Giants blow late lead, settle for OT tie with Commanders

Six wins in the first seven games had given way to three losses in the next four, including two straight setbacks. The Giants needed to hang a U-turn Sunday in their bid to hang on as serious contenders for a playoff ticket, especially with the soaring Eagles on deck.

The Giants ended up hanging half a U. They didn’t win. But they didn’t lose, either.

After spotting Washington the first 10 points, the Giants came back to take a seven-point lead, then allowed the game to slip into a tie late in the fourth quarter. It went to overtime, and the teams wound up stuck in a 20-20 tie at MetLife Stadium.

It didn’t really feel half as good as a win to the Giants.

“I think we’re all pretty disappointed with the result, certainly not one that we were looking for,” Daniel Jones said after going 25-for-31 for 200 yards and a touchdown and running 12 times for 71 yards. “So we’ll go back to work and clean up a lot of things. But yeah, I think it’s safe to say we’re disappointed.”

They’re still more in the wild-card race than the NFC East race at 7-4-1 with five to go. But the schedule isn’t their friend — home against Philadelphia; at Washington; at Minnesota; home against Indianapolis; at Philadelphia.

“You always like to win the game,” Giants coach Brian Daboll said. “There’s a long way to go. It’s better than if it was a loss, not as good as if it was a win.”

Ron Rivera wasn’t too thrilled, either.

“It’s a disappointment in some respects,” the Commanders’ coach said after his team remained in last place at 7-5-1. “We had some opportunities.”

When they started working overtime, the Giants punted, then the Commanders punted.

The Giants began their second possession at their 14. After a broken play, they had fourth-and-3 at the Washington 45 with 1:42 left. Jones couldn’t draw the Commanders offside, so the Giants took a delay penalty and punted.

Washington began at its 10 with 1:36 remaining. Kayvon Thibodeaux sacked Taylor Heinicke at the 2 on first down, and a three-and-out was in motion.

Last call for the Giants. They began at their 43 with 28 seconds to go, and Jones found Richie James for 14 yards to the Washington 43.

After spiking the ball, Jones hit Daniel Bellinger for 3, then had to throw the ball away on third down.

Five seconds left. Graham Gano lined up for a 58-yard field-goal attempt. He came up short at 0:00.

“I wish it would’ve went farther, but I hit a good ball,” Gano said.

Down 20-13, Washington took possession at its 10 with 3:43 to go in regulation. Heinicke, who passed for 275 yards and two scores, threw to Curtis Samuel for 20 on fourth-and-4 from the Commanders’ 27. Two plays later, Heinicke hit Samuel for 25 to the Giants’ 28.

On the next play, Heinicke hit Jahan Dotson for the touchdown with 1:45 on the clock to cap a 90-yard drive. Joey Slye’s PAT tied it at 20-20.

“It’s always disappointing when you can’t come up with a stop,” Thibodeaux said. “But I think that gave us a reality check that there are some things that we’ve got to clean up.”

It was a 13-13 game at halftime, but the Giants untied it quickly.

Azeez Ojulari, in his return after missing the previous seven games with a calf injury, announced his presence on the first drive of the third quarter.

The outside linebacker delivered a strip sack against Heinicke on third-and-8 from the Washington 25. Oshane Ximines recovered for the Giants, but Heinicke caused Ximines to fumble — and Ojulari recovered that fumble.

The Giants were in great shape at the 20, and five plays later, Jones fired a 6-yard TD pass to Isaiah Hodgins in the left side of the end zone. So it was 20-13 with 11:34 left in the third.

The offense couldn’t add on to the pile, and the opening drive of the afternoon also didn’t go well for the Giants.

“We dug a hole for ourselves to start the game,” Jones said.

Jones fumbled the ball away on that first drive, leading to a 21-yard field goal by Slye. The Giants’ next drive went 5 yards in the wrong direction. Boos spilled from the stands, and Heinicke connected with Terry McLaurin for a 19-yard TD.

It was 10-zip with 2:27 left in the opening quarter.

But Gano drilled a 48-yard field goal early in the second quarter and Saquon Barkley, who rushed for only 63 yards on 18 carries, followed with a 13-yard touchdown run to make it 10-10.

Washington went up 13-10 on a 42-yarder by Slye, but Gano countered with a 27-yarder with two seconds left before halftime.

It was tied again, the theme of the day.

As Barkley put it, “It doesn’t feel good.”