The Washington Commanders took the league by storm last season with an electric 12-5 regular season and two surprising victories in the NFC playoffs.
Now entering Year 2 of the Jayden Daniels era, the Commanders have a target on their back to prove to the rest of the league that their championship contention was not a fluke.
Running back Austin Ekeler - also in his first season in Washington - got a front-row seat to Daniels' dominant rookie season. In 2025, Ekeler believes the star quarterback is capable of even more.
"I think there's even going to be more growth this year, which is awesome because of where we are at with our team and have a lot of players back," Ekeler said, via NFL.com.
This should be taken as nothing shy of a warning shot to the rest of the league. Daniels put up numbers comparable to the best of any rookie season by a quarterback in league history.
So an encore? It's certainly possible after Washington's excellent offseason spending, but Daniels has set himself up with high standards to reach for.
His Offensive Rookie of the Year acclaim was highlighted by 4,459 all-purpose yards as the Commanders' leading passer and rusher. He totaled 31 combined touchdowns, the ninth most in the league. Those numbers came off of impressive efficiency as well, qualifying for fourth in the NFL with a 70.6 adjusted quarterback rating.
Ekeler wasn't a major factor in the offense like he's been at other stops throughout his career, but he enjoyed watching Daniels carve up defenses. Already in this spring's minicamp workouts, he has noticed his quarterback's comfort level increase ... yet another sign of danger for future opponents.
"When you start to see him kind of orchestrating out there, you could tell that there's that growth," Ekeler said about Daniels. "He starts to get more comfortable, and that allows him to even play more mentally faster and make better decisions ... Oh man, we are going to be looking like a powerhouse out there."
The Commanders have loaded up their offensive line with two imposing tackles in Pro Bowl free agent Laremy Tunsil and highly-touted first-round pick Josh Conerly Jr. Daniels' receiving corps got a boost with versatile veteran Deebo Samuel Sr., who offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury can utilize in a variety of formations and schemes.
However, one last box must be checked to officially stamp this offense as contenders for a repeat performance: re-signing Terry McLaurin.
The disgruntled wide receiver was an All-Pro selection for the first time in his career. He was an instrumental part in the passing attack, and his production cannot be replaced solely by Samuel and rookies.
If and when McLaurin is extended with a new contract, the Commanders offense is poised to reclaim their spot - and their respect - among the elites of the NFC.
And yes, send more warnings to the rest of the NFL in the process.