The Washington Commanders didn't deserve anything from their Week 12 game against the Dallas Cowboys. They had a shot to salvage something late on, but kicker Austin Seibert's missed extra point condemned Dan Quinn's men to their third successive reverse.
Seibert's been almost automatic throughout the campaign before this moment. It's also worth remembering this was his first game back since missing the last two with a hamstring injury. Whether that played a factor is up for debate, but the errant long snap from Tyler Ott didn't exactly help matters with the contest on the line either.
To nobody's surprise, Seibert cut a dejected figure in Washington's locker room after the game. He was extremely emotional when speaking to the media, even tearful after having to explain the events that led to his crucial choke. What's important for the player is not letting this moment define his campaign the rest of the way.
Commanders kicker Austin Seibert was in tears talking to us in the locker room.
— Scott Abraham (@Scott7news) November 24, 2024
He's absolutely devastated.
Austin told me, "just want to play better for my teammates...definitely don't want to do that. Just wasn't striking well." pic.twitter.com/LX2i26bSDI
Teammates were rallying around Seibert. He wasn't the only reason behind Washington's demise, although he'll be largely blamed given the typical simplicity of the extra point. It was a comedy of errors overall on special teams and the offense looked out of sync despite their late rally.
CeeDee Lamb takes cheap shot at Commanders kicker Austin Seibert
If Seibert was looking for compassion following his error, he wasn't going to find it in the Cowboys locker room. One player who knows him even went out of his way to make a classless comment.
Wide receiver CeeDee Lamb, who was a teammate of Seibert's in college at Oklahoma, chose not to take the high road. His brutal comment in the kicker's direction was uncalled for and lacked any sort of integrity.
"Shoutout (Commanders kicker Austin Seibert). He went to OU with me. He gave us one." — CeeDee Lamb
— Saad Yousuf (@SaadYousuf126) November 24, 2024
This is typical of the fierce division rivalry between the two NFC East adversaries. There is no love lost, not even when it comes to ex-college teammates.
Lamb thought taking a cheap shot was the best course of action. Something that should directly inspire Seibert and the entire Commanders squad to raise performance levels when the two teams meet again in their Week 18 regular-season finale.
It's not how you get knocked down, it's how you get back up.
The life of a kicker is notoriously precarious. Seibert knows that all too well after bouncing around the league before finding a home in Washington. Shaking this off quickly and returning to his early season form is the best way to silence Lamb and the rest of his critics.
That goes for everyone else in the Commanders' building, too. Things are spiraling downward at the worst possible time. Quinn and his staff need to adjust accordingly and the players need to form the sense of collective purpose that got them to 7-2 once upon a time.
Lamb hasn't had much to cheer this season as another Cowboys campaign that promised much fades into irrelevancy. Seibert has a chance to win the war by bouncing back and helping Washington attain playoff football.