Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels threw a touchdown pass on the final play of Sunday night’s overtime win over the Falcons. For some players, a late touchdown pass would be a career highlight. For Daniels, it’s become the norm.
Just 16 games into his rookie year, Daniels has now thrown a touchdown pass in the final 30 seconds of five different games. No other quarterback has done that in any other season in NFL history.
Sunday night’s game was the second game in a row in which Daniels threw a touchdown pass in the final 30 seconds; he also did it in last week’s win over the Eagles. And every football fan remembers that Daniels threw the Hail Mary touchdown pass on the final play of the Commanders’ win against the Bears.
Unfortunately for the Commanders, Daniels also did it in two games they ended up losing: Daniels threw a touchdown pass with 21 seconds left in the fourth quarter against the Cowboys, but the Commanders missed the game-tying extra point, and then their onside kick attempt was returned for a touchdown. And Daniels threw a touchdown pass with 28 seconds left in the Commanders’ Week 12 loss to the Eagles, but the Commanders failed to recover the subsequent onside kick and lost 26-18.
Two losses aside, what Daniels has done as a rookie is extraordinary. In fact, it would be extraordinary for a veteran, too. Daniels’ late-game heroics this season have given him a unique place in NFL history.
