One day after the Commanders squandered a chance to beat the New York Giants due to mismanagement of the clock in the final minute of overtime, Washington coach Dan Quinn again accepted responsibility while admitting he was still “furious” about the situation.
“What I told the team and the coaches: It was a breakdown and it can’t happen,” Quinn said Monday while reflecting on the Commanders’ 27-27 tie with the Giants in Landover, Md.
He added, “It starts with me, first off. No doubt about it.”
The game-ending sequence began with the Commanders in field-goal range, though they had no timeouts remaining. After a 2-yard run on first down moved the ball to the New York 24-yard line with 55 seconds left, the clock ticked down to 12 seconds remaining before the next snap.
Quarterback Jayden Daniels dropped back on an apparent pass play before eventually running for no gain. By the time the Commanders got lined up for the next snap, time had expired.
“Our time today as a team was spent on the how and why to make sure that it never does (happen) again,” Quinn said Monday. “So, yesterday’s ending was the biggest example, but we’ve got a lot of s– to clean up from yesterday’s game. And trust me, everyone in this building, starting with me, feels that urgency. …
“My number one responsibility is to help the players and the coaches be at their best, man. And when we don’t, I’m pissed about it, too.”
As for the last-minute sequence, Quinn said, “It took entirely too long … to execute our strategy, from subbing to clock awareness to clocking the ball. What I told the team and the coaches: It was a breakdown and it can’t happen. …
“In that scenario where you’re calling at the start of a drive, in any two-minute drive, you talk about timeouts, talk about field position, kick lines, distances that you need to get to. And so, it needs to be communicated then from me to David (Blough, the offensive coordinator), who has the last words with Jayden (in his headset) on each down, not just the start of a drive.”
The Commanders saw their record move to 1-3-1 after a 5-12 season in 2025. The result left Quinn with an 18-20-1 mark in his three seasons in Washington.
Asked about his job security, Quinn said he talks with team owner Josh Harris frequently, win or lose.
“That’s a normal process for us,” Quinn said. “And trust me, no one is pleased with this outcome and where we’re at. But the part that we do have, those hard conversations, we’re honest about (where) we’re at and what we need to fix and what we need to work on. I like having that communication with him.”
