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

1. His budding relationship with Deebo Samuel.

With both Terry McLaurin and Noah Brown missing time due to injury, Samuel has emerged as one of the offense's best weapons. He leads the team with 300 receiving yards on 30 catches with four total scores, three of which have come through the air. He was Daniels' favorite target in his first game back, catching eight of his 11 targets for 97 yards and a touchdown to ice the win over the Los Angeles Chargers.

Daniels is not surprised by that skill set.

"I would just say obviously as a playmaker, it kind of just spoke for itself when we traded for him," Daniels said. "Everything he did in San Fran[cisco], he's doing that here. So, we find ways to just to get him the ball and let him make plays."

While the Commanders would have rather had the likes of McLaurin and Brown on the field over the last few months, their absence allowed Daniels to develop a connection with Samuel. Daniels often targeted Samuel on deep passes downfield in training camp, and Samuel, who has been dedicated to showing he still possesses the same athleticism he had earlier in his career, often rewarded that faith with contested grabs.

The two dedicated themselves to building a strong rapport, and so far, that extra work is paying off.

"The more we talk, the more we hang out in the locker room, guys get closer, you start completing some passes on and off the field, and you talk about different things so you can see it through the eyes of me, and he's doing a great job," Daniels said.

2. He's seen growth from Luke McCaffrey.

McCaffrey has been patiently waiting for his opportunity, and the second-year wideout has begun to show how much he has developed over the past year. He caught his first two touchdown passes in Weeks 3 and 4, and he had a 50-yard completion against the Chargers that helped move the Commanders into field goal range.

Daniels has noticed McCaffrey's growth, and it has led to him getting more opportunities.

"More definitive, getting in out his break, timing purposes also," Daniels said. "He's been doing a great job of really honing on his own skills and getting better and finding different ways to get better."

Although he still isn't utilized as much as Samuel or some of the other Commanders receivers, McCaffrey has been one of the most reliable receivers on the roster with seven catches on nine targets for 146 yards, which is just 18 yards fewer than what he got for his entire rookie season. Although he has just seven touches, he has the fourth-most scrimmage yards on the team.

He also has his experience as a former quarterback, which Daniels said helps establish better communication between the two.

"He also sees it through the eyes of a QB, so that's another good thing for him," Daniels said. "And he puts in the work man, he put in the work this offseason, it's showing off, he's making big plays when we need him to."

3. He knew Jacory Croskey-Merritt had "something to him."

Croskey-Merritt's success has been one of the Commanders' biggest storylines through the first five games. He was just named the FedEx Air & Ground Player of the Week as well as the Pepsi Zero Sugar Rookie of the Week for getting 150 total yards and two touchdowns against the Chargers, but that's just the latest accolade for the rookie running back. He's averaging 6.6 yards per carry and has the most rushing touchdowns among 2025 draft picks.

Although Daniels said it can be difficult to gauge a player's success in training camp, when they're not allowed to get tackled, he could tell Croskey-Merritt had talent.

"Seeing him able to run in the preseason and things like that, we knew that he had something to him and I'm glad that he gets to show it each and every week," Daniels said.

Croskey-Merritt got 14 carries against the Chargers -- his most so far this season -- and rushed for 111 yards in the victory. He was the fourth-most productive running back in the league last week with five runs of 10-plus yards (second most in the league, per Pro Football Focus) and 74 yards after contact (tied for fourth most).

There could be another big game on the horizon for Croskey-Merritt with the Chicago Bears, who have given up 6.2 yards per carry, next on the schedule.

4. No time to think about the past.

The Commanders' Hail Mary win over the Bears last year has been a storyline this week, but Daniels isn't adding his voice to the discussion.

"I don't want to talk about it," Daniels said. "Last year speaks about itself."

The sentiment falls in line with how the Commanders have approached the issue all week. Head coach Dan Quinn didn't mind being asked about the play on Wednesday, but he referred to it as "last year's story" and said he didn't plan on talking about it with the team...unless they happened to be in a similar situation on Monday.

Daniels summed up why he and the rest of the team don't like to look back at the past.

"That Hail Mary isn't going to help us win a game on Monday. So, what's the point?"

5. Every game is a big game.

The Hail Mary play isn't the only connection the Commanders have with the Bears. There are several storylines surrounding the matchup, from the 2024 No. 1 and No. 2 draft picks squaring off against each other to Bears head coach Ben Johnson facing the team that beat him and the Detroit Lions in the Divisional Round of the playoffs last season.

Those angles and more have contributed to fans being particularly hyped about the Monday night game. Daniels is excited about the game as well, but more so because of the atmosphere at Northwest Stadium on Monday night.

"It'll be the first Monday night that I experienced at home," Daniels said. "So, hopefully we're packed out, everybody's out there in the black and we show the home crowd advantage."

But Daniels isn't adding any extra weight to the Week 5 game. Yes, it's a primetime game against two teams that have played each other often in the last five years, but that doesn't make it any more or less significant from his perspective.

"We don't treat this game differently than another game," Daniels said. "At the end of the day, we take them one week at a time and the team that we're playing that week is a big game for us."