It has been a long road for the Washington Commanders to get back to the playoffs. Since 2020, they’ve gone through an ownership change, new head coaches, and now have a new franchise quarterback at the helm.
However, with Year 1 of Jayden Daniels being an overwhelming success, the Commanders have a chance to take their Cinderella story one step further. They get a chance to win a playoff game, something the franchise hasn’t seen in two decades. Here’s a look back at the last time they won a playoff game.
Washington Commanders’ Last Playoff Victory
The year was 2005. The Washington franchise had made a myriad of changes in the offseason to remake a 6-10 squad from the previous year. They installed new quarterbacks coach Bill Musgrave, who had previous experience with Mark Brunell, and added the shotgun formation to their playbook.
From a player’s perspective, they lost Fred Smoot and Antonio Pierce before trading away Laveranues Coles for Santana Moss. A strong showing in the NFL Draft had the team poised for success, and they immediately delivered.
A 3-0 start showed that it was a new season for Washington, which was looking to secure a playoff berth for the first time in the new century. Unfortunately, a 2-6 go over the next eight weeks put a dent in their plans.
But the team rallied, winning five straight to finish the year and roar into the playoffs as the sixth seed. This is where the coincidences begin: The date was Jan. 7, 2006, as Washington faced off against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in a 3-seed-vs.-6-seed matchup in the Wild Card Round.
It wasn’t an offensive explosion like the ones fans in D.C. are expecting this year that gave them the victory. In fact, Washington tallied just 120 yards, the lowest for a winning team in playoff history. However, two turnovers going for touchdowns paved the way for a 17-10 win.
LaVar Arrington first had a 21-yard interception return in the first quarter, which set up Clinton Portis for a six-yard touchdown run before Marcus Washington recovered and then fumbled the ball to Sean Taylor, who scored after a 51-yard run. From there, they held onto their 14-0 lead, securing the win.
Since then, they have been to the playoffs four more times, losing each time in the Wild Card Round. Their last matchup, against the same Buccaneers they face off against this year, saw them lose 31-23 as Tom Brady went on to win his seventh Super Bowl.