The Washington Commanders were not supposed to be here. Not now, not yet. But with their all-conquering franchise quarterback found and thriving, they are one win away from the unlikeliest of Super Bowl appearances.

The bar had been low, as low as it gets in the NFL. Task one was merely to escape the gloom and grim realities of the Dan Snyder reign as Washington continued to ease their way into a new era of ownership under Josh Harris, desperate to reset and rebrand across the board.

They might have achieved both in the space of just a year, Dan Quinn successfully betting on himself to orchestrate a culture transformation as the brave candidate willing to confront the challenges awaiting in Washington, and Jayden Daniels conjuring one of the greatest rookie seasons – if not the greatest – by a quarterback in NFL history to lay the foundations for a fresh chapter of not only relevance, but contention.

Washington entered the postseason having not won a playoff game since the 2005 season, when they eventually lost to the Seattle Seahawks during the Divisional Round. They had reached the playoffs just six times in 24 years under the ownership of Snyder, who finally sold up in 2023 following allegations of sexual harassment of employees and the enablement of a toxic workplace.

The Commanders ranked 24th on offense and dead last on defense in 2023, firing head coach Ron Rivera and continuing to suffer in their long-term state of quarterback purgatory. They found themselves nestled among the least appealing destinations for any coach or player in the league, and yet somehow among the most opportunity-rich such was the low floor and ‘can’t get much worse’ notion to life in Maryland, from which the only way could possibly be up.

They acquired Quinn following the revival of his coaching career in Dallas, and used the No 2 pick at the Draft on Heisman Trophy winner Daniels. With both at the helm they have catapulted the process ahead of schedule with a new-found family environment capable of weathering adversity that might have previously derailed them, and sharing the contributions between a funky ensemble of unsung commodities and veteran additions.

During Wild Card weekend they held off Baker Mayfield and the high-flying Tampa Bay Buccaneers attack thanks to Zane Gonzalez’s last-second field goal. And this past weekend out-scored the hottest offense in the league and a firm Super Bowl favourite as offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury and Daniels out-smarted Ben Johnson and Jared Goff to eliminate the Detroit Lions, the latter’s turnovers also playing a defining role on the night.

Daniels dominance has accompanied Kingsbury redemption at the heart of Washington’s charge. Kingsbury’s coaching credentials were in desperate need of a reboot when he was fired as Arizona Cardinals head coach following four (including three playoff-less) seasons in 2022, on the back of which he booked a one-way ticket to Thailand to take a break from football before spending 2023 with Caleb Williams at USC and eventually returning to the NFL to join Quinn’s staff and lead one of the league’s best offenses.

Now, I’m not sure how many fans of The Hangover II there are among you, but there is a scene when Alan meditates at Bangkok’s Ching Mei Monastery, leading him to the next clue in their search for lost friend Teddy. I quite enjoy the image of Kingsbury following suit, humming his way to rediscovery of the answer to offensive reinvention and renovation. Spoiler: he found it.

He came up with answer after answer in Saturday night’s 45-31 win over the Lions, among the most important being his decision to dial up a 20-yard corner route completion to backup tight John Bates on third-and-five, keeping the drive rolling and all-but icing the game with four minutes to play. Not Terry McLaurin, not Zach Ertz, not Austin Ekeler, not Dyami Brown, not Olamide Zaccheaus – John Bates, who had made just eight catches in the regular season.

Fun fact: A quick Google search of John Bates and the first image to appear is a character from Downtown Abbey. Kingsbury, by the way, is still being paid by the Cardinals.

‘Ohhhhh’ exclaimed a near-grimacing Tom Brady at the sight of an emerging chasm in the Lions defense as Dyami Brown broke free on a scissor concept, Kingsbury having lined up in 12 personnel with both tight ends staying in the backfield as decoy chip blockers before peeling out into the flat and in turn dissecting Detroit’s biting second level. Then came a dose of fake outside zone as Kingsbury used pulling guards to tee up a screen play on the field side of the formation, McLaurin doing the rest on his 58-yard touchdown catch-and-run. There was also the aggression to combat Aaron Glenn’s blitz with a 38-yard shot to Brown on a deep-over route, Daniels producing a dime and his receiver making a stunning catch for equal measure to set up Ertz’s five-yard touchdown. Kingsbury had it his way for much of the game.

The story, though, is Daniels. The coolest, slickest offensive pilot on the block, immune to panic in the face of chaos as he glides through his progressions, governs the pocket, dunks on the league’s best teams and slaloms as the latest ice-cold out-of-structure killer.

