Breaking down the Commanders game winning touchdown drive
Taking a closer look at the Commanders game winning touchdown drive against the Eagles
The Commanders remarkable 36-33 victory over the Eagles on Sunday was capped off by an almost perfect two-minute drive by the offense. The Commanders got the ball at their own 43 yard line with 1:53 remaining on the clock and one timeout left needing a touchdown to win against the top defense in the NFL. The Commanders proceeded to march 57 yards down the field on nine plays and scored the game winning touchdown with six seconds to spare. It was a fantastic drive worth looking at in more detail, so here is how they did it.
Play 1
Situation: 1st & 10 at Washington 43, 1:53 remaining.
Analysis: To get the drive started, the Commanders kick into gear with one of their common quick game concepts. They begin in a two by two formation but tight end Zach Ertz motions across to the left of the formation before the snap. From there, Ertz runs a deep stick route, often referred to as a branch route (branch because it’s a longer version of stick). In the slot, outside of Ertz, Terry McLaurin runs a slot fade while Jamison Crowder runs a hitch on the outside. That combination of three routes is often known as Patriot and is one of the Commanders favorite ways to get to a slot fade. On the right side of the formation, the single remaining receiver is Olamide Zaccheaus. He runs a spot route while running back Brian Robinson swings to the flat as a checkdown option.
The motion from Ertz draws a reaction from linebacker Zack Baun, who follows Ertz across the formation and to the slot. That leaves just linebacker Nakobe Dean and cornerback Darius Slay to the offensive right side of the field. As Daniels drops back to pass, he spots Dean opening his hips and working out to the flat to match Robinson, so he knows there will be a big hole underneath for Zaccheaus. With Slay playing off coverage, he also knows a good throw on time will get the ball to Zaccheaus before Slat can do anything about it. So Daniels doesn’t hesitate and quickly gets the ball out. Slay closes as quick as he can but the ball arrives first and Zaccheaus makes the catch for a seven yard gain before Slay makes the tackle.
Play 2
Situation: 2nd & 3 at the 50, 1:34 remaining.
Analysis: With over 90 seconds remaining and the Commanders still having a timeout left, Washington isn’t boxed into being forced to pass here. This early in the drive with that much time left means Washington can afford to hand the ball off and move the chains if it chooses to do so. The Commanders decide to do just that with a zone run to the right. Center Tyler Biadasz and right guard Sam Cosmi get some good movement on star defensive tackle Jalen Carter, while left guard Nick Allegretti reaches across the face of the other defensive tackle to seal him off on the back side. That opens up a lane for running back Brian Robinson to work into. Robinson takes the lane, but linebacker Zack Baun quickly fills the hole. Despite the lane being filled, Robinson is able to power through contact to pick up five yards and a first down.
Play 3
Situation: 1st & 10 at Philadelphia 45, 1:11 remaining.
Analysis: Having picked up their first first down of the drive, the Commanders can start to get the drive going. On play three of the drive they call a chains concept, with all four receivers running routes that break around the first down marker. The most important one here is Terry McLaurin to the left. He lines up a yard or so outside the numbers and wants to run a curl route to the outside. However, the opposing cornerback, rookie first round pick Quinyon Mitchell, is playing with outside leverage at the snap. That means McLaurin has to do something with his route to get Mitchell away from the outside leverage he has at the snap in order for McLaurin to get to his intended spot and break open.
At the snap of the ball, McLaurin works directly up the field for his first few steps. This is to try and eat up Mitchell’s cushion and force him to worry about the threat of a vertical route. Mitchell bites and opens his hips to turn and run with McLaurin down the field. Once Mitchell opens his hips, McLaurin then fades his route out towards the sideline, working into Mitchell’s blind spot. From there, McLaurin knows he can safely break off the route without Mitchell knowing exactly where he is. McLaurin does break off the route and Mitchell ends up taking a few extra steps before he realizes that McLaurin has made a break. This creates five yards of separation, which is huge in a key moment in the game like this.
From Daniels perspective, watch just how early in the route that he decides to throw this ball. A lot of young quarterbacks in this situation would wait to see the receiver break open before making this throw, but not Daniels. He spots McLaurin’s move into the blind spot and knows that Mitchell will lose track of him when McLaurin breaks off the route. So he plants his back foot in the ground and immediately pulls the trigger. Daniels begins his throwing motion before McLaurin has even reached the first down marker, let alone before he’s made his break. That type of anticipation is fantastic and maximizes the separation a receiver can generate, and was something Daniels showed throughout the game. McLaurin works his way back to the ball and makes the grab and pick up a first down before working out of bounds to stop the clock.
Play 4
Situation: 1st & 10 at Philadelphia 35, 1:06 remaining.
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