Washington Commanders (3-10) vs. New York Giants (2-11):

With the return of starting quarterback Jayden Daniels, Commanders fans held out hope that things would turn around for their team against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 14 – especially since top three wide receivers Terry McLaurin, Noah Brown and Deebo Samuel Sr. took the field together for the first time this season.

In what feels like a theme this season, things didn’t go the right way for the Commanders; they were shut out by the Vikings, 31-0 on Sunday afternoon.

Minnesota dominated Washington in all aspects of the game, most notably time of possession, first downs, red zone attempts and third down efficiency. Given these statistics, it goes without saying that the Vikings also outgained the Commanders at 5.1 yards per play. Despite taking a step forward against the Chicago Bears in Week 13, it feels as though the Commanders “took three steps back,” in Quinn’s words.

To make matters worse, tight end Zach Ertz suffered a season-ending ACL tear to his right knee in the loss, and Daniels re-aggravated his dislocated left elbow in the middle of the third quarter. Head coach Dan Quinn said in his postgame press conference Sunday that Daniels could have returned but did not in a coach’s decision. Quinn announced Wednesday that Daniels will not play Sunday and Mariota will be the starter against the Giants.

It is the first time the Commanders will face quarterback Jaxson Dart under center; Week 1 in Washington, quarterback Russell Wilson, who has now been relegated to the No. 3 emergency quarterback position with Jameis Winston serving as the backup, was at the helm. The Commanders will be facing a well-rested Giants team, who are coming off a late Week 14 bye.

Both Washington and New York are among the league’s worst defenses, ranked No. 30 and No. 31, respectively. Offensively, the Giants have a slight offensive edge against the Commanders’ offense. The difference in this game could come down to turnovers, which Washington had three of against Minnesota, while New York had a fumble lost to the New England Patriots in its Week 13 Monday Night Football matchup.

The Eagles still have a 1.5-game lead over the Cowboys in the division. To overtake that spot in the division and secure a playoff berth, the Cowboys would need to win out and the Eagles would need to lose out. Any future Dallas loss means that Philadelphia can afford to lose one more, or they need one less to win, depending on which way you look at things.

As the Commanders prepare to take on the Giants, let’s take a look at how the rest of the NFC East fared.