Published October 11, 2026 11:09 PM
The aftermath of Sunday’s overtime disaster from the Commanders will resonate for the remainder of the 2026 season, and perhaps beyond. Especially because it forced the players to answer for the malpractice of the coaches.
And it was malpractice. First and 10 from the Giants’ 26 with 55 seconds to play and no timeouts. A run, followed by a lackadaisical effort to start the next play, which began with 12 seconds left.
Then came another run, with no individual or collective awareness that the precious few remaining seconds of overtime were slipping away.
Coach Dan Quinn, who was ultimately responsible for the debacle, answered for it after the game. Quarterback Jayden Daniels, who could have recognized what was happening and thrown the ball into the dirt to kill the clock, answered for it, too.
Plenty of other players had to answer for something that wasn’t their fault.
Tight end Ben Sinnott, for example, was caught in an awkward spot when pressed for details in the locker room after the game.
“I run onto the field,” Sinnott said, via Scott Abraham of 7 News DC. “I get the play call and we execute the play.”
Did Sinnott know the Commanders were out of timeouts?
“Exactly how it went, right as I said,” Sinnott replied. “No comment.”
No comment is needed. It was objectively awful. This is the NFL, not Pop Warner. And it was a division game in the NFC East. The Commanders had a chance to kick a potential game-winning field goal, and they froze up. They glitched. They handled the situation as poorly as they could have handled it.
I know it sounds harsh, but Quinn should not be employed at this time tomorrow. Only clear and unequivocal accountability will wash the stench of what happened on Sunday away. Any other outcome will cause the confusion, the doubt, and the resentment to linger.
Former Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn is the running backs coach. Put him in charge and give him a chance to earn the job for 2027. Whether the players will admit it — to themselves or to anyone else — they’ll be checking out, consciously or not, when it comes to anything Quinn has to say moving forward.
And Daniels isn’t blameless, either. Yes, he’s a potential franchise quarterback. But true franchise quarterbacks overcome random acts of dysfunction. When the coaching staff fails, the franchise quarterback finds a way to protect the franchise.
Daniels’s failure to take charge of the situation potentially disqualifies him from holding the title of “franchise quarterback,” and it could make it even harder for him to ever earn it, in the eyes of his teammates.