Jayden Daniels’ Real Interest Tilts Toward Raiders Post-Commanders Encounter Generated Some Smoke

Ron Butler’s confession came as a crushing blow to the Jayden Daniels fans. Since JJ McCarthy’s draft stocks witnessed a steep fall, fans and analysts alike touted Jayden Daniels to be drafted as No. 2 overall. However, Adam Schefter’s giving a glimpse behind the scenes at the Commanders’ 30 visits shattered that prediction. “He didn’t seem particularly pleased with the process,” Schefter revealed on Get Up! 

Schefter believed the reason for it to be the Commanders’ out-of-the-book collective 30 visit. On April 16, the Commanders rolled out the red carpet for JJ McCarthy, Michael Penix Jr, Drake Maye, and Jayden Daniels among 20 other prospects, all at once, as opposed to the traditional one-on-one approach. Whatever the reason, the rocky meeting between the two left behind some defining creases. The ruggedness of those creases might have prompted Daniels to divert his interests to other teams.

Jayden Daniels’ diverting interests

With mere days left for the draft, Daniels has little time left to decide on the franchise with which he will make his NFL debut. Daniels’ career-defining decision is rumored to be diverting from Commanders to his next preference: the Las Vegas Raiders. ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler confessed to there being “some smoke” between the Commanders and Daniels. ” That’s sort of undeniable at this point,” Fowler admitted.

The after-effect of the smoke? “Daniels is looking at his options right now. Now he has interest in playing for the Raiders, that is real,” Fowler said on ESPN’s Sports Center on Sunday. Staying on the West Coast and reuniting with Antonio Pierce from the Arizona State days would be enticing for Daniels. But there would be a major problem in the trade to happen. “They’re pick 13. It’s going to be hard to make that sort of trade happen,” Fowler said. If Antonio Pierce wants to land Daniels, he would need to secure a trade-up in a position where Daniels could still be available. Since the Raiders are not the only ones who have piqued Daniels’ interest, who else does he have eyes on?

Is Jayden Daniels a potential pick for the Minnesota Vikings?

Per Fowler’s report, Daniels has also shown “intriguing interest” in the Minnesota Vikings. If the Vikings want to draft the LSU QB, they too, would need to trade up. It won’t be a big problem for the Vikings, since they are rumored the most to trade up in search of a QB.

The Athletics’s Tashan Reed confirmed the possibility, saying, “They’ll explore trading up in the first round.” To add to the rumors came the Vikings dinner meeting with Jayden Daniels. On Thursday, the Vikings had a dinner meeting with Daniels in Baton Rouge, as reported by Tom Pelissero. Who do you think would pick Daniels? Drop your thoughts in the comments.