Background and career
William Chase Daniel (born October 7, 1986) is an American former professional football player who was a quarterback in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons. He played college football for the Missouri Tigers, earning second-team All-American honors in 2007. He was signed by the Washington Redskins as an undrafted free agent in 2009. During his career, Daniel was also a member of the New Orleans Saints, Kansas City Chiefs, Philadelphia Eagles, Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions, and Los Angeles Chargers. Daniel is a Super Bowl champion, having been the backup quarterback on the Saints team that won Super Bowl XLIV.
Daniel prepped under head coach Todd Dodge at Carroll High School in Southlake, Texas, which won the 5A Division II state title in 2004, 2005, and 2006. After playing his sophomore year at wide receiver, Daniel was a two-year starter at quarterback, leading his team to a 31–1 record. He completed 65.2% of his passes for 8,298 yards and 91 touchdowns and added 2,954 rushing yards and 39 scores. Southlake earned a No. 1 national ranking in 2004 after winning the 5A state championship, while Daniel won the 5A state Player of the Year. He was also named the EA Sports National Player of the Year. As a junior, Daniel threw for 3,681 yards with 42 touchdowns and nine interceptions. In addition, he ran for 1,529 yards with 18 touchdowns. Daniel was not heavily recruited by the University of Texas, his preferred school, despite a strong high school career. He ultimately committed to the University of Missouri, declining later interest from Texas head coach Mack Brown. Daniel also received scholarship offers from Maryland, Oklahoma State, Stanford, and Texas A&M. During high school, Daniel was a member of National Honor Society, and a member of his school's student council for three years.
Daniel played at the University of Missouri, passing for more than 12,000 yards and throwing for more than 100 touchdowns. He is widely considered one of the most successful quarterbacks in the school's history. Although he was not Missouri's most heralded NFL prospect, Daniel raised the football program's profile significantly as a three-year starter and arguably laid the groundwork for the Tigers' eventual move to the Southeastern Conference in 2012 by guiding the Tigers to within one win of a BCS National Championship berth in 2007.
Daniel was the primary backup quarterback for Brad Smith in the 2005 season and played in 10 games. He completed 38-of-66 passes for 247 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. On October 15, he was 16-of-23 for 185 passing yards and a touchdown against Iowa State.
Daniel started all 13 games in 2006 as Missouri earned a berth in the Brut Sun Bowl. He threw for 3,527 yards with a 63.5 percent completion rate and 28 touchdowns. Daniel also set a school record for passing touchdowns in a game, racking up five scores in the season opener against Murray State. This was good enough for a second-team All-Big 12 selection while he also was named to the first-team All-Academic Big 12 Team. Daniel was also one of the 35 quarterbacks placed on the 2007 Manning Award watch list.
Daniel improved in 2007, throwing for 4,306 yards with a 68.2 percent completion rate and 33 touchdowns, with only 11 interceptions in 14 games. He also rushed for a net 253 yards and four touchdowns for a total offense of 37 touchdowns and 4,559 yards, which was good for an average of almost 326 yards per game. He led the Tigers to the cusp of a national championship appearance; in late November 2007, the program surged to #1 in the Associated Press poll for the first time since 1960. After the Tigers defeated arch rival Kansas, the edition of December 3, 2007, of Sports Illustrated featured Daniel on the cover, with the caption "Mizzou, That's Who." Despite losing to the Oklahoma Sooners in the Big 12 Championship Game, the Tigers dominated Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl on New Year's Day. On November 27, 2007, the Big 12 Conference named Daniel the Offensive Player of the Year. He is the first Missouri player to receive that honor. On December 5, 2007, Daniel was invited by the Heisman Trophy Trust to go to New York City as one of four finalists. He finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting with 425 points. He garnered 25 first-place votes, 84 second-place votes, and 182 third-place votes. He became the third Tiger to finish in the top ten. His fourth-place showing marks the second-highest finish in Heisman voting by a Missouri Tigers player, with Paul Christman the only one to finish higher (third in 1939). On January 1, 2008, Missouri wrapped up a school-best 12–2 season with a 38–7 win over Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl. A week later, the Tigers were ranked #4 in the Associated Press' final poll – the highest final ranking in school history – and #5 in the ESPN/USA Today coaches' poll. Daniel also announced he was returning for his senior season after putting his name in with the NFL College Advisory Committee to receive feedback for the NFL Draft.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
