National Football League
Washington 30, Atlanta 24
When: 8:20 PM ET, Sunday, December 29, 2024
Where: Northwest Stadium, Landover, Maryland
Temperature: 58°
Head Official: Alex Kemp
Attendance: 63480

Jayden Daniels hit Zach Ertz for a 2-yard touchdown with 2:42 left in overtime as the Washington Commanders beat the Atlanta Falcons 30-24 on Sunday night in Landover, Md., to secure their first playoff berth since the 2020 season.

The Commanders (11-5) clinched a wild-card berth with their fourth straight win and could finish as high as the sixth seed in the NFC.

In the NFC South, Atlanta (8-8) sits behind the first-place Tampa Bay Buccaneers (9-7), who can clinch the division by defeating the New Orleans Saints in Week 18.

Washington took the opening kickoff of the extra session, and Daniels later ran for 16 yards on third-and-2 at midfield, then passed to Chris Rodriguez Jr. two plays later for a 12-yard gain and another first down. Daniels eventually added a pair of 6-yard runs that got him in position to find Ertz for the game-winning points.

Daniels completed 24 of 36 passes for 227 yards, three touchdowns and one interception and ran for 127 yards on 16 attempts. Ertz caught two touchdown passes, and Olamide Zaccheaus had eight catches for 85 yards and a score.

Bijan Robinson ran for two touchdowns for the second straight game for Atlanta, and he finished with 90 yards on the ground. Michael Penix Jr. was 19-of-35 passing for 223 yards, one touchdown and one interception, and Drake London had seven catches for 106 yards.

Atlanta's Riley Patterson came up short on a 56-yard field-goal attempt as time expired in regulation.

With the Falcons trailing 24-17 and facing fourth-and-11 at the 50 with 2:39 remaining, Penix found London all alone for a 31-yard catch-and-run, but two plays later at the Washington 5, a bad snap on a wildcat play resulted in a 21-yard loss. Later, on fourth-and-goal from the 13, Penix rifled a pass to Kyle Pitts in the end zone to tie the game with 1:19 to go.

The Commanders had built their 24-17 lead thanks to a strong fourth quarter, where they got a 2-yard TD run from Rodriguez and a 31-yard field goal from Zane Gonzalez.

Robinson had a pair of 1-yard rushing scores in the first half to help Atlanta take a 17-7 lead into the break, but the Commanders drew within 17-14 with 7:13 left in the third quarter when Daniels and Ertz hooked up for a 10-yard touchdown.

--Field Level Media

Top Game Performances
Rushing
Atlanta   Washington
Bijan Robinson Player Jayden Daniels
17 Attempts 16
90 Yards 127
5.3 Avg Yards 7.9
2 Touchdowns 0
13 Long 25
Receiving
Atlanta   Washington
Drake London Player Olamide Zaccheaus
7 Receptions 8
106 Yards 85
15.1 Avg Yards 10.6
0 Touchdowns 1
31 Long 16
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Atlanta 337 126 211 3 1 1 5.0 0
Washington 412 216 196 4 1 1 2.0 2
Upcoming Games
  • Washington will play their next game on the road against Dallas. The Commanders have a W/L % of .727 after a win and .600 after a loss.
  • Atlanta will play their next game at home against Carolina. The Falcons have a W/L % of .500 after a win and .500 after a loss.