The Washington Commanders balled out during their 41-24 victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. Here are five of their top plays from the afternoon.
1. Jeremy McNichols' 60-yard touchdown.
The game was still tight when McNichols took his first carry of the day up the middle of the Raiders' defense. Seconds later, he provided the Commanders with a lead they didn't give up for the rest of the afternoon.
Quarterback Marcus Mariota said after the game that he thought McNichols was going to be tackled multiple times on the play. He immediately collided with safety Jeremy Chinn but shrugged off the hit. He ran into three other defenders over the course of the run, each failing to bring down the veteran. By the time McNichols reached the first down marker, he had already passed nine members of the Raiders' defense, leaving almost no remaining opposition for him to run 60 yards for the touchdown.
The play was the longest of McNichols' career, but it was also the longest by a Washington player since Steven Sims in Week 5 of the 2019 season and the longest touchdown rush by a Washington running back since Adrian Peterson in Week 13 of the 2018 season.
2. Terry McLaurin's 56-yard catch-and-run.
Commanders fans had been waiting for an explosive play from McLaurin, and they finally got one in the third quarter.
McLaurin, lined up out wide to the left, faked running to the sideline before cutting upfield to get some separation between him and cornerback Kyu Blu Kelly. It made for an easy throw-and-catch between McLaurin and Mariota, and McLaurin finished the play by sprinting 25 yards and diving for the end zone.
The play was ruled short of the goal line, but it was McLaurin's longest play of the season so far, helping him finish with 74 yards on three catches.
3. Luke McCaffrey's 43-yard touchdown.
There was a hole in the Commanders' wide receiver room with Noah Brown getting ruled out because of a groin injury. McCaffrey was there to pick up the slack.
The Commanders faced a third down in the closing minutes of the fourth quarter. Actually, it was kind of an important play since the Raiders had whittled the deficit down from 24 to 10 points, so the Commanders needed to stay on the field to put the game away. Mariota dropped back and surveyed his options before spotting McCaffrey, who was running wide open in the Raiders' secondary.
McCaffrey made the catch at the Raiders' 28-yard line and took over from there. He outran the safety to the goal line and celebrated by jumping into the stands.
4. Jaylin Lane's 90-yard punt return for a touchdown.
It had been a while since a Washington player returned a punt for a touchdown -- eight years, in fact -- but Lane ended the drought with one of the longest plays in team history.
Lane, who was drafted partially because of his abilities as a punt returner at MTSU and Virginia Tech, fielded a punt from AJ Cole at the 10-yard line in the third quarter. He cut behind a block from Noah Igbinoghene and sprinted through a lane made by five blockers. Cole was the only player left to get a stop, but Lane shrugged off the attempt at a tackle and ran the remaining 48 yards untouched to give Washington a 27-10 lead.
Lane's 90-yard punt return touchdown was the first touchdown of his career and Washington's first since Week 5 of the 2016 season. It tied Jacquez Green, who also had a 90-yard punt return touchdown in Week 2, 2002, for the longest in franchise history.
5. Bobby Wagner records his second sack on Geno Smith.
The Commanders got after Smith for most of the day, so it's difficult to claim one of their five sacks as better than the other. However, there's a case to be made that Wagner's second of the day was the most detrimental to the Raiders staying in the game.
It was second-and-13 following Lane's touchdown, and the Raiders needed to muster a response. Wagner blitzed through the middle of the Raiders' offensive line unopposed and spun Smith to the ground for an 11-yard loss, giving Las Vegas a slim chance at picking up the first down.
Ultimately, the Raiders had to punt the ball back to the Commanders, who got into the end zone again five plays later and tightened their grip on the game. It dramatically diminished the Raiders' hopes of a comeback, but that can be traced back to Wagner having another typically strong performance and putting more of a strain on their offense.
