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Jayden Daniels leads game-winning drive as Commanders beat Buccaneers

TAMPA, Fla. — New owners. new general manager. new coach. New franchise quarterback.

This, with an emphasis on QB, is the formula that has given Washington success in the playoffs after nearly 20 years of futility.

Jayden Daniels ran for a crucial first down, setting up Zane Gonzalez's 37-yard field goal. This goal hit the right side and was scored as time expired. The Commanders defeated the Tampa Bay Buccaneers 23-20 in the NFC Wild Card Game on Sunday. It was the franchise's first playoff win night in 6,945 days.

Jaden Daniels throws a pass during a game between the Commanders and the Buccaneers on Jan. 12, 2025. USA TODAY Sports (via Reuters Con)

Despite playing with blood on his face and a bandage under his right eye, Daniels became the third rookie quarterback in three years to win a playoff game.

The Commanders (13-5) will face the top-seeded Detroit Lions (15-2) in the divisional round.

“It means a lot,” Daniels said. “I see all the fans here, hey, they're waiting for us. They've been waiting for this moment and this feeling for a long time, so I'm really happy for them.”

Baker Mayfield and the Buccaneers (10-8) missed several opportunities and the veteran quarterback committed a costly turnover in the fourth quarter. The Bucs failed to gain 1 yard on two attempts at the Commander's 12 and settled for a field goal to tie the game before Washington's final drive.

Daniels threw for 268 yards and two touchdowns, joining CJ Stroud and Brock Purdy as rookie QBs to win a playoff game each of the past three seasons.

Washington hadn't won in the postseason since January 7, 2006, when they defeated the Buccaneers 17-10 in Tampa Bay in the wild-card game.

Bobby Wagner recovers Baker Mayfield's fumble during the Commanders vs. Buccaneers game on January 12, 2025. USA TODAY Sports (via Reuters Con)

The organization's turnaround began in 2023 when Daniel Snyder sold the team to a group led by Josh Harris, which included NBA Hall of Famer Magic Johnson. After his first year as manager, he hired general manager Adam Peters and coach Dan Quinn, and selected Daniels with the second pick in April's draft.

“We picked the right person and I have to give Josh a lot of credit,” Johnson said. “When you pick Adam Peters and you pick Coach Quinn, they picked the right players, the culture changed. They went from a losing culture to a winning culture. But it's about those players. They were determined to win. And they didn't care what all the analysts were saying. Enough about what they said there.

The Buccaneers opened the season with a 37-20 home victory over the Commanders in Daniels' first game as coach. Daniels went on to have another great season, making the Pro Bowl and helping Washington improve from 4-13 to 12-5.

Now, he's heading them to Detroit to face the Lions' energetic offense led by Jared Goff.

“I'm not going to give up until the clock hits zero,” Daniels said. “We're going to keep fighting until the end.”

After Tampa Bay's defense held a 17-13 lead early in the fourth quarter and kept it within five, Mayfield fumbled an exchange on a handoff to Jalen McMillan and immediately gave the ball back to his managers. . Washington rallied with the Buccaneers scoring 13 points. On 4-for-5 and 2nd base, Daniels connected with Terry McLaurin in the back of the end zone for a 20-17 lead.

Zane Gonzalez celebrates after the Commanders vs. Buccaneers game on Jan. 12, 2025. Getty Images

“It's disappointing because I believed this team had the talent and coaching staff to go far,” Coach Mayfield said. “I did something stupid and it's going to stay that way for a while.”

In the Commanders' 12 game, Mayfield put the Buccaneers up 2-1, but Chase McLaughlin made a 32-yard field goal to tie the score at 20-20 with 4:41 remaining.

The Bucks never got the ball back thanks to Daniels, who calmly led his team downfield. With less than a minute left, he was hit behind the line of scrimmage, but scrambled 4 yards on third-and-two, conceding a knee kick and setting up Gonzalez's final kick.

Quinn previously passed on two short field goals on fourth down, and the offense was unable to score before McLaurin's TD catch.

Less than a minute into the fourth quarter, on fourth down from the Buccaneers' 4, Daniels threw an incompletion. He was pressured and threw an incompletion on a 4-2 from Tampa Bay's 20 on Washington's first possession of the game.

“We were going to be bold, but not reckless,” Quinn said.

In the third quarter, Mayfield threw a 4-yard TD pass to Bucky Irving, giving the Buccaneers a 17-13 lead. On the previous play, 350-pound defensive tackle Vita Vea was Mayfield's intended receiver, but the QB was sacked for a 2-yard loss.

Mayfield hit a 1-yard TD pass to Mike Evans late in the first half to tie the score at 10.

Gonzalez kicked a 22-yard field goal to give Washington a 13-10 lead on the first drive of the second half. The Commanders got a first down on a 3, but Tampa Bay's defense held out.

Late in the first quarter, Austin Ekeler ran 2 yards from the Buccaneers' 23 on a fourth-and-1, and the Managers took the lead a few plays later, completing a 92-yard drive. With blood streaming down his face, Daniels threw a 10-yard TD pass to Diami Brown for a 7-3 lead.

A holding call on cornerback Zion McCollum nullified Yaya Diaby's third-down sack, and Washington extended its next drive, ending with Gonzalez's 50-yarder for a 10-3 lead.

McLaughlin kicked a 50-yard field goal on the opening drive. The Buccaneers were 9-1 when they first scored in the regular season.

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