Who Should Be Blamed For Commanders' OT Blunder? NFL Scouts, Execs Differ

The Washington Commanders had a blunder for the ages in their 27-27 tie against the New York Giants on Sunday.

Possessing the ball with a winding clock in the final minute of overtime, the Commanders opted to run another play from scrimmage instead of kicking a field goal from the Giants' 24-yard line with 12 seconds left. The result was a disaster, with Jayden Daniels scrambling around before taking a sack at the line of scrimmage. Washington wasn't able to get set on time to spike the ball before time ran out, causing the game to end in a tie.

The Commanders were instantly clowned for letting the game get away from them, falling to 1-3-1 on the year. Daniels and head coach Dan Quinn were quick to accept responsibility for the miscue as well, with several analysts pointing the finger at each party for allowing the massive screw-up to happen.

But who really is to blame for what transpired in the final moments of Sunday's tie? We asked people around the league, and most of them believe that one of them is more to blame than the other. Here's what we learned from our conversations. 

Ralph Vacchiano: The reaction around the league to the brain freeze by Dan Quinn, Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders on Sunday was swift and seemingly universal. I received several texts from sources with a variation of "Oh my God!" to "Holy s---" and just "Wow."

But assigning who was to blame for the Commanders letting the clock run out in their 27-27 tie with the Giants when they were already within game-winning field goal range at the end of overtime wasn’t universal at all. NFL executives I contacted were much quicker to blame the coach. Coaches, though, were understandably a little more eager to let Quinn off the hook.

"I get why Dan gets all the heat," one assistant coach texted me. "It’s ultimately his responsibility. But do you really think he didn’t tell his players to watch the clock?"

"Sometimes players do stupid things, no matter how much you coach them," a former coach told me via text message. 

Days later, it’s still unclear what Quinn and his coaches told Daniels — and, just as importantly, when they told him. But even the coaches understood that Quinn bears the ultimate responsibility and will likely be the one to take the fall. And the executives I spoke to agreed that a "fall" is probably coming, unless Quinn turns the Commanders around really fast.

"It’s not a fireable offense because you can’t overreact to one moment," an assistant general manager told me. "But it sure does make you think about it. If your coach isn’t prepared for that, if he hasn’t made his team completely prepared for that, then what is he doing?

"Ask any of the best coaches ever. They’ll tell you how much situational preparation matters. It’s not all about Xs and Os and locker-room speeches. It’s making sure all the little things are covered — the little things that can lose you games."

"It makes you question everything about his coaching ability," a former NFL general manager told me. "It doesn’t mean he’s a terrible coach. But the best coaches thrive in those situations. I get it. You’ve got time running out, 11 players on the field, multiple assistants in your ear, 20 things to consider.

"But he gets the big money to be the beacon in that storm."

In many ways, the quarterback is paid to be that beacon too. They are paid not just for their ability, but for their ability to be calm and clear-headed in chaotic, late-game situations. But teams are usually much more committed to their quarterback than they are to their coach. And since Daniels is still just 25 years old and hasn’t even played two full NFL seasons yet, he’ll likely get a much bigger pass.

Still, some coaches don’t think he should.

"I wasn’t there, so I can’t know for sure, but I’ll never believe [Daniels] wasn’t told to ‘clock’ it, and probably right before the last play," the assistant coach told me. "I understand. He’s young. But this isn’t Pee Wee football. He’s an NFL quarterback. If he doesn’t know what to do by now, when the clock is running down, God help him."

Eric D. Williams: Green Bay Packers star edge rusher Micah Parsons made a big claim on his podcast about the futures of Dan Quinn and Jayden Daniels following their late-game blunder in Sunday's tie against the Giants. Parsons said that Daniels likely cost Quinn his job, and potentially a rich long-term deal. 

However, NFL contract negotiators I spoke with believe that Daniels' mess-up won't hinder any extension negotiations down the line. But an NFL agent told me that the head-scratching mistake could affect Quinn's standing with the team. 

"That’s where this has a bigger impact," the NFL contract negotiator told me. "It’s hard to find QBs, so one is more inclined to give Daniels a pass in this situation. But for a head coach who was already on the hot seat, it’s hard to give him a pass in this regard."

As the Commanders fell to 1-3-1 on the year with the loss, Quinn might firmly be on the hot seat in Washington. Ralph placed Quinn third in his hot seat rankings entering Week 5, with some sportsbooks placing him among the betting favorites to be the first head coach fired. 

Daniels, meanwhile, was the NFL’s Offensive Rookie of the Year two years ago and led Washington to the NFC Championship Game, but has struggled to stay healthy since. But when upright, Daniels has still played high-level football. He's thrown for 1,721 yards, 11 touchdowns and three interceptions to go with 481 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns in 11 games since the start of last season. 

In the third year of his rookie deal, Daniels is eligible for a contract extension this upcoming offseason that could pay him north of $50 million at the end of this season. Expect Washington to back up the Brink’s truck.

"The wound from the debacle is fresh right now," an NFL contract negotiator told me. "But the emotion/pain from it will eventually subside. That said, it will be one of the MANY considerations when contemplating an extension.

"How much weight this particular consideration holds will likely be small by the time they’re negotiating. It’s just a one-time ‘egg on the face’ moment that shouldn’t impact how they view Jayden in totality."

While Sunday's mishap might not have an impact on a future deal for Daniels, another NFL agent I spoke with believes Daniels still needs to play well for the rest of the season to earn a new deal.

"If he doesn’t play well, it doesn’t help him get a deal," the agent told me. "If he plays consistently like he did in 2024, it won’t affect it. But he hasn’t done that since 2024."