4 Commanders who blew it in disappointing tie vs NY Giants
By Jerry Trotta
The Washington Commanders and New York Giants played to a hard-fought tie in the Meadowlands on Sunday. Both teams will view it as a missed opportunity to solidify their playoff standing, but the Commanders should feel more disappointed given they held a 10-0 lead after the first quarter and had ample chances to win the game both in regulation and overtime.
It certainly didn’t help that the refs were ridiculously one-sided in favor of the Giants, but Washington ultimately didn’t do enough to win.
While Terry McLaurin, Jon Allen, Daron Payne, Jahan Dotson, Curtis Samuel, and Brian Robinson deserved a win for their efforts, several players (and coaches) held the team back.
With that in mind, let’s highlight some of Washington’s biggest disappointments who blew it in the disappointing tie vs the G-Men, shall we?
4 most disappointing Commanders in tie vs NY Giants
4. Percy Butler, S
The Commanders’ tight ends are lucky to escape my wrath. Logan Thomas and Cole Turner combined for three penalties; matching the number of catches they had in the game. While frustrating, their blunders and overall lack of impact paled in comparison to the magnitude of Percy Butler’s penalty.
With 1:28 left in the fourth quarter, New York punted the ball back to Washington. Alex Erickson ripped an impressive 12-yard return to set the offense up at its own 36-yard line; roughly 30 yards outside of Joey Slye’s range.
On the punt, though, Butler was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for shoving a gunner who was already out of bounds. The killer 15-yard penalty was enforced where Erickson fielded the punt (at the 24-yard line), and pushed the Commanders back to their own 9-yard line.
The Giants gave Washington a gift by dropping back to pass three times on the previous drive. They took zero time off the clock, giving the Commanders another (undeserving) chance to win the game in regulation. The offense didn’t come through in the end, but Butler’s penalty put them in a inauspicious position.