The Jayden Daniels Tracker

[Faithful Fan]

Ugh. Business is business I guess, but this is not a good look demanding that your own number be retired. Sooner or later, it’s gonna bite him in the ass if he doesn’t ditch mommy and get some professional representation. I could be completely wrong, but this feels like something that’s coming from her and not something Jayden spends much time thinking about. And so what if LSU is using his likeness, if that’s the case then he will make money off it, so to me this is all about vanity. The program decides which jerseys get retired, not the player.

It certainly doesn’t lessen my concerns about his mom or his own propensity to be a bit of a diva. At best, it is odd, at least I don’t think it’s normal to send cease and desist letters to your alma mater because they did not retire your jersey. Whatever might be gained by this seems outweighed by the PR cost.

 

[Boone]

I'm gonna push back - in what sense has Jayden been 'a bit of a diva'? I literally can't think of a single instance he has done anything to warrant that kind of description. I think, without hearing directly from Daniels on what is behind this, we are making a bunch of assumptions and may not even have all of the information to fairly judge. Mom seems like she is a bit of an over the top personality (and that may prove to be the understatement of the century - we'll see). But I've seen nothing approaching 'diva' from Jayden. He's been a dream QB and young man so far.

 

[Faithful Fan]

I'm gonna push back - in what sense has Jayden been 'a bit of a diva'? I literally can't think of a single instance he has done anything to warrant that kind of description. I think, without hearing directly from Daniels on what is behind this, we are making a bunch of assumptions and may not even have all of the information to fairly judge. Mom seems like she is a bit of an over the top personality (and that may prove to be the understatement of the century - we'll see). But I've seen nothing approaching 'diva' from Jayden. He's been a dream QB and young man so far.

Evidently he cares more about his image than his alma mater, I mean how else can you read this?

Here’s the statement from his spokesperson, “Jayden made it clear that he did not want his number given to another player, and he believed his wishes would be respected. His Heisman trophy-winning season . . . cemented his place in LSU history. To see his number given to another player is incredibly disappointing and feels like a failure to honor the significance of what Jayden accomplished at LSU.”

A more humble person would let others speak to his legacy instead of publicly complaining about how he’s been disrespected. It’s not the worst thing in the world, but it’s kind of gross.

 

[Boone]

Or it may be a legitimate POV. Who are we to judge his 'place in LSU history' or even how he should feel about it? We have no idea what conversations went on behind the scenes (if any) or what specifically has gone on to drive his reaction.

I think calling him a diva over it is gross

 

[burgold]

I look at it more simply.

Sports is business. I kinda hate that it is business, but it is business, and more than ever, college athletics have become business, too.

I don't know that this is a great business decision. In fact, I think it's not a helpful one. Going forward, I think Daniels looks to make more off Commaders' NIL than from his college days. In some respects, leaving that money as an act of goodwill would probably do his image better than a couple extra bucks.

Also, I just don't really get the number thing. Maybe it was because I was born with a popular first name and never really cared which version people chose to call me.

 

[Chris]

Yeah, Jayden clearly has exhibited diva-like traits.

The team should trade him for a TE.

 

[NickyJ]

It certainly doesn’t lessen my concerns about his mom or his own propensity to be a bit of a diva. At best, it is odd, at least I don’t think it’s normal to send cease and desist letters to your alma mater because they did not retire your jersey. Whatever might be gained by this seems outweighed by the PR cost.

Propensity: "a natural inclination, urge, or deep-seated tendency to behave in a particular way or act in a certain standard pattern"

This news tidbit sucks and is stupid. But since you use the word "propensity", you are implying that he has a pattern of diva behavior before. What were those actions that made him a diva before this LSU news broke?

Or is this like your concern about his injury history, where you felt your doubts about him were validated because Jayden missing games in one season of his career made him a "glass cannon" in your eyes?

 

[Dah-Dee]

I responded to a related comment in the training camp thread, but this feels like the more appropriate place to discuss, so I'll try to move my thoughts over here:


Seems like the right thing for Daniels' camp to do here was, behind the scenes, work out an agreement with LSU for Pickett to wear #5, following which the school would retire the number.

