Daily Slop – 16 Dec 24: Dan Quinn did not openly criticize officials for clock chaos at the end of Saints game

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The Athletic (paywall)

Commanders went from marching past Saints to creating questions in chaotic finish

The tale of two halves against the New Orleans Saints may tell the remainder of the 2024 Washington Commanders’ story.

Those opening 30 minutes were primarily loaded with the good stuff. Jayden Daniels maintained his standard of high-efficiency performances while finding Terry McLaurin for two touchdowns. In Marshon Lattimore’s debut, Washington’s defense stymied the New Orleans attack in all ways possible, helping to create an overall dominant time-of-possession advantage.

Fast forward to the finish line. The 20-19 victory kept the Commanders, now 9-5, in possession of the NFC’s third and final wild-card spot and clinched the franchise’s first winning record since 2016. Like much of this season, don’t sleep on those big-picture aspects. Washington has zoomed past any realistic expectations for this campaign, and the long-term ceiling is much higher thanks to Daniels’ upside.

As for those focused on the present, the second half offered ample concerns, particularly on offense. Not the kind isolated to a single game. Well, outside of the chaotic final seconds where, with Washington clinging to a 7-point lead, a game official’s error stopped the clock, leaving the Saints with time to spike the ball, call a play and complete a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Foster Moreau as time expired.

Only an incomplete and potential game-winning 2-point conversion attempt by rookie quarterback Spencer Rattler to tight end Juwan Johnson eliminated cries of robbery from the visiting locker room. The mood wasn’t celebratory, either.

“Wild game,” Commanders coach Dan Quinn said following a game where he declared a mixed bag of winning-time moments. “Good and bad. Solid, but not to the level we need to be.”

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Washington Post (paywall)

The line between a gutsy win and a gutting loss is, well, ask the Commanders

Washington proved Sunday it’s still learning how to finish games. A bigger question: How will it finish the season?

Finishing in the NFL involves the head and the heart, the gut and the clock, experience and undeniable flat-out luck. The Washington Commanders won a game Sunday they should have won — statistically and viscerally, at least — but almost lost. They needed all of the above.

[I]f the New Orleans Saints had converted a two-point conversion on the game’s final play, that confidence could be waning, and the mental toughness would be questioned. Had Spencer Rattler’s pass in the flat been corralled by Saints tight end Juwan Johnson, it would have been a loss. The ball fell incomplete, and the Commanders secured a 20-19 victory — barely.

That line’s about as thin as a crepe.

Through three quarters, Washington led in total yardage 278 to 114, in first downs 19 to 5, in time of possession 32:41 to 12:19. On the first play of the fourth quarter, they kicked a field goal to go up 20-7.

This is a game that came down to the final play? Think of the ways it might not have.

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Commanders.com

Five takeaways from Washington’s win over New Orleans

Missed opportunities to clean up.

As exciting as the failed two-point conversion from the Saints that sealed the win for the Commanders was, there were moments that could have given Washington a much safer lead.

McLaurin, for example, was wide open for what could have been touchdowns on three separate occasions in the second half. All three ended with the ball barely slipping through McLaurin’s grasp. It should serve as a reminder for the Commanders that they will need to capitalize on those moments against better opponents like the Philadelphia Eagles, who will be coming to Northwest Stadium next week.

Another missed opportunity came on the Commanders’ final offensive drive of the night. Rather than punt, coach Dan Quinn sent Greg Joseph out to try a 54-yard field goal. Joseph’s kick was wide right, providing the Saints with a short field and a chance to tie the game.

There were also the nine penalties called on Washington that hurt both sides of the ball. A holding call eliminated a 23-yard gain by Dyami Brown in the fourth quarter that would have moved the Commanders to the Saints’ 10-yard line. Before that, Benjamin St-Juste was called for illegal use of hands on a third-and-10 that kept the Saints’ scoring drive alive.

A tighter hold on the playoffs.

They now have a firmer hold on the No. 7 seed in the playoffs, as the New York Times playoff simulator gives them a 95% chance at making the postseason.

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ESPN

Dan Quinn’s officiating no-comment headlines Week 15 post-win quotes

New Orleans scored 12 unanswered points to finish the game, with a last-gasp touchdown making the score 20-19 with no time left on the clock. The Saints opted to go for a game-winning two-point conversion instead of forcing overtime with an extra point, but the conversion attempt failed, sealing the Commanders’ win.

The touchdown came after some strange clock mechanics — the game clock appeared to pause with nine seconds remaining in the contest, allowing New Orleans precious time to spike the ball and set up one final play.

After the game, Washington coach Dan Quinn kept his thoughts on the clock situation blunt:

“I’m going to take the high road.”

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Upcoming opponent

Bleeding Green Nation

NFL Week 16 odds: Eagles open as road favorites against Commanders

Philadelphia can officially clinch the NFC East with a win or tie in Week 16.

The Philadelphia Eagles opened as 3.5-point road favorites in their Week 16 game against the Washington Commanders, according to FanDuel.

The Eagles have won a franchise-record 10 games in a row and one of those victories came over the Commanders back in Week 11.

The Commanders will be motivated to prevent the Eagles from clinching the NFC East in their own stadium; Washington figures to put up a good fight

The feeling here is that it could be a close one.

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Bleeding Green Nation

Eagles vs. Steelers: The good, the bad, and the ugly

Sideline drama. This is a team that is going in a good direction. Head coach Nick Sirianni was clearly angry over Jalen Carter’s fourth-quarter unnecessary roughness penalty after a Pittsburgh punt with 10:29 left to play. It led to Sirianni and Eagles’ defensive line coach Clint Hurtt seemingly beefing on the sideline (with Hurtt no doubt coming to Carter’s defense)—while the crucial moments of a game were unfolding before them.

A quality CEO head coach pays attention to what is in front of him, not caught up in triviality when his team is up by two scores and looking to seal a meaningful December victory. It is something that should have been put aside, and addressed on Monday in the privacy of the NovaCare Complex—not in that open moment ahead 27-13 in a crucial late-season game.

That loss of focus is why Sirianni opens himself up to local criticism (that the national media does not see) with a Super Bowl-talented team that can only beat itself. That kind of bickering is reserved for Friday Night Tykes—not on the sidelines of winning NFL teams.

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Podcasts & videos

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Photos

Commanders.com

PHOTOS | Commanders vs. Saints, Week 15

Check out the top photos of the Washington Commanders at the Caesars Superdome for their Week 15 matchup with the New Orleans Saints, Shot on Sony. (Photos by Emilee Fails/Washington Commanders)

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