Commanders lose to Giants in prime-time showdown

LANDOVER —  There’s no way to sugarcoat Sunday’s 20-12 loss for the Washington Commanders: They blew it. 

No, they technically aren’t out of the playoffs just yet. No, they didn’t lead long enough to suggest they choked this contest away. And yes, they had a chance at the end. 

But make no mistake, in a huge prime-time outing with so much on the line, the Commanders needed a win to boost their postseason odds. And they couldn’t deliver in front of a juiced FedEx Field crowd. 

The Commanders got all the way inside to their own 10-yard twice late in the fourth quarter — but failed to capitalize each time. 

Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke (249 yards on 17/29 passing with a touchdown) threw an incompletion on fourth down with less than a minute left to seal the loss. But before that, with just over six minutes left, the signal-caller fumbled at New York’s 9-yard line. 

Each time — each failed possession — the Commanders were in a position to score thanks to big plays. On the drive of Heinicke’s fourth-quarter fumble, the quarterback hit rookie Jahan Dotson for a 61-yard bomb. Then Heinicke nearly got into the end zone with a scramble that stopped him just short of the goal line. 

Still, Heinicke and the Commanders couldn’t finish. 

Instead, Daniel Jones (21 of 32 for 160 yards) and the Giants prevailed. 

New York improved to 8-5-1, while Washington fell to 7-6-1. 

Washington’s playoff hopes are still alive, but according to advanced models, the team’s chances are in the low 30s. If the team had won, the odds would have been north of 90%. 

Because of their loss, the Commanders will likely need to win two of three down the stretch with San Francisco, Cleveland and Dallas remaining. 

The Commanders had become more than comfortable with prime-time games under Rivera. Over three years of the coach’s tenure, Washington was 5-2 in such outings. The team had regularly embraced the moments, never more so than in this season’s upset win over the then-undefeated Philadelphia Eagles.

But most of those situations differed as Washington entered the matchups as the underdog. Sunday? Not only did oddsmakers deem the Commanders 4½ point favorites — Washington’s biggest spread of the season — but all but one of NBC’s eight pre-game analysts picked the Burgundy and Gold to beat New York. 

It became clear early that Washington wasn’t going to cruise to an easy victory. Even when Washington was able to move the ball behind a series of bulldozing Brian Robinson runs, the Commanders repeatedly stalled in scoring territory. 

First, Rivera made a curious decision on Washington’s opening drive to punt from New York’s 34-yard line rather than send out Joey Slye for the 48-yard field goal. Slye, however, trotted on the field for the next series — helping Washington settle for a 41-yarder to take a 3-0 lead. 

But the tone of Sunday’s contest truly changed when Giants rookie pass-rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux blasted Heinicke at the 10-yard line to force a fumble that New York recovered in the end zone. The Commanders were already in such bad field position because of a holding penalty that made it second-and-18 — and Thibodeaux’s strip-sack turned a bad situation into a disaster for Washington. 

The Commanders couldn’t return the favor. New York began its third drive of the evening backed all the way up to the 3-yard line. But rather than force their own turnover or get the safety, Washington’s defense instead allowed a punishing 18-play, 97-yard drive that ended with running back Saquon Barkley scoring on a 3-yard touchdown.  

During that drive, New York converted on a fourth-and-9 that stood in contrast to Rivera’s decision to punt. Rather than punt or kick, Giants coach Brian Daboll trusted his quarterback — and Jones rewarded him with an 11-yard completion. 

In the second half, trailing 14-3, the Commanders made a valiant effort to come back. But the closest Washington got was five points — both at 14-9 and 17-12.