In a thrilling finish, Washington shocked Tampa Bay 23-20 when Zane Gonzalez's field goal bounced off the upright and through the posts as time ran out.
First-year breakout star Jayden Daniels ended Washington's grueling 6,945-day playoff victory drought. Playing with a cut under his eye, the Pro Bowl rookie lit up the field with 268 passing yards and two touchdowns.
"It means a lot. Our fans are over there waiting for us. They've waited a long time for this feeling, so I'm just so happy for them," said Daniels to NBC.
Next up for Washington: a Saturday night clash in Detroit against the top-seeded Lions. The Commanders head into that game riding high after their best season in three decades, finishing 12-5.
The Bucs fell apart late with two costly mistakes. Baker Mayfield and Jalen McMillan messed up a handoff exchange, then a snap count error killed another drive.
When it counted most, Daniels came through. He connected with Dyami Brown for a 10-yard touchdown, then hit Austin Ekeler to set up the game-winner. His scrambling kept the final drive going before Gonzalez nailed the 37-yard clincher.
The win puts Daniels in rare company - he's now just the third rookie QB since 2020 to win in the playoffs. His road victory joins Russell Wilson's 2012 feat as the only such wins by first-year quarterbacks this century.
The loss drops Tampa Bay to 2-1 in playoff matchups with Washington, their last postseason meeting coming in 2020.
