Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels (5) runs the ball during the fourth quarter against Giants edge Brian Burns. Peter Casey-Imagn Images

'They just whooped us': Giants star on Commanders' dominant win

Originally posted on Washington Commanders on SI
By David Harrison | Last updated Sep 8, 2025 10:00 AM ET

The Washington Commanders didn’t fully put the game away until midway through the fourth quarter when receiver Deebo Samuel did his best Taylor Heinicke impression, diving for the left near corner of the end zone for a score, but the game was truly over before that.

It turns out, actually, that when the Commanders scored their first touchdown of the game on a seven-yard pass from quarterback Jayden Daniels to tight end Zach Ertz, the win was sealed, as the defense gave up just six points to their NFC East Division rival, the New York Giants.

Of course, nobody knew that then, so Washington kept looking for ways to score, and despite making some mistakes themselves, came away with three touchdowns to show for their efforts, outgaining the Giants by more than 200 yards.

'They Just Whooped Us'

"Honestly? They just whooped us. Point blank. There's no other way to say it,” New York edge defender Brian Burns said after the game.

“Their front five came with a plan and executed it perfectly. We couldn't get home, couldn't generate pressure consistently. You have to give them their props, they controlled the game from the first snap."

That first snap was a four-yard run by Commanders running back Austin Ekeler, suddenly the top back in the room following the trade of Brian Robinson Jr. to the San Francisco 49ers near the end of the preseason, though rookie Jacory Croskey-Merritt looks like he’s coming for that crown sooner rather than later.

Aided by a Washington offensive line imposing its will on the Giants’ defensive line, the visiting defenders not only felt the presence of that whooping, they heard all about it too.

The Trash-Talking QB

While Burns described Daniels as a “cool dude” he also said, “but he [talks] a lot. I don’t like it. I don’t want to talk to you. …He’ll just be talking like, ‘hey buddy,’ I don’t want to talk to you. Talk to you after the game, bro.”

Burns was laughing about it, brushing off the second-year quarterback’s attempts to get in the defender's head, but whatever the intention, it worked.

While he was sacked three times, twice by Burns personally, Daniels also escaped and extended several plays, helping him generate 271 yards of offense, 40 more than New York did as a team.

The Rematch Awaits

If Daniels did get into Burns’ head, the Giants' defender will have time to get him out of there, as the two teams don’t meet again until December 14 in a Week 15 divisional matchup that starts a streak of four-straight such matchups to end the regular season for the Commanders.