Sometimes, great gambles in sports pay off, but sometimes they don’t. After Jayden Daniels’ Hail Mary pushed the Washington Commanders over the Chicago Bears in Week 8, Daniels’ fumbled snap in Week 11 against the Philadelphia Eagles might have cost them the game. Daniels, this year’s No. 2 overall pick, took full responsibility in the error in his postgame interview, backing coach Dan Quinn‘s call to go for the field goal, down 12-10, on 4th and 2 in the fourth quarter. However, Daniels fumbled the snap and decided to run the ball, and eventually came up short, and the Commanders never came within a score of the Eagles again.
“Jayden Daniels says he was all for the decision to go for it on 4th down,” reported JP Finlay on X, formerly Twitter. “Says there was a slight delay getting the snap and it impacted the play. Blamed his cadence and said he’s gotta be better.”
Week 11: Eagles def. Commanders
Having lost their second straight game, the Commanders have fallen to 7-4, while the Eagles maintain full control of the NFC East with an 8-2 record. While Daniels’ stellar play has completed the team’s turnaround into a playoff contender, they’re not out of the woods yet.
The Commanders’ two-game losing streak is their first taste of adversity this season, which should test Jayden Daniels’ composure and toughness, as his recent inconsistent play has also led to these losses. However, their two losses came against legitimate playoff teams in the Eagles and the (7-2) Baltimore Ravens, led by reigning MVP Lamar Jackson.
Still, adversity is adversity, and receiver Terry McLaurin challenged the Commanders’ cohesion after their Week 11 loss to the Eagles. After all, it’s easy to claim brotherhood and family when everything is going good, but it’s a totally different story when troubles inevitably arrive.
Related Washington Commanders NewsArticle continues below
For Washington, it’s the risk of falling out of playoff contention even with a winning record. As of Thursday, they are seventh in the NFC, one-and-a-half games behind the Eagles for the top spot of the NFC East.
While the team has plenty of chances this season to move up the standings, they can’t afford to take any game off, since the eight-seed San Francisco 49ers are only two games behind them at 5-4. Anything can happen in the NFL, after all, and margins of error could be smaller than imagined.
The Commanders’ first chance of going up the ranks is on Week 12, when they face the struggling Dallas Cowboys, who’ve lost Dak Prescott for the season due to surgery, and who might be suffering from chemistry issues between Micah Parsons and coach Mike McCarthy.