Feels like the big mistake here was LSU promising Pickett during 2024 recruiting - after Daniels won the Heisman - that he could wear #5, while at the same time continuing to hold Burrow's #9. Not a good look, Tigers.

I'm not a Brian Kelly fan but he was right when he recently said about this, you can't treat one different than the other. We're talking about 2 of the 3 LSU Heisman winners, with an LSU number retirement policy that specifically references that award as a primary criteria - along with a 5-year waiting period after graduation before the number can be retired. I'd expect they'll eventually retire both numbers.

I think it's interesting that the Daniels team focuses on NIL in their statements, as that's the one big thing that really changed/evolved between Burrow's time and Daniels'. We've never seen Daniels be public with anything fractious, so although I'm sure there are some feelings involved here, given what Brian Kelly said about one reason he held off on giving #5 to Pickett his first year was because Daniels 'wasn't on board with it,' this seems mostly like Daniels' lawyers/advisors wanting to send a signal about being willing to defend his NIL rights. I don't know that I've seen a case involving only the player's number, and the theory seems questionable given how many NIL deals are flying around these days; sooner than later schools wouldn't be able to use most numbers if we define 'name, image and likeness' to include use of only the uniform number. Yikes. It's interesting, though.

 

[HTTR]

I don’t think Jayden is much of a diva, if at all. It’s one of the things I love about him. And I don’t think he’s behind this. But the point is perception matters and this certainly makes him look like one—therefore its not a good decision for his career imo. Nothing against his mom, I’m sure she’s plenty smart and plenty capable, and has his best interest at heart. But like any mother, she’s going to be emotional about her child and I just think he’s better off having professionals handle his off the field business.

 

[Discobob]

Ugh. Business is business I guess, but this is not a good look demanding that your own number be retired. Sooner or later, it’s gonna bite him in the ass if he doesn’t ditch mommy and get some professional representation. I could be completely wrong, but this feels like something that’s coming from her and not something Jayden spends much time thinking about. And so what if LSU is using his likeness, if that’s the case then he will make money off it, so to me this is all about vanity. The program decides which jerseys get retired, not the player.

Putting a few social media posts together with a bit of speculation, I think he was fine with LSU using his NIL as he was getting the Burrows treatment (jersey unofficially retired).

Kiffin DGAF and the unofficial deal was ignored.

This still feels a little petty, but there is a bit of scratch my back I'll scratch yours thing going here.

 

[Primus Porcus]

From what I've read, the NIL 'deals' that are written into the CBA expire 180 days after the player leaves the school.

The official Letter that got sent explains that, and basically tells them to knock it off.



As far as the number goes - It may just be an excuse. Call it petty, or whatever, but 3 players at LSU have won the Heisman - Billy Cannon - # 20 - Joe Burrow - #9 - Jayden Daniels - #5. 20 is officially retired. 9 is not officially, but hasn't been worn since. I'm sure there's a layer to this of financial trade off. Jayden allows them to continue to use him and his imaging for whatever marketing, creating continued Jersey sales for the #5, and he gets his fair cut. Now that another player will wear #5, that voids his ability to get the financial return from selling that jersey number... in doing so, he's not going to let LSU continue to profit off of him. (Yes this is speculation, but it's the only reason i can figure any of this actually matters, and why it's happening 2 and half years after his NIL commitment expired. He's ALLOWED them to continue to use his NIL, and he's choosing not to anymore.

 

[CuredFromBatteredFanSyndrome]

Faithful Fan not calling you out here, but color me unsurprised that you take issue with this

Not sure what it is, but anything Jayden comes up and you are always leaning negative- if not, leaning heavily into what I consider to be reaching for RG3 comps.

