Commanders' Late TD Not the Only Important Play - But It Maybe the Most

The Washington Commanders demonstrated in one play that a shift in the way their offense attacks defenses may be necessary.

Nov 24, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin (17) runs for a touchdown against Dallas Cowboys cornerback Josh Butler (31) during the fourth quarter at Northwest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

LANDOVER, Md. -- Teams always prefer to learn from wins than learn from losses but for the third straight week the Washington Commanders aren't going to get the benefit of that preference.

Instead, the Commanders are going to once again have to dive into losing tape and pull every thread of education they can from it or be doomed to suffer the same fate for a fourth week when the Tennessee Titans come to town fresh off their upset win over the Houston Texans.

For Washington, the answer is clear as much as it isn't simple. When the offense clicked, the defense or special teams didn't. When the defense and special teams were humming, the offense was stagnant. The result was the team's second straight NFC East Division loss.

Nov 24, 2024; Landover, Maryland, USA; Washington Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin (17) runs for a touchdown against Dallas Cowboys cornerback Josh Butler (31) during the fourth quarter at Northwest Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Casey-Imagn Images / Peter Casey-Imagn Images

"We didn't play complimentary football, and when you're playing division games it's going to come down to four quarters," receiver Terry McLaurin said after the game. "We knew that going into the game, we didn't underestimate them at all, but it's just unfortunate when you can't help each other out."

For three quarters the Commanders' defense helped out the offense. While quarterback Jayden Daniels and his unit struggled to move the ball and put up just nine points, the defense held Dallas to a similar fate on the other side, only the opponent had 10 points because of one more made kick.

Heavily favored to win this game there was a growing uneasiness as the Commanders failed to convert three drives starting in Cowboys territory into anything more than three points.

That discomfort turned into disappointment when Dallas was able to wear down the Washington defense through time of possession and reps, enough to build a fourth-quarter lead and turn up the heat on the home squad.

"We got to find a way to start faster and sustain drives," McLaurin said. And he didn't allow anyone to escape accountability for that part of the operation failing. "That's (on) everybody, our whole coaching staff and our offensive players. Just going out there and figuring out ways that we can stay on the field and help the defense."

The old saying is 'get back to the drawing board'. But the Commanders have done that before.

On the final scoring play of the game for Washington, McLaurin lined up on the right side of the formation. It was one of the few times he did so all day.

The result was a well executed and blocked 86-yard touchdown play that demonstrated Daniels' ability to layer his passes and reminded everyone in attendance of McLaurin's 4.3 40-yard dash time when he came through the NFL Scouting Combine.

"Honestly, you never know what can happen until the clock hits zero, so in my mind when I got the ball and I just tried to score and give us a chance."

And it did give his team a chance. That one play. But wins and losses don't come down to one play, McLaurin added.

Even though that one play was a relative anomaly given how heavily offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury lines up his No. 1 receiver out wide to the left, it's an example of how impactful McLaurin can be all over the field.

Perhaps, through the pain of three losses and the growing evidence opposing defenses have figured him out, and with that one play in his mind, that'll be enough to see Kingsbury expand his offensive approach in the coming weeks.

Even if it doesn't lead to a shift in where McLaurin lines up, perhaps new approaches to manipulating defenses might emerge. Something. Anything. To recapture the spark the Commanders' offense had in Weeks 1 to 7.

Maybe then Washington can get back to learning from wins, instead of growing through pains.

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