Commanders try to make sense of bizarre ending vs. Giants originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
LANDOVER, Md. — Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera was short and to the point with his answers to begin his postgame press conference on Sunday evening. He knew what was coming.
“Don’t ask me about the referees, because I can’t answer the question,” Rivera said, still visibly upset at what had just transpired.
Just minutes earlier, Washington, trailing by eight, had the football on the Giants’ one-yard line late in the fourth quarter. But a pair of questionable calls from the officials went against the Commanders, which resulted in Washington’s drive ending with a turnover on downs that sealed New York’s 20-12 victory on Sunday Night Football.
On third-and-goal, Commanders running back Brian Robinson Jr. bulldozed his way into the end zone, but the rookie’s touchdown was negated by an illegal formation penalty on Terry McLaurin.
According to referee John Hussey, McLaurin was lined up a yard behind the line of scrimmage, not directly on the line where he was supposed to be. McLaurin offered a different perspective when speaking with reporters postgame.
“I felt like I was on the ball the entire time,” McLaurin said. “If you look through the game, I lined up there pretty much every play. I checked to see if I was good the first time and [the referee] was like ‘move up a little bit.’ So when I moved up, I checked to see if I was good and he said I was good. I’m not trying to get fined. … But for it to come down like that, it’s tough.”
McLaurin added that when he moved up for a second time, he received confirmation from the official that he was good. That’s why he was surprised to see a flag on the field following the play.
“I gave him the thumbs up twice to make sure I was good,” McLaurin said. “In that event, I guess I can’t make it close for a judgment call. I felt like I checked with him twice. … He didn’t say [anything]. One of the refs moved me out of the way when they talked about it.”
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Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke had McLaurin’s back postgame, too, saying the referee “gave him a thumbs up and we get penalized for it. That play is very questionable.”
The Commanders star wideout did his best to plead with the refs, but Hussey’s crew ultimately decided to throw the flag anyway.
After McLaurin’s penalty, following an incomplete pass, the Commanders faced fourth-and-goal from the Giants’ six-yard line, one final shot to find the end zone. Initially, no receiver broke free and Heinicke scrambled in the backfield, hoping for one of his pass-catchers to become available.
Eventually, Heinicke saw Curtis Samuel in 1-on-1 coverage with New York cornerback Darnay Holmes in the end zone. However, Heinicke’s pass fell incomplete after Holmes broke up the play, despite a ton of contact before the ball arrived.
Washington did its best to bargain for a pass interference penalty, but Hussey’s crew kept the yellow laundry in their pockets on the pivotal play.
“Pass interference is a judgment call,” Hussey said. “To the officials it didn’t rise to what they felt was a restriction, thus they didn’t call it. That’s basically the bottom line there. It’s a judgment call and they didn’t believe it was pass interference.”
Without directly saying it, Rivera made it clear postgame he believed a flag should’ve been thrown. Samuel didn’t say one way or another whether he thought it was pass interference, instead putting blame on himself for not hauling the football in.
“All I can do is try to make the play when the ball is in the air, Samuel said. “I’m not a ref, so there’s nothing I can do about that. … He threw the ball and gave me a chance. Anytime the ball is in the air I want to make the play. I feel like I’ve got to make that, no matter what the situation is.”
The mood was, understandably, quite somber in the Commanders’ locker room following the game. Players continued to discuss the final sequence amongst themselves as they changed from their uniform to street clothes, still trying to process what had just went down.
Although those two calls didn’t go Washington’s direction late in the game, the club knows there were several other opportunities throughout the contest where a play or two could’ve changed the outcome. Red zone woes on offense continued, while the defense couldn’t force any turnovers. “Missed opportunities” was a common answer when asked what went wrong on Sunday night.
Entering Sunday, the Commanders’ had a 71% chance to make the postseason, according to FiveThirtyEight. A win would’ve boosted those chances to 91%. After Washington’s Week 15 loss, their playoff odds have dipped to 35%. Simply put, a golden opportunity was squandered.
With three games remaining, the Commanders (7-6-1) still hold the seventh and final playoff spot in the NFC. But, a tough contest against the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara awaits, before home matchups against Cleveland and Dallas to end the season. Washington’s work is cut out for it.
“Everyone’s pissed off right now and I think it’s going to roll over through the week,” Heinicke said. “I think that’s a good thing. We’re going to use this as energy to get prepared for a really good team in San Fran. You know, it’s going to be a battle. But I think these guys are going to use this and roll it over into next week.”
