Jayden Daniels threw two late interceptions and still won the game. With 57 seconds left he hit Stefon Diggs over the middle for a 32-yard touchdown, and the Washington Commanders rallied to beat the New York Giants 24-21 on Thursday Night Football, November 12, at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
Washington improves to 3-5-1 and keeps its season alive. It is now two games behind the NFC East-leading Giants (5-3-1), but after last month’s tie it holds the head-to-head edge. New York lost a game it seemed to have locked up twice in the final six minutes.
A slow start, then a trade of touchdowns
Neither offense scored in the first quarter. The Giants’ best chance ended when rookie kicker Dominic Zvada missed a 33-yard field goal wide left. Washington’s Drew Stevens made a 46-yarder early in the second quarter.
New York answered with its longest drive of the night: 16 plays, 72 yards and 7 minutes, 48 seconds. Jameis Winston converted a fourth-and-1 run, and Cam Skattebo finished it with a 1-yard touchdown run with 2:35 left in the half. Daniels then moved the Commanders 67 yards in nine plays and found tight end Ben Sinnott for a 1-yard score with five seconds left. Washington led 10-7 at halftime.
Skattebo put the Giants in front early in the third quarter, on a 13-yard run around the right end. Washington took the lead right back on a six-play, 77-yard drive. On third-and-1, Daniels threw short to Antonio Williams, who ran the rest of the 31 yards for a 17-14 lead. New York reached the Washington 19 on its next drive, but Frankie Luvu punched the ball away from Malik Nabers and Jeremy Reaves recovered.
Two picks, then a finish
The fourth quarter swung several times. Washington turned the ball over on downs at the New York 30 when Daniels missed Diggs on fourth-and-1. Two plays later, J.J. McCarthy hit Isaiah Likely down the middle for a 66-yard touchdown on third-and-7, and the Giants led 21-17 with 8:13 left.
Daniels had not thrown an interception all season. He threw his first on his 208th attempt, when Jevon Holland picked off a deep ball for Chig Okonkwo. It was first ruled a touchback, but replay put the ball at the New York 2. Washington got it back when a Winston sneak on third-and-1, first ruled a first down, was reversed on a Dan Quinn challenge. New York then took a delay-of-game penalty and punted. Three plays later, on fourth-and-2 from the Washington 45, Ar’Darius Washington intercepted Daniels with 2:19 left.
The Giants still could not close it out. Washington burned two timeouts while holding them to 5 yards, and Jordan Stout’s punt traveled just 12 yards and went out of bounds at the Washington 29 with 1:54 left. A 33-yard pass interference penalty on cornerback Deonte Banks moved the ball to the New York 38 on the next snap. Three snaps later, Diggs got behind the coverage and fell backward into the end zone. It was the 80th touchdown catch of his career, making him the 30th player in league history to reach that mark.
New York had one more chance. Greg Desrosiers Jr. fumbled the ensuing kickoff, but Chandler Martin recovered for the Giants at their 31. McCarthy then went deep for Nabers on third-and-10, and Douglas intercepted at the Washington 11 with 34 seconds left.
The numbers
- Jayden Daniels: 23 of 33 for 249 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions, plus 28 rushing yards on 11 carries.
- Stefon Diggs: six catches for 83 yards and the winning touchdown on 10 targets. Sinnott (4 for 42) and Williams (2 for 42) also caught scoring passes.
- J.J. McCarthy: 23 of 36 for a career-high 293 yards, one touchdown and one interception, in his first home start for New York since his late-September trade from Minnesota.
- Isaiah Likely: nine catches for 127 yards and a touchdown on 11 targets.
- Cam Skattebo: 18 carries for 78 yards and two touchdowns, plus three catches for 44 yards.
- Defense: Rookie linebackers Sonny Styles of Washington and Arvell Reese of New York each made 13 tackles. Shelby Harris and Odafe Oweh had the only sacks.
- Team totals: New York outgained Washington 399 yards to 340 but went 4 of 12 on third down. Zvada is 8 of 14 since opening his career with nine straight makes.
What they said
“You could mess up the whole game but still have a chance to win,” Daniels said. “It just gives you confidence we can go out there and compete and we can close out a game versus the top dog.”
“It’s a missed opportunity, certainly, but it doesn’t change things for us,” Giants coach John Harbaugh said. “This was one that got away.” McCarthy defended his last throws. “The pressure was coming. It’s one-on-one outside. I wanted to give my playmaker a chance.”
Commanders tight end Okonkwo left in the second quarter with a back injury and returned after halftime. Giants safety Jason Pinnock left early in the third quarter with a back injury. Both had been listed in our Thursday injury reports.
What comes next
Both teams get a long break. The Giants host the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, November 22, and Washington hosts the Cincinnati Bengals on Monday, November 23.
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