After a historic Hail Mary win last week, the Nov. 3 game marked the Washington Commanders’ third straight win, defeating the New York Giants 27-22 in an intense NFC East division battle at MetLife Stadium.
Coming into Sunday’s game, the Giants were 2-6, standing as the last team in the NFC East division. After losing to the Commanders for the second time this season (21-18 in week two), the Giants are now 2-7 in the division continuing their streak in last place.
After Sunday’s win, Washington stands at a celebratory 7-2 record for the first time since 1996, leading the NFC East division.
“When you want to win your division you’ve gotta win those games,” said Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels. “That’s something that we set out to do and you know we’re 2-0 and got a couple more to go.”
Check out a couple of the contributing factors that led to the Commanders’ win over the Giants:
Washington Excelled the Run Game Without Brian Robinson Jr.
It is no secret that running back Brian Robinson Jr. is a key contributor to the Commanders success in the run game, and Sunday’s game was the second time in four straight series that the Commanders have ruled out the rushing leader.
Robinson was first announced as questionable due to a hamstring injury. However, just hours before kickoff, Washington ruled out Robinson for the week nine matchup against the Giants. This left the Commanders no choice but to rely on other players for offensive strides.
Teamwork really made the dream work against the Giants as the Commanders recorded 150 yards on 38 carries.
Running back Chris Rodriguez was raised from the practice squad amid Robinson’s hamstring injury. He led the Commanders run game against the Giants, finishing the day with 52 yards on 11 attempts. In the fourth quarter, Rodriguez had a tremendous 17-yard run, but that’s not all he did. Rodriguez became a key contributor on Washington’s final drive by helping to run the clock with five carries.
Head Coach Dan Quinn weighed in on Rodriguez’s success, noting he didn’t know if the running back would play until 90 minutes before the game.
“When you get into that spot and you demonstrate you’re ready, it goes a long way to your teammates and there’s a lot of unseen work to be ready. You don’t get all the reps. Sometimes that comes in the after practice or the before practice to be ready, and I thought just a strong finish at the end of the game by him,” said Quinn.
Running back Austin Ekeler led Washington right behind Rodgriuez with 42 yards on 11 attempts. Ekeler even scored one out of three of Washington’s first-half touchdowns, a fourth-and-1 conversion set up by quarterback Daniels.
The Commanders are hoping to have Robinson back out on the field next week against the Pittsburgh Steelers. However, Washington has proved that they can build an efficient run game attack without him. It will be exciting to see how the run game will progress with various players stepping up to make strides moving forward.
”Our coaching staff does a tremendous job of bringing confidence into the players. No matter if you’re the starter or practice squad guy, you never know when your number might get called,” said Daniels, reflecting on Rodriguez and Ekeler’s performance amid Robinson’s injury.
Commanders Defense Stayed Strong From Start To Finish
The Commanders defense dominated until the clock struck zero in the fourth quarter against the Giants.
Although the Commanders defense is known for dominating more or less in certain matchups, they truly stood firm against New York’s offense, gaining momentum throughout the game.
Linebacker Dante Fowler Jr. bursted past Giants offensive lineman Chris Hubbard, sacking quarterback Daniel Jones and forcing a fumble. Even though that was not the original call presented, the ball rolled back to the Giants 31-yard line before it was recovered by Commanders linebacker Bobby Wagner.
It was originally ruled as an incomplete pass until Washington head coach Dan Quinn threw a challenge flag as he was convinced that it was a fumble. Quinn’s challenge was successful, leaving the ball in the hands of the Commanders deep in Giants territory.
The defensive contributions provided by Fowler and Wagner set Washington up to score three plays later, recording a 21-7 lead in the first half.
The Washington Commanders will be back home at Northwest Stadium to face off against the AFC North-leading Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday, Nov. 11.
