Right before the overtime collapse, Washington Commanders kicker Drew Stevens was standing on the sideline waiting to attempt a 42-yard game-winner, after the team had already weathered an earlier missed extra point in a game where the New York Giants were trailing 12-3 at halftime. But instead of giving his specialist a shot at redemption, Jayden Daniels took the snap with 12 seconds showing, scrambled against New York’s zero-blitz look, and never threw the ball away into the dirt. 

The blunder happened right after Washington’s defensive lineman Shy Tuttle recovered a fumble at Washington’s 24-yard line in overtime. With 12 seconds left and zero timeouts, Washington was in easy field goal range against their divisional rivals. Instead, Daniels scrambled in bounds, letting the final seconds expire with the score at 27-27. When Daniels finally stepped to the mic on Thursday, though, he made zero excuses for the late blunder that left Washington sitting at 1-3-1 at the bottom of the NFC East. 

“Just going back and reflecting on it and just sitting back and ultimately, I know it’s a lot of he say or whatever trying to make, but ultimately, like, it’s on me at the end of the day. I know DQ is getting a lot of slack for it, whatever, but regardless of what happens, I’m the person on the field who’s supposed to calm everything, control everything, and I failed to the standard I hold myself to and the standard in this organization. 

“So it’s just something for me to move on. Not saying I’m proud of it or anything. Obviously looking back like it could have resulted in a loss, we tied, but it was a fail in my eyes, and I know I’m better than that, hold myself to a higher standard than that. So moving forward, I’ll grow from it, learn from it, and never happen again,” Jayden Daniels admitted to the press. 

Washington had held a commanding 27-13 4th-quarter lead before New York rallied. Failing to deliver a win, Daniels feels he let the entire locker room down. The meltdown even had Packers star edge rusher Micah Parsons calling the finish straight-up “disgusting” on his podcast. Coming off an elbow injury that cost him 2 games, Daniels refused to offer any excuses and managed to take all the criticism in the right spirit.

Head coach Dan Quinn found himself under immediate heat from national analysts right after the final whistle. Television cameras captured Quinn furiously slamming his headset to the turf as the clock struck zero. Pundits like Rex Ryan and Richard Sherman questioned Washington’s hurried late substitutions that drained precious seconds before the snap.

“I can’t say it’s not warranted because of what happened. Everybody has opinions to speak, and rightfully so. So can’t stop nobody from saying their opinion or anything like that. It’s just about my process and moving forward and learning from it,” Jayden Daniels reacted to criticism from national commentators and former and current players, including Rex Ryan, Richard Sherman, and Parsons. 

Daniels even stepped up to deflect that criticism away from Quinn and offensive coordinator David Blough. 

“Don’t even put it on the coaches. I gotta be more aware, go out there and manage the game,” he told reporters.

He maintained that sideline confusion never excuses a QB staying in bounds with no timeouts.

Quinn, however, stood shoulder-to-shoulder with his passer, admitting earlier in the week: “It starts with me first off. No doubt about it.” The HC praised Daniels’ mental toughness, pointing out that difficult moments test young leaders and that his QB has always been resilient when dealing with tough adversity.

With the tie now in the rearview mirror, Washington has to reset quickly. A major test awaits them on Monday Night Football against the undefeated San Francisco 49ers in Week 6.