Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels addressed the media after the team's Wednesday practice. Here are five takeaways from his press conference.

1. The past two weeks featured a new experience for him.

Daniels didn't mince words about his time sidelined with his knee injury. It was "tough," he said, watching his teammates play in two games as he worked on getting healthy.

"As a competitor, you want to go out there and help your team in any way possible," Daniels said. "So, kind of being sidelined for these past couple weeks was super tough."

It was particularly difficult during last week's game against the Atlanta Falcons, as the Commanders failed to pull out a comeback and suffered their second loss of the season, 34-27. "Nobody likes losing at all," he said, regardless of whether they're playing or not.

The Commanders have been cautious with Daniels' recovery process, even though he wishes that he could have been back on the field two weeks ago. Although Daniels did whatever he could to show that he was healthy, the Commanders' medical team held off on clearing him until they were completely sure he wouldn't reinjure himself.

That can lead to frustration at times, but the coaches and his teammates were there to help him through the process.

"DQ [head coach Dan Quinn] and my team always, obviously, was there for me because they knew how much it meant to me," Daniels said. "And I tried to return that same energy and I think I was able to do that."

2. He might have to wear a brace on Sunday.

Although the Commanders haven't officially announced it yet, Daniels is closer to returning this week than he has been since he first suffered his injury in Week 2. Assuming he does suit up against the Los Angeles Chargers, he could be wearing some new gear.

Daniels was seen wearing a brace during Wednesday's practice, which confirms some of the reports we have heard about his recovery over the past two weeks. The brace adds more stability to Daniels' knee and helps prevent more serious injury when making sharp, cutting movements, both of which are parts of Daniels' skill set.

Daniels let reporters know exactly how he feels about it.

"I'm not the biggest fan of it, but if that's what I have to wear then I'll do anything possible," Daniels said.

It is unclear how long Daniels will wear the brace. It could just be a precautionary measure while he gets back up to speed or a permanent change. Daniels is open to either possibility, but he's not letting reporters know either way.

"I guess we gotta see on Sunday," he said.

3. It would mean "everything" to play an NFL game in his hometown.

If Daniels does play, it would be his first time playing in an NFL game in the Los Angeles area, where he spent most of his childhood. Daniels said "it would mean the world" to come back and play in a part of the country that means so much to him.

"I plan on having a lot of people attend the game, so that is the hometown and to be able to play back in my hometown as a pro, it would mean everything."

Daniels was one of the best prospects in California during his high school career at Cajon High School, accounting for nearly 18,000 total yards and 210 touchdowns. He received 25 scholarship offers and was considered the top dual threat quarterback in the state by 247Sports.

Daniels should have a decent crowd of fans at SoFi Stadium, but for now, his focus is on helping the team, rather than his childhood memories.

"We're going on the road, and we haven't played the best on the road, so kind of just focus on ourselves and going out there and having fun and cutting it loose," Daniels said.

4. "Guys are stepping up" on offense.

Daniels has had to watch his offense from afar over the past two weeks, and he's liked a lot of what he's seen from the group.

"[They're] running the ball really well," Daniels said. "A lot of guys are stepping up and contributing, even though we kind of dealt with a little injury bug, so a lot of guys [have] been stepping up."

Daniels wasn't the only player dealing with an injury last month. Players like Terry McLaurin, John Bates and Noah Brown have all missed time, meaning the Commanders' depth has had to pick up the slack. Luke McCaffrey has scored two touchdowns in as many games, while backup Marcus Mariota accounted for four total touchdowns to one interception. The combination of Chris Rodriguez Jr., Jacory Croskey-Merritt and Jeremy McNichols has the team ranked second in yards per game and first in yards per attempt.

Now that Daniels and some of the Commanders' injured players are starting to get healthy, they're hoping to build on that success.

"They've been doing their thing and they kind of all just executed at a high level," Daniels said.

5. He wants to play balanced on Sunday...if he plays.

The Commanders don't want their quarterback to miss any more time than he already has, so they're going to do everything they can to make sure he can avoid injury. At the same time, part of what makes Daniels so dynamic is his ability to scramble, which can open him up to the possibility of risking injury.

Daniels isn't planning on changing up his style, but he does want to be smart.

"I just think it's that balance," Daniels said. "You find that balance, obviously you want to be able to be available for the rest of the games, but you gotta be smart and that's kind of what we talked about."

The Commanders will need Daniels for their next stretch of games. Once they finish with the Chargers, the Kansas City Chiefs, Detroit Lions and Seattle Seahawks are all on the schedule with top-tier offenses and solid defenses. They will need to be as close to full strength as possible with Daniels in the backfield.

The Commanders want Daniels to "live to see another down" and not take any unnecessary risks. However...

"Just know if the game is on the line, I'm going to do whatever it takes to win, so that that's a different circumstance too."