scored his first touchdown as a Washington Commander on Sunday and immediately turned it into a problem. After hauling in a 10-yard pass from at Lincoln Financial Field, Diggs ran through the end zone and bear-hugged the goalpost. The flag came at once: unsportsmanlike conduct.
That 15-yard penalty wiped out a chance to tie the Philadelphia Eagles. Washington settled for a long extra point instead, then lost 24-22 in its season opener. Diggs did not duck the moment afterward.
“Of course, I take full accountability,” he said.
The score that set it off had been a long time coming. Washington’s offense had spent most of the afternoon stalling. Diggs finished with four catches for 55 yards on nine targets and two drops before the breakthrough. With 9:59 left, the 10-yard touchdown cut Philadelphia’s lead to 17-15.
“Finally, we hit one, and I get a little excited,” Diggs said.
Coach Dan Quinn said the Commanders planned to go for two and the tie. The penalty pushed the try back 15 yards, so Drew Stevens kicked a 48-yard extra point that made it 17-16. Philadelphia answered with a touchdown and extra point for a 24-16 lead. Daniels later found rookie Antonio Williams for a late score that made it 24-22, but a two-point try failed with 1:01 left.
rules have treated the goal post as off-limits for years, dating to the era when New Orleans tight end Jimmy Graham dunked balls over the crossbar. Stefon Diggs entered the league in 2015. He said he knew the rule the second his arms wrapped around the pad.
“As soon as I wrapped my arms around it, I was like, ‘Oh, I forgot,’” Diggs said. “It’s not back in the day. We’ve been playing for a long time. You used to do that. … That’s just telling me I’ve been in the game a long time. You’re like, ‘I got to be better.’”
Daniels did not pile on his new receiver. The quarterback, who signed Diggs as a free agent in August after Diggs’ Super Bowl run with New England, took part of the blame for the situation in the huddle.
“Just got to be smarter, you know,” Daniels said. “You got to know the situation, situational football. There’s a time and place for everything in celebrations.”
He went further after the game, saying he should have reminded the offense that Washington intended to go for two if it scored.
“That’s on me for not reiterating that in the huddle,” Daniels said. “We just gotta be smart.”
Quinn was blunt about the cost and still stood with Diggs. The veteran receiver is in Washington to add juice to an offense that needed a spark. Sunday showed both sides of that signing: the first Commanders touchdown, then a veteran lapse in a tight road game.
“We were going to go for two,” Quinn said. “He’s a real competitor. He knows better in that space, and he knows that. I love his fight. I love what he stands for, but as the competitor, he knows better in that spot.”
Stefon Diggs framed the flag as the product of a long, sloppy afternoon more than showmanship. He did not damage the post and did not taunt anyone. He just forgot a rule that has been on the books for more than a decade.
“And I want to win bad, you know, every little rep, everything. So finally when we clicked after not clicking for a little while, it got to me a little,” he said.
Washington cannot prove the two-point try after Diggs’ score would have gone in. What it knows is that it never got the chance. That is the part Diggs said he has to own before Week 2.