I think it’s abundantly clear this is an agent/mom thing, likely being used as some sort of leverage. Not sure how you can view anything Jayden has said or done over the entirety of his time here that would lead you to believe he has diva like tendencies. Of all the things to worry about, this doesn’t even rank. Literally every 2nd contract for a franchise QB is going to be painful and expensive.
Like it or not, a lot of what transpires has to do with business. This is literally an absolute nothing burger, and only palatable for someone looking for something to be worried about.

 

[Faithful Fan]

Propensity: "a natural inclination, urge, or deep-seated tendency to behave in a particular way or act in a certain standard pattern"

This news tidbit sucks and is stupid. But since you use the word "propensity", you are implying that he has a pattern of diva behavior before. What were those actions that made him a diva before this LSU news broke?

I hate to quibble about semantics, but since you bring it up I’ll explain my meaning. I’m going off the public statement made by his “spokesperson,” which said, “The Daniels family is deeply disappointed and feels profoundly disrespected” by “a failure to honor the significance of his LSU legacy.”

That sure sounds like a deep-seated urge to behave in this particular way, as in the definition of “propensity” you provided (notice the “or” before the word pattern). As for the word “diva,” I am using it in the sense of “a person who behaves as if they are very special or important,” and I qualified it with “a bit.”

I don’t even think it’s that big a deal really—many super athletes have a propensity to act a bit like divas, it comes with the territory in pro sports—but I do want to insist that my description of the event and word choices were appropriate.

 

[Boone]

You can insist all you want. But using the word ‘diva’ in describing Jayden Daniels (at least so far) is inaccurate and baseless. Also my opinion.

 

[Discobob]

From what I've read, the NIL 'deals' that are written into the CBA expire 180 days after the player leaves the school.

The official Letter that got sent explains that, and basically tells them to knock it off.



As far as the number goes - It may just be an excuse. Call it petty, or whatever, but 3 players at LSU have won the Heisman - Billy Cannon - # 20 - Joe Burrow - #9 - Jayden Daniels - #5. 20 is officially retired. 9 is not officially, but hasn't been worn since. I'm sure there's a layer to this of financial trade off. Jayden allows them to continue to use him and his imaging for whatever marketing, creating continued Jersey sales for the #5, and he gets his fair cut. Now that another player will wear #5, that voids his ability to get the financial return from selling that jersey number... in doing so, he's not going to let LSU continue to profit off of him. (Yes this is speculation, but it's the only reason i can figure any of this actually matters, and why it's happening 2 and half years after his NIL commitment expired. He's ALLOWED them to continue to use his NIL, and he's choosing not to anymore.

Im speculating, but here's an analogy...

You leave a company on good terms... you're doing well, so you let them continue to use some of the IP you personally owned cuz you care about their success. The leadership there are your friends and they appreciate what you did for them.

Then they hire a new CEO and he has no connection to you and kinda acts ambivalent toward your contributions.

So you say, "OK dude, you can't use my IP anymore"

 

[BayouBrave86]

lol

 

[BayouBrave86]

Also, a great take from former Heisman winner/Skins QB RG3

 

[Faithful Fan]

You can insist all you want. But using the word ‘diva’ in describing Jayden Daniels (at least so far) is inaccurate and baseless. Also my opinion.

You don’t think he is “behaving as if he is very special or important” in this case?

Somebody brought up the Joe Burrow comparison, but Burrow went 15-0 and won a national championship in one of the greatest seasons in football history, Jayden went 9-3 and skipped the bowl game.

Maybe this is just personal preference or a cultural difference or something, but I would rather he just play and let the commentariat decide what his legacy is instead of doing all this because he feels his legacy is disrespected.

 

[NickyJ]

Also, a great take from former Heisman winner/Skins QB RG3

 

[Single-Bar Facemask]

Im speculating, but here's an analogy...

You leave a company on good terms... you're doing well, so you let them continue to use some of the IP you personally owned cuz you care about their success. The leadership there are your friends and they appreciate what you did for them.

Then they hire a new CEO and he has no connection to you and kinda acts ambivalent toward your contributions.

So you say, "OK dude, you can't use my IP anymore"

That's a good way to look at it.