Commanders’ Terry McLaurin owned Colts with trash talk on game-winning drive

The Washington Commanders appeared dead in the water after Taylor Heinicke’s fourth-quarter interception allowed the Indianapolis Colts to take a 16-7 lead early in the fourth quarter following a Nyheim Hines touchdown run. But Heinicke and Terry McLaurin refused to let the winning streak end at two games.

Not only is the winning streak alive, but Heinicke and McLaurin — and countless other unsung heroes —  kept the season alive.

Trailing 16-10 with two minutes and 17 seconds left on the clock, Heinicke channeled his inner Tom Brady (it was literally a textbook two-minute drill) and kept Washington afloat with several last-ditch scrambles and completions.

On 1st and 10 with 41 seconds left, Heinicke had all day to throw and heaved up a prayer to McLaurin.

The ball was underthrown and Stephon Gilmore was in perfect position to seal the game with an interception, but Heinicke gave McLaurin a chance and that’s all he needed as one of the NFL’s premier receivers in contested-catch situations.

Commanders’ Terry McLaurin trash-talked the Colts after his incredible catch that set up the game-winning TD.

Set up with 1st and goal and needing a touchdown to win the game, the Commanders called a timeout to allow Scott Turner to dial up a play. As McLaurin made his way to the sideline, he ripped off his helmet (not a penalty since a timeout was called; take notes, D.J. Moore) and let out a legendary line of trash talk.

Chills. Every single time.

Typically a reserved and humbled character, McLaurin goes scorched earth seemingly every time he makes a clutch play. Remember his sideline outburst after his fourth-quarter touchdown catch against the Jaguars in Week 1.

This celebration, however, tops that in a landslide, and it has everything to do with the fact McLaurin is from Indianapolis and Week 8 marked his initial homecoming since he was drafted in 2019.

McLaurin spent a lot of his Sundays growing up watching the Colts in the Lucas Oil Stadium stands and idolizing Marvin Harrison. The $71 million receiver was named Indiana’s Mr. Football as a high schooler in 2013 and played four years at Ohio State. McLaurin’s Indy roots are well established and it was awesome to see it all come full circle on Sunday.

It was a storybook ending for McLaurin and the Commanders. The 27-year-old typically likes to end trash talk spats against players rather than start them — he’s on the record saying as such. On Sunday, though, No. 17 was more than justified going off script.

After that catch, Indy is definitely his city.