NFL records two teams, combined to accomplish a feat no two teears

Jayden Daniels and Joe Burrow provided a ringing endorsement for LSU football, combining to set an 80-year NFL record as Washington and Cincinnati met on Monday Night Football.

The Washington Commanders and Cincinnati Bengals bucked a low-scoring start to the 2024 NFL season in a major way Monday evening, combining to achieve an offensive feat that hadn’t been reached in nearly a century.

Across 15 offensive possessions in the Commanders’ thrilling 38-33 victory, there were zero punts or turnovers recorded between Washington and Cincinnati, which ESPN’s primetime Monday Night Football broadcast claims to be a first since the AFL-NFL merger and last occurred during the 1940 season.

The Commanders’ remarkable offensive stretch dates back to their Week 2 victory over the Giants, having scored on their last 14 drives that did not end in quarterback kneels. Overall, Washington has now not punted in two complete games, just the second team to accomplish that feat since 2004.

For a Washington team that ranked among the NFL’s bottom half in success rate and EPA per play last season, this remarkable turnaround has come courtesy of hyper-accurate rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels, who led his own personal assault on the NFL record books Monday night. The former LSU star finished 21 of 23 through the air, the highest ever completion percentage for a rookie per NFL Research, while throwing for 254 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Daniels’ first touchdown of the evening also served as his first career touchdown as an NFL player, coming in fittingly memorable fashion as he found deputy offensive lineman Trent Scott on a unique goal-line set in the first half. He would find a more traditional receiving target in Terry McLaurin early and often Monday afternoon, with the perimeter speedster finishing with over 100 yards and running under Daniels’ lofty endzone pass with two minutes remaining to secure Washington’s victory Monday evening.

The 2023 Heisman winner was similarly precise in Washington’s Week 2 performance against NFC East rivals New York, completing 22 of 29 passes as the Commanders emerged victorious on a last-second field goal. Now a consensus favorite among major sportsbooks to win Rookie of the Year honors, Daniels has been seemingly undaunted by the step up to professional football.

“Yes and no,” Daniels said when asked if he was surprised by his quick success. “Yes, because obviously it’s something new to me as I continue this journey in my rookie year. But also, I put in the work, and what’s done in the dark will always come to light. I just know I’m prepared for these moments week in and week out. Just got to go out there and play football and execute.”