How Kobe, LeBron, Steph and Brady are helping Jayden Daniels chase greatness

• John KeimNov 12, 2026, 06:00 AM ET

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  John Keim covers the Washington Commanders for ESPN. He joined ESPN in 2013 after a stint with the Washington Post. He started covering the team in 1994 for the Journal Newspapers and later for the Washington Examiner. He has authored/co-authored four books. You can also listen to him on 'The John Keim Report', which airs on ESPN Richmond radio.

ASHBURN, Va. -- Shortly after midnight in the wake of Washington's Week 8 win over the Philadelphia Eagles, quarterback Jayden Daniels exited his news conference and channeled one of his idols. Instead of driving home, Daniels took an hours detour to the Commanders' practice facility.

He had more work to do.

For approximately two and a half hours, Daniels worked in near silence. He lifted weights under the guidance of strength and conditioning coach Chad Englehart. The only sounds in the building came from the two men: their conversation and the clanking of weights.

Daniels, who grew up as a massive Kobe Bryant fan, is well aware the Los Angeles Lakers legend used to work out at 4 a.m., hours before anyone else arrived. It was part of the "Mamba Mentality," a phrase based on Bryant's Black Mamba nickname. And now, Daniels has adopted similar habits in his quest to tap into his potential.

"It's just the work ethic and the obsession to want to be better and obviously wanting to win," Daniels said. "As I got to learn more about the Mamba Mentality ... Kobe is a huge inspiration for me. You do whatever it takes to win."

That includes talking to as many people as possible about how they succeeded, picking up tips along the way. Daniels has done so since entering the NFL as the No. 2 pick in 2024. He says it is not about trying to insert himself into the circles of famous people. It's about learning what made them great, or how they overcame injuries, scrutiny and adversity early in their careers -- situations with which Daniels has experience.

In Washington, he leaned on Super Bowl winner and future Hall of Fame linebacker Bobby Wagner in their two seasons together. He has tapped into Hall of Fame quarterbacks Tom Brady, Drew Brees, Peyton Manning and reigning MVP Matthew Stafford. He has taken advantage of his wider profile in the sports world, establishing relationships with players such as LeBron James, Steph Curry and Draymond Green among others. He has also picked the brain of Lakers executive Rob Pelinka, Bryant's former agent, and he routinely talks to Commanders advisor Bob Myers, the architect behind the Golden State Warriors' basketball dynasty.

"All the great ones have overcome adversity at some point," Daniels said. "Everybody has to deal with it. It's good to just hear a perspective of how other people dealt with it."

Daniels' adversity included dealing with multiple injuries, questionable in-game decisions that proved costly and even a flap about not wanting LSU to reassign his No. 5, which Daniels thought had been retired.

What he learned from them all: Bury yourself in the work.

That's why, after the Week 8 weight-lifting session that lasted into the wee hours, Daniels stuck around to watch film of the 27-10 win over the Eagles while it was still fresh in his mind before finally heading home around 3:30 a.m.

"It's just all about the process and trying to get better," Daniels said. "And you just build up those callouses, that mental stuff over time and hopefully you look up and you're better than what you were at the beginning of the season."

Here is what Daniels learned along the way.

Manning, Brees and Brady: Daniels' Hall of Fame helpers

Long before Daniels picked the brains of those in places he wanted to reach, his father, Jay, had him watch interviews of Manning and Brees when he was growing up.

The reasoning: Jay wanted to make sure young Jayden heard what time they arrived at the facility (around 5 a.m.). He wanted to show Daniels the work ethic required to achieve at the highest levels of sport.

Now leading a franchise, Jayden no longer needs to watch videos of the quarterbacks, he can reach out to them on his own. He doesn't proclaim they're close friends; he has developed a relationship and knows they're available to him.

"For him it's a genuine relationship," Jay said. "I always told him these are people who have been where you've been [or want to reach] so be a sponge around them and how they handle different situations you may face. He's really good at listening."

Daniels has developed relationships with others, including Brady. The seven-time Super Bowl champ has broadcast multiple games featuring Daniels, and the two communicate on other occasions.

Brady has joked with him needing to always protect himself when he runs "so he can call more of my games," Daniels said. "But it's anything I need like how did he deal with the pressure every year? He was at the top of his game for so long, how did he deal with all that?"

Their personalities are different, Daniels said, so it's not as if he can just mimic Brady or any of these athletes, but he can adapt habits.

"It's just a race that not many of us have really run," Myers said. "Identifying with a high-level professional athlete, it's a small group of people.

"And then look, an NFL quarterback is probably the equivalent of an NBA star as far as tension and pressure."

Kobe Bryant: Adopting the Mamba Mentality

Daniels grew up in San Bernardino, California, rooting for the Lakers and idolizing Bryant. Friends say he often wore a Bryant Lakers jersey. Even now, he often works out in a Bryant T-shirt.

"He's always been a Kobe guy," Daniels' longtime friend Rome Weber said. "Kobe's his GOAT."

Weber recalled a Pop Warner game when Daniels was drilled, causing him to cry. Rather than leave the game, the 8-year-old Daniels led a drive that ended with him throwing a touchdown.

"It kind of felt like a movie," Weber said. "It brought out that Mamba Mentality."

Daniels never formally met Bryant, who died in 2020, aside from a chance encounter at a 2008 Lakers game. Then, the 7½-year-old Daniels, who was spotted in his Kobe jersey by a Lakers staffer before the game, was selected to be one of the kids who high-fived the team as they entered the court.

