The Washington Commanders' Week 5 matchup with the New York Giants ended in a 27-27 tie. Here are five takeaways from the weekend.

1. The final sequence.

There's a lot to take away from the game -- a lot of it is actually good -- but most of the attention is focused on the final sequence.

The Commanders got into field goal range with a 13-yard catch-and-run from Treylon Burks. They ran another play -- a two-yard pickup from Rachaad White -- to make things easier for Drew Stevens to make the game-winning kick. Jayden Daniels then scrambled for no gain, but there weren't any timeouts to stop the clock. The clock expired as the Commanders attempted to spike the ball.

Players and coaches alike blamed themselves for the mistake.

"We just have to be better," Daniels said. "We all have to be better. Situational football. Starts with me. Everybody will say the same thing, but we have to be better at situational football."

"I don't even have to put him into that spot," head coach Dan Quinn said of Daniels. "I can do that earlier, and we can finish the kick early. We don't need to gain more yards, so that's on me. I'm saying we don't need to gain any more. We were just trying to gain more and we don't need to."

Regardless of whose fault it was, the reality is that the Commanders had chances to take the game and couldn't do so, and now they must find a way to correct the error to ensure it never happens again.

2. Jayden Daniels looked like himself.

There's plenty of frustration about what occurred in the final minute of overtime, but perhaps one of the most upsetting parts about it is that it overshadows what was a strong performance from Daniels.

For the most part, Daniels did exactly what the Commanders needed from him. He used his legs -- he led the team with 103 rushing yards on nine carries and scored two touchdowns -- and delivered several clutch throws. He looked comfortable in the pocket directing the offense, getting Chig Okonkwo involved with four catches for 60 yards, and completed 68% of his passes. He protected himself with slides at the end of runs and emphasized falling on his right shoulder to avoid reaggravating his left elbow.

"It was awesome to have him back on the field," Quinn said. "The small things that won't show up on the stat sheet is him at the line of scrimmage killing a run from one direction to another versus a blitz."

Daniels' health remains one of the team's top priorities. He gives them the best chance to win when he's on the field, and the offense has a better chance to reach its potential with him under center. He'll need to remain conscious about risking injury for the rest of the season, but the Giants game was a good start in that regard.

3. Second-half struggles for the defense.

For all the good the Commanders' defense did on Sunday, a troubling trend has emerged for the unit: teams are able to claw back from deficits and remain competitive.

The Giants had managed to keep the score relatively close for much of the game, but the Commanders began to pull away in the fourth quarter thanks to Daniels' second touchdown run. The Commanders had a 14-point lead with about 11 minutes left, and the defense had a chance to put even more pressure on the Giants when they decided to keep their offense on the field for a fourth-and-8 at the Commanders' 17-yard line.

The result of the play was a 17-yard touchdown from Likely, and it played a significant role in shifting the momentum. They tied the score after a three-and-out from the offense, leading to overtime minutes later.

The Giants' offense had its two most successful drives in the fourth quarter, covering a total of 147 yards on the possessions that closed the deficit and tied the lead. Jameis Winston completed 10 of his final 13 pass attempts in regulation as part of a 326-yard day for the veteran. It's an issue in which the entire unit shares the blame, and they'll need to correct the issue quickly to remain competitive for the remainder of the season.

4. More turnovers.

One of the positives from the Commanders' defense is that the unit continues to produce takeaways. They now have seven for the year, tying them with the third-most in the league and giving them the second-best turnover margin (+5) in the NFL.

For all the good that Winston is capable of, it is well known that he can take risks with the ball and cough it up at critical moments. That's exactly what happened in the second quarter, when K'Lavon Chaisson forced a sack-fumble that was recovered by Tim Settle. The Commanders got a field goal out of the takeaway, giving them a nine-point lead at halftime.

And while the defense played a role in allowing the Giants to force overtime, they also produced the play that gave the Commanders a chance to win the game. With the Giants well within field goal range, Daron Payne punched the ball out of Cam Skattebo's grasp, which led to Shy Tuttle falling on it and giving the Commanders' offense two minutes to move down the field.

There's plenty for the defense to work on, but their newfound ability to force turnovers provides a foundation to build upon moving forward.

5. Where to go from here.

There's no way to justify the Commanders' 1-3-1 start this season. Yes, there is a case to be made that they could have a much better record had some things worked out in their favor, but looking at things in hindsight doesn't change their situation.

Here's another fact, though: the season is far from over, and there is no reason to give up on things with 13 games left to play.

Things in the NFC East remain as competitive as ever. The Giants are currently in first place, but the Commanders, Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys are not far behind them. The Commanders' season does get easier after the bye week, and every team in the division has its weaknesses. If the Commanders can fix their issues and get healthy, there's still plenty to hope for.

They need to do so in quick order, though, because every other team in the division is thinking the same thing.