Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels apologized to his teammates for the miscue that cost them the win against the New York Giants on Sunday.
Daniels scrambled out of pressure in the waning seconds of overtime but was ultimately sacked. The sack kept the clock running, and Washington couldn’t spike the ball in time to stop the clock and kick a game-winning field goal. Daniels told reporters Thursday that he took accountability for the mistake but is moving on.
“Ultimately, it’s on me at the end of the day. I’m the person on the field supposed to calm everything, control everything, and I failed to the standard I hold myself to the standard in this organization. So it’s just something for me to move on,” Daniels said.
“Not saying I’m proud of it or anything; obviously looking back, it could have resulted in a loss, we tied, but it was a fail in my eyes, and I know I’m better than that, hold myself to a higher standard than that. So, moving forward, I’ll grow from it and learn from it.”
With 13 seconds left to play in overtime, on 2nd and 8, Daniels took a snap from under center and dropped back to pass.
The Giants brought a 5-man pressure, and Daniels scrambled left, but was stopped short of the line of scrimmage. Daniels sat still for a moment before realizing the situation; the offense hurried to the line of scrimmage but couldn’t snap the ball in time to spike it and set up a field goal. The game ended in a 27–27 tie.
Daniels tried to take the heat off of Quinn and offensive coordinator David Blough. He said that Blough communicated the situation and the play effectively.
He said that as the leader of the offense on the field, he needed to be more aware and manage the game better, noting that it was not all on the defense, even though they blew a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter; he said the offense did not take advantage of opportunities to close the game and needs to do better.
Daniels said he kept himself up the night after the game wondering what he could have done better on that play and before it. He said his father always told him he has 24 hours to feel bad for himself, then he must move on from the previous game.
He credited his parents for telling him the hard truths he needs to hear in times like these, along with Sherman Wilson, the director of player retention at Daniels’s alma mater, LSU, who has been his confidant for years.
He also said he stood in front of the team, took the blame, and told his teammates it would never happen again. He credited his teammates for understanding and supporting him.
“They’re all saying we’re just going to move forward from this and get ready for the next week’s game, and there’s nothing we could do in the past. We can’t go back and change the outcome or anything like that. You can just learn from it,” he said.
“You’ve always got to continue to try to improve, keep moving forward, because we do have a very good test with the 49ers coming up on Monday night.”
