The Washington Commanders opted to select Jayden Daniels with the No. 2 overall pick last year and it proved to be the right choice by a large margin.
Daniels put together a historic rookie campaign and helped the Commanders finish with a (12-5) record and make a run to the NFC Championship game.
With the first pick of the 2024 NFL Draft, the Chicago Bears chose to select Caleb Williams instead of Daniels.
While Williams was thrown into a dysfunctional situation where there were massive coaching changes during the season, it’s safe to say he struggled during his rookie season.
The former USC star was sacked 68 times in his 2024 rookie season with the Bears, the third-most in NFL history for a single season and a total that resulted in a loss of 466 yards.
Daniels and Williams will always be linked due to all of the hype heading into last year’s draft, and in Week 8 of last season, the two rookie quarterbacks squared off on Sunday Night Football as the Commanders hosted the Bears.
For most of the game, it was a defensive stalwart as the Bears were forced to punt seven times and the Commanders punted five times during the contest.
But in the fourth quarter, the Bears got the go-ahead score when Roschon Johnson found the end zone with just 27 seconds remaining to give the Bears a one-point lead over the Commanders.
Williams made things even harder for Washington by scrambling for a two-point conversion.
But after a couple of short passes helped the Commanders at least have a shot to win the game with a miracle final play, Daniels launched a Hail Mary with no time remaining that was tipped and fell into the hands of Noah Brown.
It was one of the most memorable plays of the season for Washington and heading into 2025, the Commanders are scheduled to host the Bears at Northwest Stadium in a primetime game yet again.
The two squads are set for a rematch on Monday Night Football on Oct. 13.
In a social media post this week, the Commanders found a creative way to troll the Bears ahead of this year’s game.
Last year, Washington wore its alternate black uniforms during the Hail Mary victory —and with a post from the official account —it’s now set in stone the Commanders are wearing their alternate blacks yet again against the Bears.
This is the only game where the Commanders will wear their alternate blacks this season and it probably isn’t a coincidence.