A physical battle between NFC East rivals ended in controversy on Sunday Night Football after the Giants slid past the Commanders for a 20–12 victory at FedEx Field.
Facing fourth-and-goal with 56 seconds left to play in the game, Washington quarterback Taylor Heinicke zipped a pass to receiver Curtis Samuel in the end zone with Giants cornerback Darnay Holmes draped over him in coverage. Both players jumped to make a play on the ball but the pass fell incomplete, resulting in the end of the game after the officiating crew determined there wasn’t a penalty despite Holmes appearing to make a lot of contact with Samuel before the pass.
The no-call allowed the Giants to take over and kneel out the rest of the clock to secure a pivotal win, but the conversation surrounding the finish soon focused on the possibility of a missed defensive pass interference that could’ve altered the outcome. After the game, NBC rules analyst Terry McAulay, who was an NFL official for 20 seasons, reviewed the call for the national TV audience, and didn’t hesitate to tell viewers that he believed the officials missed the call.
