They say a tie is like kissing your sister, and in Week 13, the Giants and Commanders did just that when they ended their game tied at 20 at MetLife Stadium.
This Sunday, the Giants(7-5-1) and Commanders(7-5-1) will have a rematch of that game, but this time it’s at FedExField. There’s some much on the line. Both teams are currently tied for the second wild-card spot in the NFC.
Like most players, Commanders quarterback Taylor Heinicke was unhappy with the tie.
“Yeah, it’s not fun,” Heinicke said Wednesday. “I was kind of thinking about it; I was watching the fights this past weekend in the main event ended in a tie. I’m like, how s***y would it be to get you’re a** beat for 25 minutes and end in a tie? I kind of went back to our game. I was like, that’s kind of what we did. Ties aren’t fun. Obviously, they’re better than the loss, but the goal is to go out there and win, so that’s what we’re looking forward to.”
Because of what’s at stake, this game was flexed to Sunday Night Football, which excites Heinicke.
“Primetime games are a lot of fun,” he said. “Those are the games that you dream of as a kid. You wanna play in front of everybody, the whole world is watching, and it’s an opportunity for you to showcase as a team what you guys got. So, guys get really excited for that.”
Last year, when these two teams played at FedExField, Heinicke felt there were too many Giants fans in the building, and he hopes that’s not the case this time around.
“Hopefully, we have more fans than Giants,” he said. “I remember last year, Thursday night game, it was pretty much 50/50. So hopefully, our guys come out Sunday night and make some noise. It’ll be a crazy atmosphere, and both of our teams are in the fight for a playoff spot, so it’s gonna be a big one.”
Commanders head coach Ron Rivera is also hoping for big-time fan support.
“What we needed from them to be there and to be loud and be supportive. We’ve worked to try and become relevant. We’ve worked to try and get their attention and their focus back on us, and to have the fans’ support out there, that would be awesome. It really would. And again, that’s what we’re trying to do. We’re trying to show them and earn their respect back. We are doing everything we can to get going in the direction we want to be, and we want to play the type of football that will get them to come out and cheer for us.”
If the Commanders want the fans to support them, they will have to play well, and if they do that, things will turn out just the way Heinicke and Rivera want it.
