NFL Draft Rumors: Jayden Daniels Eyes Raiders, Vikings amid Commanders, Patriots Buzz

Amid speculation about some unhappiness from Jayden Daniels' camp about how the Washington Commanders handled their pre-draft player visits, the reigning Heisman winner has his eyes on two other teams looking for a quarterback in the 2024 NFL draft.

On the Saturday morning edition of SportsCenter, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler noted Daniels has "interest" in potentially playing for either the Las Vegas Raiders or Minnesota Vikings:

"It does feel like there is some smoke here. That's sort of undeniable at this point. I spoke to somebody who's involved in Daniels' process who does openly wonder, 'is Daniels looking at his options right now?' Now, he has had interest in playing for the Raiders. That is real. Staying on the west coast, reuniting with Antonio Pierce from the Arizona State days. But they pick 13th, it's going to be hard to make that sort of trade happen. Intrigue in Minnesota as well. That's not to say that he doesn't have interest in playing for Washington eventually, I cannot confirm that that's any different. But as was told to me, this has not gone as smoothly as it should for a player who's a viable candidate for the No. 2 pick. It should be pretty clear at this point. Talking to people in Washington, they should expect that Daniels is a good candidate to be the pick here and it could very well happen, but there's just a lot of smoke right now. I've reached out to his agency, I'm told there could be a statement at some point but nothing yet."

Fowler also cited the New England Patriots, who own the third pick, as a landing spot for Daniels if he is still on the board when their turn comes up:

"They feel like they're in a great spot. Certainly, they're prepared to take a quarterback here. They have a high grade on Jayden Daniels if he's available at No. 3; I think they would probably pounce on that. And Drake Maye too they're high on. So, the feeling around the league right now is that Drake Maye would be that pick right now at No. 3. They are open for business as de facto GM Eliot Wolf said but I'm told they haven't gotten an offer yet that would wow them or move them off that pick. They know they need a quarterback in the worst way long term, so they'll probably stay put."

Daniels has seemed like a strong bet to be taken by the Commanders at No. 2 overall for some time, but that might be changing in the final days leading up to the draft.

Washington took a unique approach to its pre-draft visits by hosting several players, including multiple quarterbacks, at the same time.

Ron Butler of Agency 1 Sports, who represents Daniels, may not have been thrilled by that approach. Bryan Manning of Commanders Wire noted Butler liked two posts on X that were critical of Washington.

ESPN's Adam Schefter said on Friday's episode of The Pat McAfee Show that Daniels has had "an interest in being other places" than Washington.

Schefter did slightly walk back that comment later on Friday when he said on SportsCenter (starts at 2:30 mark) that Daniels is "prepared to go wherever he's drafted" with the belief among most people in the NFL that Washington is still likely to select him.

From a pure football standpoint, the Vikings and Raiders are much better situations right now than the Commanders for a rookie quarterback.

Minnesota had a top-10 pass-blocking offensive line last season, boasts a trio of pass-catchers that includes Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison and T.J. Hockenson, and head coach Kevin O'Connell is a very good offensive play caller.

The Raiders have Davante Adams as a safety net for their quarterback. Head coach Antonio Pierce was an assistant coach at Arizona State for Daniels' three seasons with the program from 2019 to '21.

If either of those teams really wants Daniels, though, they will likely have to make a significant trade up. The Vikings own two first-round picks at No. 11 and 23. The Raiders' first selection is at No. 13 overall.

The Commanders are in control of what they want to do by virtue of holding the No. 2 selection. If they have identified Daniels as the player they want, it's hard to envision a scenario in which he wouldn't be their pick.