Chase Daniel had to travel the long way to the NFL. Despite being a productive player at Missouri, his shorter size and lagging arm strength made it impossible to get drafted. So he had to go through the undrafted free agent market in order to realize his dream. Eventually, he signed on with the Washington Redskins. It seemed like a pretty favorable opportunity. The other quarterbacks on the roster were Colt Brennan, Todd Collins, and Jason Campbell.
Not exactly the most daunting depth chart. Daniel felt all he had to do was play well in the preseason and he’d have a good chance to make the roster. He accomplished this goal, throwing four touchdowns in three quarters of play. However, it seems that wasn’t enough to impress Redskins head coach Jim Zorn. He informed Daniel that the team would be cutting him, but said they wished to bring him back on the practice squad.
Daniel was disappointed. Still, he felt like that move at least kept his hopes alive to make the roster either later that season or the next one. As Daniel was about to go into Zorn’s office to make that happen, he received a call from his agent. The man told him to under no circumstances enter that office. He was getting a phone call. One that he absolutely had to take.
What happened next according to Kevin Fishbain of The Athletic is nothing short of remarkable.
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Chase Daniel got a ring because he went with his gut
Daniel didn’t know what to expect. Still, he followed the advice and took the call. It turns out that the decision would have profound ramifications for his career.
I went to the bathroom, walked around. By this time, there’s no one left, they say, “All right, Chase, we’re ready for you.” Literally as I look down (at my phone), I get a 504 number calling me. … It seemed like an eternity, it’s a New Orleans number. I pick up. I just hear, “Chase?” I say, “Yeah?” He’s like, “Hey, this is Sean Payton, head coach of the Saints.” Very forward, very direct. “I know you’re in Jim Zorn’s office right now, but we want you to come down here. We can’t get you to active roster right away, but I promise you by the third game of the year we’ll put you on active. Come learn behind Drew (Brees) and Mark Brunell.” I said, “All right.”
I called my agent back and he said, “This is legit. This is the best situation for you. You need to do that.” I literally don’t tell anybody in the room. I go and get in my rental car and I drive to the airport that day. I get on a flight that night, land in New Orleans. The rest is history. Sure enough, practice squad for two games, third game of the year was active and active the rest of the year and we won the Super Bowl that year.
What made that decision so critical is what happened after he left Washington. Zorn and his coaching staff were fired after the 2009 season, ushering in the Mike Shanahan era. The odds of Daniel being able to crack the roster by that point would’ve been even lower than before. His call to trust Payton’s word and go to New Orleans not only led to a ring but also may have rescued him from quarterback purgatory.
