Jayden Daniels didn’t want to spend half of December thinking about a losing streak.
“I didn’t want to go into the bye week with an ‘L,’” he said.
Daniels made sure that didn’t happen, throwing two of his three touchdown passes to Terry McLaurin and running for another touchdown to lead the Washington Commanders to a 42-19 victory over the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. This win ended their three-game losing streak, and the team was all smiles after their first win in almost a month.
“It’s always great to win,” Daniels said. “Obviously, winning always makes everything better.”
Daniels completed 25 of 30 passes for 206 yards, including the touchdown passes to McLaurin and Zach Ertz. Despite throwing an interception, he strengthened his position as a favorite for AP Offensive Rookie of the Year.
Brian Robinson Jr., returning from an ankle sprain, rushed for 103 yards and a touchdown. The defense and special teams each forced a fumble in a game the Commanders (8-5) had under control before halftime.
“That was one of the best displays of complementary football we’ve played in a little while, and we still didn’t play our cleanest,” McLaurin said. He finished with eight catches for 73 yards and was cheered with chants of “Terry! Terry!” throughout the game. “For us to do that against a really solid team just shows us what we can do if we execute at a high level and play off of one another.”
The win, following losses to Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and Dallas, keeps Washington solidly in a playoff spot before their bye week. The offense returned to its early-season form, easing concerns about Daniels and offensive coordinator Kliff Kingsbury during the losing streak.
“We trust Kliff and the offensive staff to put us in the best situation to be successful,” McLaurin said. “But it’s on us to be able to execute the plan, and I feel like we did a better job of that than we had the past few weeks.”
The Commanders converted nine of 14 third downs and took a 28-0 lead just over 19 minutes into the game, marking the fastest such lead since 2019. Washington scored 21 points in the first quarter for the first time since 2015.
Daniels played a big role, extending plays with his legs and rushing for 34 yards, including his sixth rushing touchdown of the season. Coach Dan Quinn praised Daniels, saying, “He was able to fully express himself today (with) runs, keeping, creating on the move.”
Tennessee (3-9) didn’t score until late in the second quarter, when Will Levis threw a 27-yard touchdown pass to Nick Westbrook-Ikhine. The two connected again for another touchdown with seven minutes left in the fourth quarter.
The Titans, for much of the first half, had more penalty yards than offensive yards and couldn’t recover from the early deficit. This loss ended any hopes of a playoff push following their surprising win over Houston last week.
“Keep going — it’s all we can do,” Levis said after the game. He completed 18 of 37 passes and was sacked twice. “We just keep finding different ways to shoot ourselves in the foot.”
