No one imagined that the Week 5 game between the Washington Commanders and the New York Giants would end in a tie even after going into overtime. But it was a more disappointing play for the Giants, as they had two chances to win the game, but they missed them all. That prompted severe criticism from Mike Tomlin.
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“I’d describe it as disgusting,” Tomlin said on NFL on NBC, after the Giants and the Commanders tied their score. “Division wins are too precious in the National Football League. I was disgusted by the Skattebo fumble. I threw up in my mouth a little bit at the end of the game. It’s just tough. We’ll never know what happened. The head coach said what he was supposed to say. The quarterback said what he’s supposed to say. But it’s just tough, man. Division wins are very precious, and they had one in their hand, and they let it slip away.”
Following the kickoff to mark the start of overtime, the Giants had their first chance to secure a lead with a field goal. However, Dominic Zvada, who had already missed from 50 and 57 yards, failed again from 46 yards.
After the Commanders settled for a punt with just above five minutes remaining on the clock, the Giants got their second chance to claim a win. The Giants pushed the ball beyond Washington’s 30-yard line with about two minutes on the clock. But then came a fumble from Cam Skattebo as Daron Payne knocked the ball out of his clutches and Shy Tuttle recovered the fumble for the Commanders.
“At the end of the day, I have to take care of the ball,” Skattebo beat himself up. “All the other 52 guys and all the coaching staff trust me to have the ball there in the end. I’ve gotta step up and make the play. It’s as simple as that. I gotta hold on to the ball and make sure these guys know that when my name’s called, we’re gonna be OK.”
Out of a total of four fumbles through the last five games this season, it was the first time Skattebo lost the fumble. But when the clock hit zero with the score still tied, Skattebo let out a sigh of relief. And while he blamed himself for the lost win, he promised the Giants that it wouldn’t happen again.
“Skat played a hell of a game, but he’s gonna have to learn from that,” Giants coach John Harbaugh told the media. “And I think everybody’s gotta learn from that. What type of running is called for in that situation. We practice that very situation plenty of times. I expect him to be accountable. I know he will. He already was. And he’ll do better next time, so we gotta learn from that.”
Tomlin’s brutal critique underscores the harsh reality of letting a precious divisional victory slip away. The Giants certainly had some chances to secure their win. One fumble cost the Giants a division win.