No one involved is blameless for the Washington Commanders’ game-ending debacle against the New York Giants in overtime.
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one → involve → overtime
Coach Dan Quinn on Monday expressed frustration with multiple facets of the final play of the 27-27 tie, when Washington allowed the clock to run out while it was in range for a game-winning field goal.
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it → express → goal
With 55 seconds left and the ball at the Giants 26-yard line, the Commanders called a run play for Rachaad White that gained 2 yards and kept the clock moving.
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clock → leave → yards
They substituted in multiple players and took their time snapping the ball, which didn’t happen until 13 seconds left.
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which → substitute → seconds
A pass play was called, and Jayden Daniels took off running and was tackled inbounds without enough time left to run another play.
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Daniels → call → play
“Honestly just furious about our execution in the crucial moments of the game,” Quinn said on a video call with reporters.
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Quinn → say → reporters
“We worked really hard on these and it didn’t look like yesterday.”
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it → work → yesterday
Quinn said the team wanted to use more clock after getting into field goal range, considering there had been missed kicks from both teams — New York rookie Dominic Zvada was 2 of 5 on field-goal attempts, while Washington’s Drew Stevens had already missed an extra point.
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Stevens → say → point
“It took entirely too long from there on to execute our strategy, from subbing to clock awareness to clocking the ball,” Quinn said.
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Quinn → take → ball
“And what I told the team and the coaches is it was a breakdown that can’t happen.”
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that → tell → team
When asked about first-year offensive coordinator David Blough’s role in the end-of-game scenario, Quinn took responsibility.
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Quinn → ask → responsibility
“It needs to be communicated then from me to David, who has the last words with Jayden on each down, not just a start of a drive,” Quinn said.
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Quinn → need → drive
“And so when there’s that time, you want to get to where the next one we’re able to clock and kick.
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we → ’ → ?
The play call itself was not unorthodox or unusual, Quinn said.
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Quinn → say → ?
But if the play had been run more quickly, the team would have had time to get back to the line of scrimmage, spike the ball to stop the clock and attempt a field goal.
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team → run → goal
Quinn agreed that the Commanders didn’t show enough urgency, and that communication starts with him and has to flow from there.
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communication → agree → there
That begins with the substitutions, which Quinn said were unnecessary in hindsight.
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Quinn → begin → hindsight
What’s working
Daniels’ rushing ability.
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working → work → ?
Playing with a brace on his left, non-throwing elbow after he dislocated it in Week 2, Daniels was effective as a rusher against the Giants.
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Daniels → play → Giants
He finished with 103 yards rushing, including touchdowns of 38 and 26 yards.
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He → finish → yards
What needs help
Situational awareness.
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needs → need → help
The Commanders had several miscues in the final minute of OT, one of which was Daniels’ failure to recognize the situation and throw the ball away.
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one → have → ball
Instead, he went down in the middle of the field.
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he → go → field
“We have to stop the clock,” Daniels said afterward.
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Daniels → have → clock
“We have to know the situation.
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We → have → situation
We have to relay that as an offense.
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We → have → offense
It starts with everyone, top down.
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It → start → everyone
Ultimately, it’s on me.”
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it → ’ → me
After missing two games (against the Cowboys in Week 2 and the Seahawks in Week 3), the tight end had four catches for 60 yards on six targets against the Giants.
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end → miss → Giants
He had totaled four catches for 21 yards in his other two games this season.
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He → total → games
The meltdown in the final minute obscured the fact that the Commanders allowed 24 points to the Giants in the third and fourth quarters.
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Commanders → obscure → quarters
New York scored three touchdowns and kicked a field goal on its final four possessions of regulation.
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York → score → regulation
In overtime, the Giants missed a field goal and fumbled in Commanders territory.
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Giants → miss → territory
Excluding when Jameis Winston took a knee to end regulation, the Commanders allowed 332 yards on 56 plays — an average a 5.9 yards per play.
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average → exclude → play
Injuries
Quinn said that based on medical reports, he expects receiver Stefon Diggs (hamstring) and safety Nick Cross (illness) to return soon.
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Diggs → say → reports
Linebacker Javonte Jean-Baptiste suffered a pectoral injury, and Quinn said the team is awaiting more information.
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team → suffer → information
That includes 24 by the Giants.
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That → include → Giants
Up next
The Commanders visit unbeaten San Francisco in a Monday night game on Oct. 19.
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Commanders → visit → Oct.
Although the NFC East is considered wide open, Washington is two games behind the division-leading Giants and needs to stack wins in order to stay in the playoff mix.
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Washington → consider → mix
The Aporia
