This time last season, LSU had all sorts of questions at the game’s most important position.
The Tigers held a seemingly three-way quarterback battle between veteran Myles Brennan, redshirt freshman Garrett Nussmeier and transfer Jayden Daniels. Brennan ultimately retired from football after the spring, and Daniels won the starting job.
He never looked back, leading LSU to a 10-win season as one of the best quarterbacks in the SEC (and the entire country). Pro Football Focus predicted the starting quarterback for every top-25 team, and unsurprisingly, Daniels is expected to get the nod.
Here’s what PFF’s Max Chadwick said about him.
Like Nix and Penix, a new environment revived Daniels’ career. The Arizona State transfer led all quarterbacks in the country this season with a 0.6% turnover-worthy play rate. The fifth-year senior was also the only quarterback who rushed for over 1,000 yards. Overall, only Drake Maye and Caleb Williams were more valuable Power Five quarterbacks than the LSU signal-caller this past season.
That’s certainly lofty praise, but Daniels deserves it following a breakout season. After two promising seasons at ASU, Daniels struggled in his final season with the Sun Devils in 2021. The change of scenery worked wonders for him, and his return allows LSU continuity at the quarterback position for the first time since Joe Burrow came back in 2019.