As he got older, Daniels began trying to mimic how Bryant worked, how he overcame injuries or played through pain. To learn more, he would talk to Pelinka, the Lakers president of basketball operations. Daniels initially met Pelinka at a Lakers game in the offseason after his rookie year, and he would pepper him with questions about Bryant each time they spoke.

"Jayden really dug into Kobe, and all he stood for," Pelinka told ESPN via email. "Jayden knew that one of Kobe's most incredible attributes was his infinite curiosity. Kobe would study art or animals or geniuses -- to find ways to improve his game.

"He always wanted to learn and grow. In getting to know Jayden, two things stood out -- Jayden was incredibly humble, but he was also incredibly curious to be great."

Part of Bryant's greatness, Daniels believed, was his ability to overcome serious injuries -- an aspect of his career that generated particular interest to Daniels, who has missed 12 of a possible 25 games the past two seasons due to elbow, knee and hamstring injuries. And it's why Daniels wanted to return as soon as possible after his latest injury -- a dislocated left elbow suffered in Week 2. He was sidelined by the same injury last season, and a second such injury can often result in surgery. Instead, Daniels missed only two games and wears a brace to prevent his arm from extending fully.

"When an injury occurred in Kobe's career, he completely avoided discouragement or self-pity," Pelinka said. "Instead, he embraced it as a new challenge, another 'dragon to conquer,' Kobe used to say.

"It will be hard, but you have to actually relish that process -- and come to find a twisted joy in it. Ultimately, when you get to the top of the mountain -- and summit -- you will actually be stronger and better for the climb. Jayden really appreciated and took in that perspective."

LeBron James: 'Unc schools 'nephew' on living in the spotlight

Daniels likes to know how famous people handle being in the spotlight. He doesn't view himself in the same light as James, but Daniels has had to deal with increased attention since winning the Heisman his senior year at LSU and then leading Washington to the NFC Championship Game in his rookie season.

Daniels got to know James, whom he calls "uncle" or "unc," through James' personal trainer Mike Mancias. Daniels worked out with Mancias -- and sometimes James and others represented by Klutch Sports Group.

"I have conversations with him all the time," Daniels said of James. "I was able to be blessed enough to take my friends to the Laker game this past year, and he'll take care of me because he views me as a nephew."

Daniels likes quizzing James, who broke into the NBA as an 18-year-old star and has been in the spotlight for the past 24 seasons. James left the Lakers this offseason and is currently playing for the Philadelphia 76ers.

"Just to hear a perspective of somebody so great that's been at the peak of the sport and media since he came in the league," Daniels said, "and how he dealt with pressure and scrutiny."

Daniels said his takeaway is that "pressure is a privilege; I'm blessed to be in this position." But it's not always easy.

"It gets annoying from time to time, but I know my circle, I know the real me and the people know who I am and what I stand for and my morals," he said. "You just got to deal with it, let it pass.

"It does get a lot sometimes, but you let it pass. ... None of the people know what I have to deal with [as a quarterback]. They haven't been back there in the back of the end zone, four yards deep in the end zone and having to make a throw when 300-pound guys are trying to come at me."

Steph Curry: When to put on 'the cape'

Curry could offer Daniels advice on overcoming injuries early in his career. In fact, he texted Daniels after his elbow injury this season. But what Daniels wanted to know from the four-time NBA champ is when to take over games, and when to defer.

"Steph had to figure out and learn, in a sense, how not to be Superman and let other guys help him," Daniels said, "and then when it's time for you to take over a game, go ahead and do you.

"So it's kind of like something for me where it's like let the other people around me help out and then when it's time for me to make a play or in a sense be Superman and stuff like that, I'm able to."

Daniels met Curry through Myers, who was Golden State's general manager from 2012 to 2023. The meeting took place when the Warriors played in Washington D.C. two years ago.

"That's the thing, man. Understanding like, hey, Bruce Wayne, Batman," Washington quarterbacks coach D.J. Williams said. "Understanding, hey, you can be just the CEO, put on a suit and tie and go out into the community. But there's a time when Gotham City needs a hero and so you got to be the hero. And we understand he can do that because he's displayed that a lot."

Matthew Stafford: Bouncing back from injuries

Stafford, the top pick in the 2009 draft, missed a combined 19 games for the Detroit Lions in his first two seasons.

He was labeled injury-prone.

Daniels could relate: He missed 10 games in his second season because of multiple injuries -- sprained knee, hamstring and a dislocated left elbow. This year, he missed two games after dislocating his elbow again.

And the injury-prone label was placed on him.

That's partly why Stafford reached out to Daniels within a week of him dislocating his elbow in Week 2. When Stafford endured questions about his durability, social media wasn't as dominant as it is today.

"My message was, it doesn't matter what people say because they don't know and they have no idea what people go through to go out and play," Stafford said. "I thought I could at least just encourage him and know that some of that stuff is out of your control and how you handle it is the most important thing.

"And it's great to see him back out there playing, battling through some of the stuff that he's having to battle through."

Daniels knows this, too. Stafford did not miss a game for the next eight seasons and is in the middle of his 18th year, with a Super Bowl championship on his résumé. Daniels told him he appreciated the call and words of encouragement.

"It was very promising," Daniels said. "He went through a lot and kept pushing and he persevered and came out on the other side.

"It's dope to have that relationship with somebody like that."

Stafford said the narrative of being injury-prone has changed.

"I don't get that question very often anymore," Stafford said. "And so [the message was] just continue to work and do as best you can to have a great career. And then if you do that, then people look back on that and go, 'Oh yeah, I forgot he had that couple seasons where he got dinged up.'"

Los Angeles Rams reporter Sarah Barshop contributed to this story.