Jayden Daniels finds Stefon Diggs for 32 yards with 0:57 left to beat the Giants

The deciding stretch

The Commanders won on a 32-yard touchdown pass from Jayden Daniels to Stefon Diggs with 0:57 left in the fourth quarter. It came out of a no-huddle shotgun look and moved Washington's win probability by 49 percentage points, the largest swing of the game. The extra point made it Commanders 24, Giants 21.

The drive had to answer J.McCarthy's 66-yard touchdown pass to I.Likely at 8:13 of the fourth, a play that cost Washington 37 points of win probability. The Commanders had led 17-14 after three quarters. After that deep middle throw, they trailed.

The swing

The game closed in 23 seconds. At 0:34, J.McCarthy threw deep middle for M.Nabers and R.Douglas intercepted it at the Washington 11. That play was worth another 20 points of win probability for the Commanders and ended the Giants' last chance.

The Commanders did not get there cleanly. Daniels finished 23-of-33 for 249 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions, a 96.7 passer rating. One of those interceptions came at 5:31 of the fourth on a deep left throw intended for C.Okonkwo, and the play went to replay review. It was a pass the Commanders needed to clean up, and they did on the final possession.

Washington was better on third down, going 7-of-14 against the Giants' 4-of-12. Its longest drive covered 6 plays and 77 yards and ended in a touchdown. The Giants' longest was longer in the way that matters less: 16 plays and 72 yards, also a touchdown.

Who moved the needle

Diggs caught 6 passes for 83 yards on 10 targets, plus the winning score. Antonio Williams turned two catches into 42 yards and a touchdown, with a long of 31. Ben Sinnott caught 4 for 42 and a touchdown. Treylon Burks added 2 catches for 27 yards.

Daniels also gave the offense value with his legs. He carried 9 times for 29 yards, a 3.2 average, with a long of 8. The ground game around him was thin: Rachaad White ran 11 times for 47 yards (4.3 a carry), and Austin Ekeler had 9 for 26 (2.9). The team averaged 3.4 yards per rush on 106 yards, and the Giants averaged 4.3 on 116.

The passing game carried the offense, though the Giants held a small edge in yards per pass, 7.6 to 6.9. Washington was sacked once for 14 yards, and the Giants once for 10. The Commanders went 1-for-1 in the red zone while the Giants went 2-for-4.

On defense, Sonny Styles led with 13 tackles, one for a loss. Jeremy Reaves made 9 tackles and broke up a pass. Odafe Oweh had the only sack among the listed defenders, plus a tackle for loss and a quarterback hit. Nick Cross added 6 tackles. The Giants out-gained Washington 399 yards to 341, but turnovers were even at two apiece, and the Giants' final turnover decided it. They also lost 62 yards on six penalties, against 17 yards on four for the Commanders.

Where it leaves them

The Commanders are 3-5-1 with a one-game winning streak, and the point differential is minus 27 (196 scored, 223 allowed). They are 1-3 on the road and 2-2-1 at home. They sit third in the division, behind the Giants at 5-3-1 and the Cowboys at 4-5, and ahead of the Eagles at 2-7. In the conference they rank 11th.

The next game is Week 11 at home against the Cincinnati Bengals, on Monday, Nov 23, at 8:15 PM ET on ESPN. Daniels and the receivers will face a defense that will test whether the third-down results and the late-game throws from MetLife Stadium repeat.