Daniels, other rookies earn starting spots on Commanders’ first depth chart

ASHBURN — Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels will start for the Washington Commanders during their preseason opener on Saturday against the New York Jets, coach Dan Quinn announced Tuesday.

The quarterback battle between Daniels and journeyman signal-caller Marcus Mariota was the most anticipated topic before Quinn unveiled the first unofficial depth chart on Tuesday.

“Really, he’s earned that right,” Quinn said of Daniels’ spot atop the depth chart. “Through the course of all the practices, you’re keeping track of accuracy and completions and decisions of where it goes. It was really a byproduct of him really nailing those moments.”

The Commanders’ current coach wasn’t the only one impressed by Daniels’ quick adjustment to the NFL.

“He’s been great in practice,” Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs said of the rookie quarterback on Tuesday.

The three-time Super Bowl champion coach shared some words of wisdom with the current Commanders after practice.

“It really is the entire team,” Gibbs said, cautioning against an overemphasis on quarterbacks. “You’re not going anywhere in the NFL if you can’t play defense, special teams. It takes everything.”

Though Daniels was the top pick in this year’s draft, he isn’t the only rookie to make an early impact at training camp. Two other rookies, left tackle Brandon Coleman and cornerback Mike Sainristil, joined him atop the depth chart.

Earning starting snaps ahead of the first preseason game is an encouraging benchmark for the rookies, Quinn said.

“You get that marker, then you get to the next one and you get to the next one,” Quinn said. “The good news is Jayden and Brandon and Mike Sainristil and others, they’re the type of competitors that want to go after things. That really suits their personality and their competitive nature as well.”

Coleman, who did not participate in team drills Tuesday, will protect Daniels’ blind side during the preseason opener after a strong offseason. The third-round draft pick is competing with veteran Cornelius Lucas for the starting job, but the rookie has an early edge after two weeks of training camp.

“Anything we ask Brandon to do, he’s shown up and he’s tried it. A lot of times with young rookies, they’re used to a certain technique that may not be able to work at this level, and so you got to adjust it,” offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury said. “He’s tried to do it exactly how we’ve coached, and he’s a tremendous athlete and works his tail off.”

The defensive depth chart didn’t offer many surprises. Sainristil is the only rookie currently pegged to start on an overhauled defense led by coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. Eight of the 11 starters on the first depth chart are new additions who joined the squad over the offseason.

“He does not walk around as if he’s a rookie,” Whitt said of Sainristil. “He asks really good questions. He has a good presence about himself, a maturity about himself that’s going to give him an opportunity to help us.”

While Sainristil soared to the top of the depth chart, second-year cornerback Emmanuel Forbes Jr. was listed as a reserve. The 2023 first-round pick struggled in his rookie season, but his coaches said they’ve been encouraged by his progress since the new regime took over.

“Emmanuel’s been working extremely hard on the off-field stuff,” Whitt said. “I was very pleased with the way that he came back in shape, gained weight, and then his availability’s been there and now he’s just learning the finer details of how to be an excellent, professional corner.”

To regain a starting role, Forbes will have to outperform Benjamin St-Juste or Michael Davis, a pair of veterans who sit above him on the depth chart, during the preseason. He’ll have a shot to impress his coaches when the Commanders visit the Jets for a joint practice on Thursday and a preseason matchup on Saturday.

“You get some evaluations against different people in different situations,” Quinn said. “This rusher, this defense, this front, this look, those are the things that you like when you’re seeing a matchup.”

When the Commanders return from New Jersey, they’ll only have a few days at home before heading south to Miami for a joint practice and preseason matchup with the Dolphins.

“The next two weeks are gonna be fun because I like to see the different matchups and the different people,” Quinn said. “Both at the Jets and at Miami, I’m really looking forward to that.”