Mel Kiper evaluates separation between Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye

Following Caleb Williams, the likely choice for Chicago with the top pick, two other quarterbacks are in a tight battle for the No. 2 spot in LSU’s Jayden Daniels and North Carolina’s Drake Maye.

On his latest mock draft, his 3.0, ESPN’s NFL Draft expert, Mel Kiper Jr., passionately delivered the case for taking one of those prospects over. As has been the case throughout this process, Kiper feels strongly about Daniels as the second guy in this class.

“In terms of Jayden and Drake, I gave Jayden the edge just based on performance,” revealed Kiper, then making the easy comparison to another former LSU star (you know who).

“I mean he played great, lights out, all year. Had a good year in 2022 but had to kind of do what Joe Burrow did. He went from being really good, solid, to being spectacular, and that’s what Joe did, and that’s what Jayden did his second year at LSU after transferring in from Arizona State.”

Kiper then dove into Daniels’ profile and just listed every single thing he likes about the Tiger QB. So here’s a couple of paragraphs of the ESPN expert’s stream-of-consciousness thoughts on the LSU QB:

“He put on some weight, Jayden did. When you think about where he is now as a passer, where he can make any throw, his deep ball accuracy, the Brian Thomas Jr. and Malik Nabers, his ability to keep his eyes up when he’s rolling. He did that as a player in 2023, where in 2022, that was a little bit of an issue.

“He saw the field a lot better. He lit it rip. He trusted what he saw, he trusted his receivers when they were open. When they were covered, he trusted the receivers to make plays and he trusted what he was seeing. He’s a kid who the players really gravitated to at LSU, which was important. He became a really good leader. His performance was Lamar-Jackson-like. Herm Edwards compares him to Randall Cunningham.”

Catch all that? Because those traits which Kiper loves are why he believes Daniels is a surefire top two QB in his book and perhaps has an argument over Williams too.

“I think Jayden is right there as the solid No. 2. I think you could argue he’s right there with Caleb as the No. 1 quarterback in this draft. I think there’s a little separation between Jayden and Drake Maye. I disagree with some people who think Drake’s ahead of Jayden. I think JJ McCarthy is pressuring Drake Maye more than Drake Maye is pressuring Jayden Daniels.”

Jayden Daniels is getting all the love lately as the NFL Draft process heats up.