Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels knows it’s getting a little late for his team to save their season. After Sunday’s 20-13 loss to the Los Angeles Rams, Washington fell to 2-5-1 and now faces a short week. On Thursday, the Commanders face the New York Giants on the road.
The Giants won again on Sunday, defeating the Philadelphia Eagles and improving to 5-2-1. They are in the driver’s seat to win the NFC East and go from worst to first.
After Sunday’s game, quarterback Jayden Daniels shared the team’s urgency for Thursday night’s game.
“Yeah. I think next week is a must-win,” Daniels said.
Players don’t often say these things. They give you the customary “Every game is important” speech. Daniels, who doesn’t often say much in these interviews,
was honest. It’s now or never for the 2026 Washington Commanders. If they can win, they’ll be 3-5-1 and only two games behind the Giants, with eight games to play. But if Washington loses, it will be 2-6-1 and, more importantly, 1-3-1 in the NFC East with only one divisional game to play.
Daniels’ numbers were solid against the Rams. He completed 24 of 35 passes for 274 yards and a touchdown. But his performance will be best remembered for the plays he didn’t make, such as the throw to an open Van Jefferson late in the fourth quarter.
“The whole unit just didn’t execute,” Daniels said of the offense, which struggled in the second half. “Regardless, like first, second down, credit to them. When we go to our third down, they got into their packages that were really just go out there and let these All-Pros and Hall of Famers rush. So, let them back in, and they knew the ball had to come out quick. So, we just didn’t execute any of the play calls that were called as a whole unit.”
He’s right on all counts. But what will he do about on Thursday night? What will the Commanders do about it? If Washington loses on Thursday, things could turn ugly.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Commanders' Jayden Daniels offers blunt assessment of Week 10 vs Giants
