Stock Report: Heinicke to McLaurin pull off miracle win in Indy originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
INDIANAPOLIS — Just when it looked like Washington’s season was shot, Taylor Heinicke heaved a deep ball to Terry McLaurin and kept the party going.
McLaurin made an incredible catch at the goal line and a few seconds later Washington held a 17-16 lead that would win the game against the Colts. That marks three straight wins for the Commanders and all of a sudden Ron Rivera‘s team is back to .500 with a 4-4 record.
Heinicke’s moxie knows no bounds, as he threw a bad interception earlier in the fourth quarter before things finally started clicking for the Washington offense. Seriously for three quarters the offensive output was dreadful, but once their backs went against the wall, Heinicke and McLaurin fought back.
A gutsy win. An ugly win, and against a terribly inexperienced quarterback in the Colts’ Sam Ehlinger, but it’s a win.
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- Darrick Forrest – The second-year safety made a big play in the third quarter when he forced a fumble on Colts stud running back Jonathan Taylor. Forrest had a textbook hit, directly to the football and it popped out, stopping a promising Colts drive that likely would have resulted in points without the fumble.
- Tress Way – The Commanders leaned heavily on their Pro Bowl punter. Way finished with six punts in this game and probably needs an ice bath on the flight home. It’s not great that the punter is so huge to the team, but at least he’s a great punter.
- Jamin Davis – The second-year linebacker might have made the best play of his young career with a huge stop of Taylor and 3rd and goal in the third quarter. Davis read the play from the jump and dashed through the line of scrimmage to blast the runner and blow up the play. That limited the Colts to a field goal despite having the ball inside the 5-yard line.
- Antonio Gibson – Despite a week of practice that included trade rumors, Gibson came out and played perhaps his best game of the year. His biggest impact came in the pass game but he also helped on the ground and as a kick returner. Solid effort.
- Terry McLaurin – The homecoming story played out well for McLaurin. He grabbed six catches for 113 yards and showed his explosive blend of speed and precision.
- 4th quarter Taylor Heinicke – He wasn’t good for much of this game but late in the game he was excellent. That is a QB that never quits and will give his guys a chance, always.
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- First 3 quarters Taylor Heinicke – The likable QB had a tough day in Indianapolis. The offense never got going and Heinicke threw a bad interception in the fourth quarter that led to the Colts’ first TD of the day. In a game where the entire offense underperformed, at best, Heinicke played a role in that.
- Offensive line – When a team can’t run and can’t pass some of that falls on the offensive line. Well, for most of the game the Commanders averaged 3.5 yards-per-carry and only had 137 yards passing in the first 50 minutes of the game.
- Play calling – When a team can’t run and can’t pass some of that falls on the offensive play-calling. Washington was able to move the ball late in the fourth quarter, but for most of the game the Commanders had more punts than third-down conversions. There needs to be some recognition that this offensive line cannot get to the second level or edges with much consistency.
