The moment should have been stressful — Washington, on the road in the NFL playoffs, faced third-and-1 with a chance to win the game.
Yet during a brief break in play, with only 55 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels was seen laughing on the field while talking to Tampa Bay defenders across the line of scrimmage.
During a superlative rookie season, Daniels has rarely looked bothered by a big stage. From his Hail Mary touchdown to beat Chicago to his 12 touchdown passes in the fourth quarter and overtime — the most ever by a rookie quarterback — Daniels has repeatedly produced in improbable ways that belie his lack of experience.
That continued Sunday in Tampa Bay.
After jawing with the Buccaneers defenders, Daniels converted that crucial third down in the final minute, setting up Washington’s 37-yard game-winning field goal to beat Tampa Bay, 23-20. As time expired, Zane Gonzalez’s kick bounced off the right upright and through to end a back-and-forth game featuring five lead changes and five gutsy fourth-down attempts by the Commanders.
The Commanders now advance to the divisional round of the postseason facing the NFC’s top seed, Detroit. The win was Washington’s first in the playoffs since the 2005 season. Daniels was only 5 years old then; on Sunday he became only the fourth rookie quarterback in NFL history to win on the road in a playoff debut by completing 24 of 35 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns and rushing for team-high 36 yards.
Baker Mayfield threw for 185 yards and two touchdowns for Tampa, but his fourth-quarter fumble led Washington to score a touchdown that put it ahead 20-17. It never gave up the lead again.
It was the final game of a day on which Buffalo and Philadelphia also advanced to next week’s divisional round of the playoffs.
The Bills remained unbeaten at home this season by easily dispatching Denver, 31-7. Josh Allen threw for 272 yards and two touchdowns. Neither team committed a turnover, but while the Broncos missed a field goal, Buffalo was a perfect 3-for-3.
Green Bay struggled from the start in its 22-10 loss at Philadelphia, fumbling its opening kickoff in the first of four Packers turnovers. They included three interceptions thrown by quarterback Jordan Love. Philadelphia’s Jalen Hurts looked unbothered after having missed his previous two games under concussion protocol, and Saquon Barkley added 119 rushing yards.
Two other teams punched their tickets to the divisional round Saturday: Houston — thanks to an incredible defensive effort with four interceptions of Justin Herbert — and Baltimore — thanks to continued dominance on the ground by Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry.
