Special teams, defensive mistakes doom Commanders in loss to Steelers

LANDOVER — Wide receiver Olamide Zaccheus muffed two punts. Tight end Zach Ertz ran a route a few critical inches short on a crucial fourth down. Defensive tackle Johnny Newton jumped offsides on a final fourth down to seal the defeat.

The little mistakes added up on Sunday to doom the Commanders in their 28-27 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers at Northwest Stadium.

The Commanders (7-3) expected a tough matchup heading into the bout between the two division-leading squads. They knew the stands would be full of Pittsburgh’s Terrible Towels and the margins for victory would be excruciatingly slim. 

Washington fell just short.

The home locker room was uncharacteristically silent after the loss, a far cry from the jubilation it hosted just two weeks ago when the Commanders beat the Chicago Bears on a last-second Hail Mary.

Commanders players were unanimous about the takeaway on Sunday: This one stings.

“This should hurt,” said guard Sam Cosmi, who addressed the team after the game. “This should hurt your core. Winning is the ultimate goal and I know from the past that this means a lot, not only to me but to everybody.”

The miscues started early and became more damaging as the game progressed. It started with a muffed punt from Zaccheus in the first quarter, who quickly recovered the loose ball without any major issues.

Pittsburgh (7-2) even responded with their own special teams mistake later in the first quarter. The Steelers attempted a fake punt from their own 15-yard line, but the surprise pass from safety Miles Killebrew ricocheted off the hands of cornerback James Pierre and fell to the ground.

The Commanders capitalized, as halfback Austin Ekeler rushed for a 1-yard touchdown three plays later.

But Washington’s miscues piled up.

Zaccheus muffed another punt in the second quarter, but he couldn’t fall on this one. Pittsburgh’s Ben Skowronek recovered the ball at Washington’s 14-yard line to set the Steelers up for their own short touchdown drive.

“Clear the mechanism,” Commanders coach Dan Quinn said of his message to Zaccheus after the muffs. “He works really hard at this and we all have a lot of confidence in him.”

Zaccheus wasn’t benched, but he did not field another punt the rest of the game. Instead, he opted to let the punts sail harmlessly over his head. 

Most of Sunday’s game was a back-and-forth battle between two high-level quarterbacks. Commanders rookie Jayden Daniels completed 17 of his 34 pass attempts for 202 yards, including 113 yards on a handful of chunk plays to wide receiver Terry McLaurin. 

His performance was more impressive than the stat line would indicate, but a handful of near-misses with his receivers weighed down the offense. 

On the other sideline, Steelers quarterback Russell Wilson kept pace. He had an identical 50% completion percentage, posting 195 passing yards and three touchdowns with one interception.

Pittsburgh overcame their mistakes, though. 

Wilson’s interception, his first of the season, led to a punt on Washington’s next possession.

A goal-line fumble by running back Jaylen Warren wasn’t a backbreaker either, as the Steelers defense forced another punt to give the offense another chance.

Wilson and the Steelers stormed back with a six-play, 46-yard scoring drive to gain a one-point lead with just over two minutes remaining in the game. The possession culminated in a 32-yard touchdown to wide receiver Mike Williams in his Steelers debut. 

Cornerback Benjamin St-Juste said that any blame for that touchdown fell on him; he failed to keep up with Williams down the field. 

“I just played a fake and came back down to play other routes,” he said. “Sometimes I get caught up in trying to make the play that I try to guard everything. In those situations, you got to pick and choose the right option.”

The Commanders had a shot to take the lead on their final drive, but Daniels’ group needed a fourth-down conversion to keep the dream alive.

After evading pressure on the fourth-and-nine play, Daniels found Ertz with a low throw in the middle of the field. The veteran tight end was touched down inches short of the first-down marker.

Quinn’s defense had one more chance to make a stand. With all three timeouts in their pocket, the Commanders just had to stop the Steelers from gaining a first down to give their offense a chance.

The defense held up on the first three plays, as Steelers running back Najee Harris gained just nine yards on three carries. Pittsburgh kept its offense on the field on fourth down, but Quinn and the defense knew Wilson wouldn’t snap the football. The veteran signal-caller would use a hard count in an attempt to draw the defense offsides before sending the punt team into the field. 

Newton, the rookie defender from Illinois, jumped into the neutral zone anyway. The penalty gave the Steelers a game-sealing first down.

“It was a hard mistake, it was one to learn from,” Quinn said. “As it goes, those are hard ones.”

As he spoke to the media after the game, Newton received countless words of encouragement and high-fives from his teammates.

“That’s what everybody’s going to see, just that one big play, but it’s not all on him,” Daniels said. “We’re all together, we got his back no matter what.”

Newton’s mistake was Washington’s last on Sunday, but it wasn’t the only one.

“The little things always add up,” Daniels said. “Everybody sees just the one big play, but it’s the little things that always add up to the game.”

The Commanders started watching game film on Sunday night and noted that they’re following a “24-hour rule.” Quinn and the coaching staff told players to let the frustration stew for 24 hours, and then move on.

“This one stings badly, and it should sting,” Quinn said. “These are the ones that you’ve got to look back, got to learn. And also, that said, we got to turn around quickly.”

The Commanders have a short week with a trip to Philadelphia to face the division-rival Eagles on Thursday.

That quick turnaround is usually dreaded by NFL players who value every day of recovery they can manage. But after the tough loss, several Commanders said they’re glad to pivot to preparing for the Eagles.

“Everybody in this room can’t wait for Thursday,” defensive end Clelin Ferrell said. “To have a short week to come out and re-prove yourself, it’s the best feeling in the world.”