He is the reason New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen will persist to see resurfaced clips of his son instructing him to try and draft Daniels during a Hard Knocks episode. He is the reason why already soaring expectations on the shoulders of No 1 pick Caleb Williams were amplified this year, and why the Chicago Bears were desperate to hire master Lions offensive puppeteer Ben Johnson as their new head coach.

Daniels set the tone immediately to his NFL bow, winning Offensive Rookie of the Month in September having recorded the highest completion percentage over a four-game stretch in league history.

In Week Eight he broke the internet and the Bears as he scurried back and forth for 12.79 seconds, long enough to scare Chicago’s downfield coverage into discombobulation, before launching a Hail Mary touchdown pass caught by Noah Brown – by way of some Tyrique Stevenson naivety. In Week 16 he was laughing and joking with Jalen Carter after the Eagles defensive tackle had dived to try and catch the ball as Daniels spiked it to stop the clock with 11 seconds left, five seconds after which he planted his feet in the pocket like a seasoned veteran to toss a nine-yard go-ahead touchdown pass to Jameson Crowder in Washington’s 36-33 victory over their NFC East rivals.

Daniels set new rookie records in both completion percentage and quarterback rushing yards as he finished the regular season 331 of 480 passing for 3,568 yards and 25 touchdowns to just nine interceptions, along with 891 rushing yards and six scores from 148 carries. He also just became the first rookie to post 300-plus offensive yards in multiple playoff games and the first with a passer rating of 100 or more in multiple playoff outings.

“He’s a young quarterback by birth certificate, not by the tape,” said Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio this week.

“You know, the guy is playing extremely well. You can tell how much they think he’s playing so good by the volume of their offense and the things they trust him to do. He’s come through for them in a big way, and he’s tough to handle.”

Rookie obstacles were inevitable, and when they came he was every bit a match for them. The Commanders offense had ranked first in EPA/play and fourth in success rate across their 5-2 start to the campaign, before falling to 18th in EPA/play and 16th in success rate from Week Eight to 12 following a three-game losing streak against the Pittsburgh Steelers, Eagles and Cowboys, ultimately enabling Philly to take control of the division in the process.

Daniels did not blink. And Kingsbury swerved a collapse, previous criticism of him having focused heavily on his scheme become stale down the stretch. While the running game did dry up a little, the Commanders responded by ranking eighth in EPA/play and sixth in success rate from Week 13-18. Catastrophe averted.

“In the NFL, that’s what happens around this time. Once you reach the midpoint, teams figure out a little bit and you’re not a surprise to anybody,” right tackle Andrew Wylie said at the time of their mid-season dip. “We’ve got all the confidence in the world in the staff and players. We’ll continue to dial it up and get it done.”

Behind Daniels, they finished the campaign ranked seventh in total yards, 17th in passing, third in rushing and fifth in scoring, while also being fourth in third-down efficiency and fourth overall in EPA/play.

Ertz had insisted they would not hit the ‘panic button’. They didn’t. Daniels never does. And right now, no remaining quarterback in the playoffs is playing better football than him.

On defense Quinn has extracted production from all over minus the presence of a marquee name. Noah Igbinoghene has salvaged his career as a starting cornerback after failing to hold down a place in Miami, linebacker Bobby Wagner continues to put up elite numbers at the age of 34, Dante Fowler Jr just led the team with 10.5 sacks in the second-best season of his career almost 10 years since being drafted, and Frankie Luvu has emerged as a focal point while being utilised as a run defender, pass rusher and in coverage on his way to a career-best 8.5 sacks and first playoff appearance in his seventh season.

Behind the resilience, behind their two playoff victories thus far, behind an unforeseen campaign and behind a vast ‘everybody eats’ menu of contributors is an accountable, personable and united locker room formed by Quinn and his staff. It culminated in Washington’s first 12-win campaign since 1991, playoff victories over top-five offenses in Tampa and Detroit and now an NFC Championship showdown with a familiar foe in Philly, whose No 1-ranked defense and Saquon Barkley-inspired offense await.

Between them, Quinn and Daniels have crushed the laughing stock narrative. Together, they could win this whole thing.

What’s next?

It’s the NFL Conference Championships on Sunday January 26 – live on Sky Sports NFL – with the Philadelphia Eagles first hosting the Washington Commanders in the NFC title game from 8pm, and then the Chiefs taking on the Bills from 11.30pm.

Super Bowl LIX takes place on Sunday, February 9 at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, live on Sky Sports NFL.