Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels’ feud with the LSU Tigers has continued to escalate after he sent a letter to the SEC giants expressing his disappointment about a player using his No. 5 jersey.
LSU allowed cornerback DJ Pickett to wear the No. 5 jersey next season, despite Daniels winning the 2023 Heisman Trophy in the same jersey. As that situation boils over, former LSU star Joe Burrow is now weighing in.
Joe Burrow Addresses Jayden Daniels’ LSU Feud
After Thursday’s game against the Detroit Lions, former LSU Tigers quarterback Joe Burrow addressed the Daniels saga.
“I just heard about it a couple hours ago,” Burrow said. “I don’t necessarily have too many thoughts at this time. I don’t know enough about the situation to have any thoughts, I would say.”
Burrow further revealed whether the Tigers had promised never to use his No. 9 jersey again after he won the Heisman Trophy in 2019.
“They told me that they wouldn’t use it again, but, you know, you never know, you never know what happens.”
Burrow headlined what is widely considered one of the greatest college football teams of all time in 2019, winning a national championship unbeaten (15-0). His No. 9 jersey has never been worn by any LSU player since.
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Burrow’s Heisman-winning season involved 5,671 yards on 76.3% completion, 60 touchdowns and 6 interceptions, adding 368 rushing yards and 5 scores. Those marks landed him at the undisputed #1 spot in PFN’s CFB QB Impact Rankings that year, clearing challenges from Jalen Hurts and Justin Fields.
On the other hand,the divisive Daniels had a spectacular 2023 season in Baton Rouge after transferring from Arizona State in 2022. He tallied 3,812 passing yards on 72.2% completion, 40 touchdowns and 4 interceptions, adding 1,134 rushing yards and 10 scores.
Former LSU coach Brian Kelly, who recruited DJ Pickett, promised the cornerback the No. 5 jersey, causing the Commanders quarterback to send a cease-and-desist letter to athletic director Verge Ausberry.
While speaking to reporters on August 5, Lane Kiffin was adamant that the program would honor the recruiting promise made to Pickett.
“DJ is in [No.] 5, and that was a situation that was promised to him in recruiting here, for him to sign here,” Kiffin said. “I’ve done a lot of research on that with the family and the representatives and the people, so really I didn’t have a decision to make. It was promised to the kid. It wasn’t done for whatever [reason]. I’m not going to get into that.
“I’m not going to judge something [that was done] when I wasn’t here. But when a kid is promised something to come to a school, he should wear it. So at that point, I don’t think that’s really my decision. We should honor what he was told.”
Daniels became LSU’s third Heisman Trophy winner after Billy Cannon (1959) and Burrow (2019). LSU has five retired jerseys, and only Cannon’s No. 20 is permanently unavailable.
This article originally appeared on Pro Football Network.