The Washington Commanders had what will likely go down as the most embarrassing moment of the 2026 NFL season, as they ran the clock out on themselves in field goal range in overtime vs. the New York Giants, leading to a 27-27 tie. Following a wild game that led directly into a bonkers overtime, the Commanders took over possession at their own 23-yard line with 1:55 remaining in overtime and zero timeouts. A 16-yard gain from Terry McLaurin, followed by a Jayden Daniels scramble of 16 yards and a Treylon Burks reception of 13 yards, got Washington into field goal territory with 55 seconds remaining.
On what ended up being the final play of the game, Daniels took a dive at the Giants' 24-yard line with eight seconds remaining on the clock. His offense couldn't get back to the line of scrimmage to spike the ball before it hit triple zeros. The Commanders can't get the play off in time and this game ends in a tie pic.twitter.com/WmPp6q5hU0 There's a lot of blame to go around for this catastrophe, including head coach Dan Quinn.
However, in speaking to reporters on Thursday, Daniels made sure to declare himself the main reason Washington left Week 5 with a tie rather than a win. "Ultimately, it's on me at the end of the day," Daniels told reporters. "I know DQ is getting a lot of slack for it or whatever, but regardless of what happens, I'm the person on the field that's supposed to calm everything, control everything and I failed to the standard that I hold myself to and the standard in this organization.
"This is something for me to move on, not saying I'm proud of it or anything. Obviously, looking back, it could have resulted in a loss. We tied, but it was a failure in my eyes, and I know I'm better than that.
I hold myself to a higher standard than that. So moving forward, I'll grow from it, learn from it, and it'll never happen again." Daniels isn't wrong. Whether your head coach is Bill Belichick or a first-year guy, the quarterback is responsible for the operation of the offense.
Daniels saw the running clock at 13 seconds when he snapped the ball on that final play. At that point, you're throwing it away to the sideline or throwing it in the dirt. You're not taking a sack or going down inbounds.
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