How Jayden Daniels Went From Laughingstock to NFL Superstar

Jayden Daniels is lighting it up as a rookie, but he almost never even made it on his high school football team. He was so skinny that he needed to get medically cleared by a doctor before he could play. And this narrative never left him.

But despite his slender frame, Jayden Daniels has put the world of football on notice, one level at a time. Since he got that medical clearance in high school, his performance has even left lasting changes to his community. And he isn’t just “a good rookie quarterback.” He’s breaking records that make you wonder “Is he the best rookie quarterback that we’ve ever seen?”

Jayden Daniels was raised in San Bernardino, California, which is a rough place to live. With a population of about 216,000, there are estimated to be 45 gangs with a total of about 1,000 members, meaning roughly one in every 200 people there is a gang member. In a city known for violence, the high school he would attend, Cajon High School, was not known for football. Jayden’s parents were big supporters when it came to Jayden playing the game, especially his father who once played for Iowa State. Jayden’s dad thought he could make a nice cornerback, but Jayden showed promise as a quarterback. He wanted to play Varsity ball, but due to the fact that he was under 15 and weighed so little, he needed to be medically cleared first.