Commanders pull off thrilling wild-card win over Bucs on doinked-in field goal as time expires

SOUUND ON FOR THIS ONE!!!!! WASHINGTON WINS!!!

This is unteachable athletic greatness. You have to draft this kind of player, trade for him or figure out a way to sign him in free agency.

Marcus Mariota was under center — Washington had a successful sneak with Mariota earlier — but the Bucs didn't jump

54 seconds left, and the Commanders have a 3rd and 1 from the Tampa Bay 19. The Bucs call timeout and have one timeout left, and have to have a stop on this next snap. The Commanders do have two timeouts in their pocket. If the Commanders don't gain another yard, it would be a 36-yard field goal try for Zane Gonzalez — who is 24-of-27 in his career from 30-39 yards,.

Jayden Daniels has ZERO fear. The Commanders are FULLY in control now.

The Commanders have it on the Tampa Bay 45 with a 2nd and 10 with two timeouts in their pocket. They can control the clock, but they're not quite in Zane Gonzalez's range yet — he's hit from 52 yards tonight, but Washington elected to pass on a 56-yard attempt as well. Think the 35-yard-line at least for a field goal attempt, and remember, the Commanders are 3-for-5 on fourth down tries tonight.

A double-spy on Jayden Daniels on a third down, and he's already making defensive coordinators loose sleep in schemes.

It's 20-20 with 4:41 to play in regulation. Poor timing on a 3rd and 1 snap wound up costing the Buccaneers a couple of yards and they weren't willing to risk it on a fourth down deep in Washington territory. It's the second time a bungled snap — after the Mayfield fumble — has cost the Bucs in the 4th quarter.

Washington has been here before, needing a late score to win — games against Philadelphia and Chicago come to mind — and its been up for the challenge in some huge moments. We'll see how this thriller, which is the most competitive of the wild card games to this point, shakes out.

This time Jayden Daniels was able to find McLaurin for the score and the Commanders make good on the massive Bucs mistake. It's a Washington lead, 20-17, with under 10 minutes left in the fourth quarter. Washington finally making another play in the red zone has them in front, but it's been so challenging all night, as it had to come on another fourth down attempt.

A DISASTER for the Buccaneers — Baker Mayfield and Jalen McMillian's timing was off, and the Commanders are back in the red zone in sudden charge.

It’s Washington's third red zone trip without a touchdown tonight, and this one had a 1st and goal at the 1-yard-line. Brian Robinson going backward and three Jayden Daniels incompletions later, the Bucs have the ball — albeit on their own 3-yard-line — and the lead, early in the 4th quarter.

Gigantic penalty on the first play of the 4th quarter, and Washington is in business.

It's been a good one in Tampa, with the Bucs and Commanders trading second half scores in a 17-13 games. Both offenses have had some bright spots after halftime, and it’ made for a see-saw battle at Raymond James Stadium.

The Commanders go for it as much as anyone in the league and in no-man's-land, this 4th and 5 was a no brainer. Huge play by the rookie QB to the veteran safety blanket tight end.

It took just three plays, but a holding penalty on Jamel Dean, a Jayden Daniels run, and a drop in the bucket to Terry McLaurin and the Commanders are at the Bucs' 42. The game has gotten very up-and-down the field since the start of the 3rd quarter

Baker Mayfield finds his running back for the passing TD. Assist to Jalen McMillian for the rub (or pick if you're a defensive player) to get Irving open and it's 17-13 Tampa Bay with 4:31 to play in the fourth quarter.

The Bucs have some CHUNK plays on this drive. First Mike Evans beat Marshon Lattimore to pick up 19 in the pass game, and Bucky Irving ripped off runs of 18 and 10 yards and the Bucs are inside the 10-yard-line.

It's the second time the Commanders have been in the red zone and not gotten a touchdown. With how Tampa Bay moved the ball late in the first half, certainly the Commanders will like that there are more points on the board, but they will wind up kicking themselves if this turns into a touchdown fest in the second half after they couldn't cash in a goal-to-go situation to open the third quarter.

