taking a preseason snap, and Commanders head coach Dan Quinn said Tuesday he would be comfortable if Washington chooses that path. Quinn told reporters he has not decided whether Daniels will sit the entire preseason and wants to further evaluate the work Daniels and the rest of the roster put in this week before deciding. Quinn's reasoning is simple: Daniels has already received substantial work against Miami in last week's joint practice session and will get reps against Washington's defense this week, which can serve as alternatives to preseason snaps.

Quinn is basing his confidence in Daniels on what he's seen throughout camp:

"Yes, I’ve been comfortable with him and other veterans that have played to go, but we haven’t decided in terms of, like, will we or won’t we. We had a joint last week. He got a lot of reps. He’ll get a lot today and tomorrow going against our defense. So, I’ll have a better sense for where everybody is before we make any of those decisions."

"But he’s thrown an incredible training camp. His accuracy, his command of it — a new system, you wouldn’t feel like that for him. I’ve been certainly impressed by what I’ve seen so far by him."
Commanders HC Dan Quinn

Quinn's biggest takeaway right now is that Daniels is running a new David Blough offense with enough command that Quinn says it does not look like a new system for him. At some point, this decision becomes less about whether Daniels needs game-time reps to prove he knows the offense, and more about whether Quinn believes his workload is already enough preparation.

Commanders Run Game Still Has Work to Do

Quinn also said the run game is ‘not yet’ where the staff wants it to be on either side of the line. Ultimately, Quinn believes the team's padded days will help in the process:
"Yeah, I would say on both sides of the line, not yet," he said. "And that’s to be expected. It does make a significant impact on the padded days, where we get more reps, and so tomorrow you’ll see even more of that, John. But we’re making progress. The combinations, the speed off the ball...we’re not where we will be, but I would say, in terms of the targeting of where we’re going to, who’s blocking who, yeah, we’re making progress."

When asked directly whether he believed reshuffling the offensive line and not having center Nick Allegretti was the main reason for the issues, Quinn said he didn't place the issue primarily on personnel, instead pointing toward technique, combinations, timing, and speed. "Not as much of that. I haven’t evaluated by the personnel, more just the technique, the combinations of that," Quinn said. "So, I wouldn’t say there’s a lot of errors, just the timing and the speed of it. That’s really what I want to see more of." After hearing that response, it's clear that Quinn believes the entire operation still needs more reps before it reaches regular-season form.

Commanders Make Eight Roster Moves

Washington announced a collection of moves as the team released punter Matt Haack and kicker Jake Moody while moving wide receiver River Cracraft and running back Jerome Ford to Reserve/Injured. The team also signed linebacker Krys Barnes, defensive tackle Maurice Hurst II, tight end Tre McKitty, and running back Craig Reynolds. About Ford, Quinn said, "Yeah, he had a hamstring injury from the game." The moves highlighted another shuffle at the bottom of the roster as preseason shifts to Detroit this week.

We have made the following roster moves:
- Signed LB Krys Barnes, DT Maurice Hurst II, TE Tre McKitty and RB Craig Reynolds
- Released P Matt Haack and K Jake Moody
- Placed WR River Cracraft and RB Jerome Ford on the Reserve/Injured List pic.twitter.com/O5G4v1erga
— Washington Commanders (@Commanders) August 18, 2026

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