Giants stunned in final minute on Stefon Diggs' TD catch, lose to Commanders
Giants' Isaiah Likely stretches out the ball during the third quarter against the Washington Commanders at MetLife Stadium on Thursday, Nov. 12, 2026 in East Rutherford, N.J. Credit: Jim McIsaac
It’s been the case all year for the Giants. So many one-score games. Trust the defense to step up.
It didn’t happen Thursday night.
Stefon Diggs caught a 32-yard touchdown pass from Jayden Daniels with 57 seconds left for the go-ahead score, and the Commanders held on to beat the Giants, 24-21, at MetLife Stadium.
Giants quarterback J.J. McCarthy sealed the defeat with an interception to Rasul Douglas with 25 seconds left.
The loss snapped the Giants’ two-game winning streak. It ruined Cam Skattebo’s multi-touchdown game and McCarthy’s career-high 293 yards. It also kept the Giants (5-3-1) from expanding their first-place lead in the NFC East.
The Giants got interceptions from Jevon Holland and Ar’Darius Washington on consecutive fourth-quarter possessions. It was Daniels’ first interceptions this season but he responded with a three-play, 71-yard drive on his final possession.
Diggs caught the winning TD pass after separating from Dru Phillips and racing away. The drive was aided by a pass interference penalty by Deonte Banks giving the Commanders 33 extra yards.
The collapse offset strong games by the Giants’ offense. Skattebo had two rushing scores, and McCarthy finished 23-for-36 passing. Isaiah Likely had a career-high 127 yards on nine catches and a score.
McCarthy was nearly the fourth-quarter hero. On third-and-7, he threw a 66-yard touchdown pass to Likely to give the Giants a 21-17 lead. It was the longest completion of his career.
It was also the Giants’ longest play from scrimmage since Dec 31, 2023 when Darius Slayton caught an 80-yard touchdown pass. McCarthy did his part by firing a laser while staring down a blitz.
But his final throw was a desperation heave to Malik Nabers that Douglas intercepted with ease.
Skattebo finished with 78 rushing yards and 44 receiving yards. It was his second multi-score of his career after scoring there touchdowns last year on Thursday Night Football.
Holland, meanwhile, nabbed his fourth interception of the season.
He opened the second quarter by puking on the Giants sidelines. But he was all good and looked even better on a 1-yard scoring run that put the Giants up 7-3. It completed a 16-play drive that chewed up 7:48 off the clock.
The Giants, however, were done in by ball security. Nabers had the ball punched out after a third-quarter catch and Jeremy Reaves recovered it for the Commanders. It was Nabers’ first lost fumble of his career but the Giants’ seventh lost fumble this season, tied for third most.
With Greg Desrosiers fumbling on the game’s final kickoff return, the Giants’ 16 total fumbles are also tied the NFL lead this season.
Dominic Zvada also added to the miscues with going wide left on a 33-yard field goal on the Giants’ second possession. The rookie kicker is 8-for-14 since converting his first nine attempts and went 4-for-4 on field goals last Sunday.
Daniels, who ran for 103 yards last month against the Giants, didn’t run much this game with the Giants playing zone coverage. But as a result, he faced little pressure from the Giants’ front. The only hit on Daniels before halftime came courtesy of Abdul Carter.
Unfortunately, Carter’s hit was a near-sack because Daniels escaped to throw a 1-yard TD pass to Ben Sinnott just before halftime. Daniels finished 23-for-33 for 249 yards and three touchdowns.
The Giants’ defense forced a three-and-out to open the third quarter, including a sack by Shelby Harris on second down. With great field position, McCarthy led a 55-yard drive that included a 25-yard pass to Malachi Fields.
Skattebo finished the drive with a 13-yard TD run that gave the Giants a 14-10 lead. Skattebo and the offense added some pizzazz with a triple backflip celebration featuring Fields, Skattebo and Mooney.
The Commanders retook the lead on the next drive on a 31-yard pass from Daniels to Antonio Williams.
Likely’s TD gave the Giants’ defense a chance to finish the game as they’ve done so often. Two takeaways nearly did it. But they needed a third stop and didn’t get it as Diggs escaped untouched for the winning score.
Evan Barnes covers the Giants for Newsday. He previously covered the Brooklyn Nets, Memphis football and the Memphis Grizzlies and also covered prep sports in Los Angeles.
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