The Commanders will settle for a field goal attempt after the breakup intended for Terry McLaurin.

Dyami Brown, welcome to The Show. The rookie has been big tonight and has catches of 30 and 24 yards on this opening drive of the second half.

The Commanders were in control for much of the first half, but a late surge from the Bucs on a good drive ended with a Mike Evans touchdown catch, and we're even at the half. Business picked up in the second quarter and the Commanders will receive the second half kickoff.

He's going to shout out a lot of quarterbacks ... will he shout out Marshon Lattimore?

If you're not a Bucs fan, is there a little bit of you that wishes he could be the quarterback for your team?

The Commanders have been in control of this game, but they're only ahead 10-3. They've run 34 plays to the Buccaneers' 16, but there's 1:52 on the clock and the Bucs have two timeouts before halftime.

Yaya Diaby sacked Jayden Daniels on a third down, but a defensive holding call in the secondary gave the Commanders a first down, and they're on the move again and into to Bucs territory. Tampa has been flagged three times for 28 yards, and they've all been costly.

Baker Mayfield has been OK in the early going, but the Bucs keep getting behind the sticks. A chop block cost the Buccaneers 15 yards, and they were also flagged for a holding penalty that was declined before punting the ball back to Washington. Midway through the 2nd quarter and the Commanders still lead 7-3.

After stopping the bleeding, the Commanders cap a 17-play, 92-yard drive with a touchdown pass. That series took up more than nine minutes and with just under 9:30 to play in the first half, the Commanders have taken a 7-0 lead.

Daniels needs the cut man and we're not even halfway through the bout.

An inside give to Austin Ekeler gets the 4th and 1 and the Commanders are still on the move, at the 22.

This drive started at their own 8-yard-line, and a third down scramble and throw from Jayden Daniels to Zach Ertz was the catalyst for getting the ball out of the shadow of the goal post. Tampa leads 3-0, but both offenses have shown some rhythm in the early going, despite not reaching the end zone yet.

Washington survives the 4th down miss, and the game is still 3-0. It'll need to go the length of the field though, after Jamison Crowder's fair catch at the 8-yard-line.

It was 4th and 2 on the 19-yard-line and the Commanders came up short because of an incompletion. Good defense by the Bucs on this play, but perhaps a field goal to match Tampa Bay would have been a good choice?

Bucs take over at their own 19.

😳

Jayden Daniels takes over after a record-setting rookie season, setting new NFL marks for completion percentage and rushing yards for a rookie quarterback. Daniels opened his NFL career in Week 1 with a loss, and is looking to help Washington to a measure of revenge.

The Bucs' opening drive stalled in Commanders territory, and it was 3 to open the game for the Bucs. There was an offsides penalty on the play, but coach Todd Bowles elected to not take the points off the board — it would have resulted in a 4th and 2. All points might be important today, with two of the league's highest-scoring teams in the matchup. Washington was fifth in scoring (28.5 points per game) and Tampa Bay was fourth (29.5 points per game).

And it was for a first down, too. Evans became just the second player ever, joining Jerry Rice, with 11-consecutive 1,000-yard receiving seasons this year, and he's still among the most productive receivers in the NFL.

But Jayden Daniels is actually trying to keep a streak going. Each of the last two seasons (Brock Purdy with the 49ers in 2022-23 and C.J. Stroud with the Texans in 2023-24) a rookie quarterback has won a playoff game. Can the presumptive Offensive Rookie of the Year make it three years in a row and get Washington a first playoff win in 19 years?

The rookie running back from Oregon would do well for Tampa Bay if he's the best offensive rookie in this game — his 1,122 rushing yards led the team this year, to go along with eight touchdowns on the ground. He topped the 100-yard mark in two of Tampa Bay's last four games and was a major player in the Bucs' big finish to the year, when Tampa Bay won six of seven to close the regular season.