Jayden Daniels’ growth with VR simulation leads Commander to engage in mind games

ASHBURN, Va. – Kliff Kingsbury is embracing the virtual reality simulation that Jayden Daniels credits with developing his quarterback skills, even if the technology initially sent him in the wrong direction.

“The first time I put it on, my back was against the wall,” said Kingsbury, offensive coordinator for the Washington Commanders and former quarterback at Texas Tech. “It felt like the (pass) rush was coming.”

The former Arizona Cardinals head coach spent his year-long absence from the professional ranks determined to seek new approaches should he return. When Kingsbury played with the Red Raiders in Mike Leach’s “Air Raid” system from 2000 to 2002, he served as quarterback for one of football’s newest offensive developments.

He has no plans to slow down the latest.

“I’m all in,” Kingsbury said of the VR platform. “I mean, it’s an incredible technology.”

Six weeks into his rookie season, Daniels is the talk of the league and part of the emerging MVP conversation. The Commanders, led by an extremely efficient offense that ranks second in scoring at 29.7 points per game, have a respectable 4-2 record heading into Sunday’s home game against the Carolina Panthers.

The only thing perhaps faster than Daniels’ accelerated growth is the speed at which he tunes the VR simulation. That would be the highest possible setting.

“In VR, it moves faster than real people,” Daniels said before Washington opened the 2024 season. “Once you get out there, everything slows down. I know that’s coming. I’ve seen this before, and it was over 20 times faster in VR.”

Jayden Daniels works virtual reality every morning like a “flight simulator for QBs”@tracywolfson has more 🎤 pic.twitter.com/LmScO2SBt4

— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) October 13, 2024

The simulation from German company Cognilize arrived on the LSU campus ahead of Daniels’ final season. The dual-threat quarterback immediately became a believer in the immersive technology, originally designed for elite football players to get extra reps beyond practice without additional wear and tear. Fast forward, the quarterback became a star with mid- to late-round draft projections in 2023.

Daniels excelled with 50 touchdowns – 40 passing, 10 rushing – 3,812 passing yards and 4,946 total yards from scrimmage with just four interceptions en route to winning the Heisman Trophy. He had not passed for 3,000 yards or more than 17 touchdowns in any of his previous four seasons at LSU or Arizona State.

When LSU staff reduced the VR’s pace to game speed, “it felt like slow motion,” Daniels said.

That hasn’t changed, as evidenced by his pinpoint accuracy — Daniels leads the NFL with a 75.3 completion percentage — and his Matrix-like moves around defenders. He ranks fourth among quarterbacks in total yards (1,726) and has scored 10 touchdowns, including six through the air.

Go deeper

For Jayden Daniels’ Commanders it was a defeat in Baltimore, but not a setback

Regardless of the results, not every coach grows with their sport or accepts new and different approaches. Some get stuck in their habits and are ready to rise and fall with their methods. The Commanders team under coach Dan Quinn is open to innovations in how they can apply for multiple positions and whatever comes their way.

“That’s one of the fun parts of coaching,” Quinn said. “Nothing really stays the same and there are things that evolve and progress.”

Washington targeted Daniels early in the pre-draft cycle, meaning Kingsbury had time to start formulating a plan for the Commanders’ next quarterback hope. Initial post-draft meetings in which Washington made Daniels the No. 2 pick prompted the coordinator to make the VR simulation a “big part” of his weekly process.

“It’s a unique technology and it’s definitely for the quarterbacks,” Kingsbury said. “I think it’s more effective than just watching the film. They go through their reads, they go over their progress, they see it.”

Daniels also listens to Kingsbury at the same time. The coordinator adjusted his daily schedule so that he spent 45 to 60 minutes recording the weekly pieces into a recorder. Kingsbury’s voice is the soundtrack for these VR sessions.

“(Pilots) are not trained on real aircraft. They make their flight simulators. … (Jayden) has that thing on all the time. He can see our readings and routes and hears my voice in them. “It’s as real as it gets to get game reps and your mind doesn’t know the difference,” Kingsbury said. “Your mind thinks you do.”

Shortly after the draft, the organization purchased the VR simulation for its quarterbacks. Marcus Mariota, the Commanders’ backup and former NFL starter, finds the modern application “amazing” because it helps quarterbacks become more comfortable in an offense and recognize patterns.

“I believe defensive patterns are patterns,” Mariota said. “It’s important to recognize them quickly, and (VR) seems to help Jayden with that.”

Go deeper

How a ‘flight simulator’ for QBs made Jayden Daniels even scarier on the field

Confidence in coverage and “a feel for the space” are part of Daniels’ transition from college to the NFL and another way simulation helps improve.

“You have to throw some guys out,” Daniels said. “There are (defenders) who have been in this league for a long time who are very savvy and know what to expect, all the patterns and things like that. You have to make some tight throws. So that’s what you have to do in this league.”

The experience doesn’t just happen after the snapshot. Simulations allow the quarterback to move around the pocket and utilize the entire field. Street stadium details, including the location of the game clocks, allow the user to experience the entire scene before entering the stadium.

In the past, there have been less sophisticated versions of the VR product. Mariota got his first look at a Stanford-run simulator years ago. The 2014 Heisman winner recalled the process using snippets of game footage that didn’t come close to replicating game-like situations.

Nine-year veteran Jeff Driskel “played around” with VR technology as a newbie. A “visual learner,” Washington’s emergency third-string quarterback recognizes the tremendous progress from then to now. It personalizes each play “based on what we think they’re going to do on defense and what we think we’re going to do on offense.”

Quinn, 54, focuses on the teaching aspect of his work and has structured his staff accordingly. Seeing this technological advancement enlightens the “lifelong learner.” Now backup quarterbacks like rookie Sam Hartman, who rarely gets significant practice time in the team’s offense, have a tool to help them learn.

“The rep count is always low for anyone, especially at our level and tempo,” Hartman said. “The goal for quarterbacks is to get reps and see every play a million times. (VR) really helps.”

Scoop City Newsletter

Free, daily NFL updates delivered straight to your inbox.

Free, daily NFL updates delivered straight to your inbox.

Sign in

Hartman, a member of the Washington training team, has been playing video games with the Oculus headset, but all the exercise makes him sick. The soccer simulation doesn’t require running around.

“If I had Jayden’s speed, I would run around a little bit more,” said Hartman, an undrafted free agent out of Notre Dame.

Mariota and Driskel said there’s no telling how much support Daniels will get from the simulation or how he would perform without VR in the middle. They know that more repetition leads to sharpening instincts. In real games, when instinct takes over, success often follows.

Daniels suffered a concussion in practice last year, a week before LSU played SEC rival Florida. The injury kept him from the physical, but not the mental, parts of training. He then delivered the outstanding performance of his college career with 372 passing yards, 234 rushing and five combined touchdowns in the 52-35 victory.

“The VR helped a lot,” said Daniels.

Currently, only Washington’s quarterbacks have access to the groundbreaking technology. With simulations available for others to trick their brains, Commanders trainers will not be afraid to engage in any scenario that comes their way. The one with Daniels created quite a reality.

(Illustration: Meech Robinson / The athlete; Photos: Patrick Smith, Michael Reaves, Michael Zagaris / Getty Images)