Over the weekend, the Washington Commanders took down the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on a last-second 37-yard field goal from kicker Zane Gonzalez to clinch a spot in the divisional round.
The kick sailed to the right but clanged off the right upright and through the sticks for a 23-20 victory. Everyone — including head coach Dan Quinn — was on the edge of their seat watching the kick.
“I felt like I was in a Bounty commercial where the cup spills and like, ‘Nooooo,'” Quinn told reporters after the game. “As it went through, I just paused and probably skipped a beat, but that’s the emotion where it was at.”
Jan 12, 2025; Tampa, Florida, USA; Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn during the fourth quarter of a NFC wild-card playoff against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.
Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
The win was the team’s first playoff win in 19 years and gave Quinn a piece of franchise history.
“The first Washington coach since 1943 to win a playoff game in his first season,” the team said on social media this morning.
Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels, who has looked nothing like a rookie all season long, continued his stellar play by completing 24-of-35 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns while adding 36 yards on the ground.
Quinn admitted he can get a bit flustered during games, but his rookie quarterback remains settled.
“If he had his heart rate monitor on, and mine, they would not be the same in the game,” Quinn said. “His stays pretty consistently good and sometimes I’m like the duck: If you just saw the feet going under the water, it’s good. But he really is, in that space, exceptional.”
Washington will head on the road to Detroit for a battle against the top-seeded Lions on Saturday night. The game kicks off at 8 p.m. EST and will be broadcast on Fox.
