Week 15 Key Numbers: Mistakes and missed opportunities plague Commanders

The Bad: Penalties and Mistakes Continue to Surface

1: You know the definition of insanity? Doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. Well, Curtis Samuel had 3 rushes in the first half for -2 yards, but the Commanders still went back to it twice in the second half, including in a crucial spot. After Dotson caught a 61-yard completion and Robinson finished off a 19-yard run, the Commanders went back to a Samuel run, instead of letting Robinson tote the rock again. It led to just 1 yard, and Samuel finished with 5 rushes for just 1 yard.

30: The Giants entered halftime with a double-digit lead for the first time in 30 games, leading the Commanders 14-3.

10:  The Commanders had four fumbles, with two fumbles lost, both by Heinicke. One was returned by Kayvon Thibodeaux for a touchdown. The other, well, that one came with the Commanders five yards from the goal line with just over six minutes remaining, after the Giants challenged the play. Instead of the Commanders potentially cutting the lead to 2 with a short field goal, the Giants were able to turn that fumble into three more points. Overall, the Giants scored 10 points off turnovers.

41: After turning the ball over in the red zone, the Commanders’ defense came out deflated, letting Saquon Barkley gain 41 yards on three consecutive carries (12, 15, and 14 yards).

8: Heinicke was facing constant pressure all game, with the Giants getting 8 QB hits and 3 sacks while forcing two fumbles.

3: If the Commanders had scored the late touchdown, the team would have still had to successfully convert a two-point conversion to tie the game. That was due to the fact that Joey Slye missed another PAT, making it his third missed PAT of the season. He did hit a 41-yarder and 51-yarder and could have added another field goal on Washington’s first drive, but the coaching staff decided to punt, which was a decision that was booed by the crowd.

97: The Giants pulled off what has become a Commanders-esque drive, taking 8:35 off the game clock on an 18-play 97-yard drive that put them up 14-3. Daniel Jones was surgical, going 10-for-12 for 91 yards on the drive, including an 11-yard completion on 4th-and-9. It was the Giants’ longest touchdown drive since 2014.

10%: The Commanders continued their third-down woes, going 1-for-10 (10%) on 3rd down. The team had 5 or more yards to go on 7 of their 10 third-down attempts.

With the loss, the Commanders’ postseason probability dropped to 38%. With the Lions surging and holding the head-to-head tiebreaker against Washington, the Commanders will most likely need to win out to have a chance to make it to the playoffs. With a game against the 49ers coming up, that might be a tough ask, but just maybe Heinicke can pull off a holiday miracle.