You might as well start calling Jayden Daniels "Santa Claus". All he does is deliver gifts to the Washington Commanders, and just in the "nick" of time.
If the last-second Hail Mary to beat the Chicago Bears in Week 8 wasn't enough, the rookie quarterback one-upped himself against the Philadelphia Eagles, finding Jamison Crowder for the game-winning touchdown with six seconds left in the game.
JAYDEN DANIELS. COMMANDERS TAKE THE LEAD WITH 6 SECONDS.#PHIvsWAS pic.twitter.com/BcKGpEBIsl
— NFL (@NFL) December 22, 2024
Much will be made about the fact that Jalen Hurts was knocked out of the game early in the first quarter. That doesn't diminish this win one bit.
Not only were the Commanders able to overcome five turnovers, but they were able to score five passing touchdowns on an Eagles' pass defense that has been No. 1 in the league since Week 5.
Only one other team this year has been able to turn it over five times and get a win. That's the Detroit Lions, who did it against the Houston Texans in Week 10. Not the worst company to be in.
Washington's defense benefitted from some good fortune, with the sure-handed DeVonta Smith dropping a wide-open pass on 3rd-and-5 with just over two minutes remaining. That could have all but ended the encounter.
The offense still had to execute and score a touchdown to win the game. Daniels delivered a master class, going perfect on four passing attempts for 33 yards and a score, while adding 14 yards on the ground. Let's dive into some other key numbers from the Commanders' thrilling comeback over the Eagles.
Commanders key numbers from stunning Week 16 win over the Eagles
1.95: The game was a polar opposite of the Week 11 match-up for the Eagles run game. In that clash, Saquon Barkley took over late to put the game away. The Commanders' defense held him in check after early success.
Barkley had 109 yards rushing and two touchdowns, including a 68-yarder at the end of the first quarter. He was only able to manage 37 rushing yards on 19 carries the rest of the way for an anemic 1.95 yards per carry.
21: The Eagles had only scored 27 points in the first quarter over their first 14 games, but they put 21 points on the Commanders' defense in the first quarter. It was the first time all season that the Eagles scored on their first drive and the first time since Week 14 of the 2022 season that Philadelphia scored on their first two drives.
Not the best start for Washington, but they were able to flip the script on the Eagles with a strong fourth quarter.
10: The Commanders ended the Eagles' 10-game winning streak, preventing them from clinching the NFC East and making their path to the No. 1 seed in the NFC more difficult. Washington also is 10-5 for the first time since the 1991 season, which ended in a Super Bowl.
Daniels also became the first Washington quarterback to throw for five touchdowns in a game since Mark Rypien, who accomplished the feat in that same 1991 season.
98: Washington had lost 98 straight games when entering the fourth quarter down by 13+ points before this game. Daniels was able to overcome an unforgiving pass rush to will the Commanders to victory.
During the Eagles' 10-game winning streak, their defense was holding opponents to 15.1 points, under 150 passing yards per game, and less than one passing touchdown per game. Daniels led the Commanders to 36 points while throwing for 258 yards and five scores, giving Washington its first victory against a winning team this season.
93: The Commanders were coming in with the sixth-most penalty yards given up over the past three games. That metric didn't improve in Week 16.
Washington had six penalties for 93 yards. The five defensive infringements resulted in automatic first downs for Philadelphia and the offensive one wiped out a first-down reception by Terry McLaurin.
Marshon Lattimore, who was covering A.J. Brown for the majority of the game, gave up 68 yards across three pass-interference penalties, after only having two penalties in seven contests with the New Orleans Saints.
12: After only having one reception for 10 receiving yards in the first meeting with the Eagles, McLaurin finished the game with five catches for 60 yards and his 12th receiving touchdown of the season. He is now tied for the franchise record for touchdown receptions in a season with Ricky Sanders. He also eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards for the fifth campaign in a row, becoming just the sixth receiver since 2012 to accomplish that feat.
If you had Jamison Crowder and Olamide Zaccheaus on your bingo card as major contributors to the 2024 offense, you deserve a prize. The duo finished with two receiving touchdowns each.
Crowder last had two receiving touchdowns in a game in Week 13 of the 2020 season. The last time Zaccheaus achieved this feat was Week 8 of the 2021 season. Meanwhile, ex-Washington pass-catcher Jahan Dotson had zero touches.
The Commanders moved one step closer to clinching a playoff spot. They also proved to themselves and the league that they could compete with the top-tier teams in the NFL.