Washington Commanders fans aren’t dreaming, and they haven’t been magically transported back to 1992, when Michael Jackson’s “Black or White” and Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” dominated the airwaves.
For the first time in 33 years, Washington’s football team will play in the NFC Championship game.
A day removed from a 45-31 upset win over the No. 1 seed Detroit Lions, some Commanders diehards were still waiting for their wake-up call. It isn’t coming.
“It felt like I was sleeping — like it was a dream,” said 30-year-old Eric Montez, a longtime fan who has attended games dressed as a burgundy and gold Star Wars Mandalorian. “Like somebody was going to pinch me and I was going to wake up to a 4-13 team again.”
The fans aren’t the only ones in uncharted territory. Only five active Commanders — punter Tress Way, tight end Zach Ertz, tackle Cornelius Lucas and linebackers Nick Bellore and Bobby Wagner — were alive during Washington’s last NFC Championship run.
None of them were old enough to remember it.
But Washington’s players say they understand what this postseason run means. The fans let them know before, during and after each game.
After thanking God and celebrating his teammates, rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels turned his attention to the supporters around the nation’s capital during Saturday night’s post-win press conference.
“It feels good. Surreal moment just for the Washington fanbase — whole DMV,” he said, referring to the District, Maryland and Virginia. “It’s just an awesome feeling.”
Before this season, Montez had only seen two postseason victories from his favorite team. They matched that number in the past two weeks with a nail-biting win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Saturday’s dominant performance in Detroit.
To a generation of fans, it feels like a new day.
But more seasoned supporters remember what it was like to win meaningful games in mid-January.
When safety Jeremy Chinn caught a game-sealing interception, Maurisa Potts couldn’t contain herself. Sporting a custom jersey and a “Hogs” pig nose, she jumped up and down in a video that has since gone viral on social media.
“Last night was not a dream,” she wrote on Sunday morning. “I was 18 when we made the NFC Championship. Been a super fan since birth; family history, passion runs deep. Decades of frustration explode into pure disbelief [and] joy.”
The feeling of national relevance and dominant postseason victories isn’t foreign to those old enough to have seen Hall of Fame coach Joe Gibbs’ Super Bowl-winning squads in the 1980s and 90s.
Fittingly, Gibbs was on hand for Saturday’s win.
“I’m so proud of everybody. For everybody to put this together, this team, in really a year. It’s phenomenal. It’s great,” the 84-year-old said. “To get a win like that on the road, it’s really hard. Gives you great confidence. It’s just fantastic for everybody.”
The 2024 campaign marked the first full season with managing partner Josh Harris, general manager Adam Peters, and coach Dan Quinn, as the franchise distanced itself from former owner Dan Snyder’s frustrating tenure.
Peters led one of the most intense roster renovations in recent history with a league-leading 61% of the depth chart spots filled by fresh faces.
The quick turnaround from a 4-13 record last season shattered almost all preseason expectations. A run of last-second wins and a pair of postseason victories have forced fans to rethink what’s possible.
“People are in awe, amazed,” Montez said. “We still get so anxious because, lately, all we’ve known is losing. It’s been crazy, so we’re just enjoying it.”
While Washington’s supporters reassess their newfound success, their rookie quarterback redefined what’s possible for a first-year signal-caller. The presumptive Rookie of the Year took the league by storm this season and only accelerated his award case during the postseason.
On Saturday, Daniels’ 350 combined rushing and passing yards ranked second all-time for a rookie playoff performance. His poise against Detroit’s blitzes, deep-ball accuracy and seemingly effortless mobility garnered him more and more praise as he dazzled a national audience in the upset.
“[Daniels] has changed everything you thought about that franchise,” said ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, a former NFL player and scout. “The man is an ice-cold assassin.”
In two postseason wins, he’s thrown for four touchdowns. He’s been sacked just once and hasn’t recorded a fumble or an interception.
The rookie has developed a relationship with former quarterback Doug Williams, who serves as a special assistant to the general manager for the Commanders.
Daniels wasn’t even born until eight years after the Commanders’ last championship appearance.
“He’s an awful good quarterback, I’ll put it that way,” Gibbs said with a laugh on Saturday night. “He’s special.”
Count former Washington quarterbacks Joe Theismann and Robert Griffin III among Daniels’ legions of supporters.
“How can you not enjoy watching Jayden Daniels play the game of football? This man is something special,” Griffin said in a post-game video. “He has this entire city in his hand now, and nobody is afraid because of the poise this young man has. He is unbelievable. Washington fans, you deserve this.”
Theismann, who won a pair of Super Bowls in the District, stuck with a stream-of-consciousness approach.
His X timeline was littered with live reactions, ranging from a simple, “You have [to] believe,” to “This is amazing” as a Washington win became increasingly likely.
Even celebrity fans like NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt Jr., NBA star Kevin Durant and actor Matthew McConaughey have become more vocal in their support of the Commanders. For years, supporting the District’s hometown team was nothing to brag about.
But with Harris, Quinn, Peters and Daniels leading the way, those fans don’t seem ashamed anymore. They can enjoy the ride.
“I don’t know how this is all gonna end,” Earnhardt, who has been a Washington fan since 1982, wrote on X. “But damn it, this is fun.”
To the Washington faithful, from the famous faces to the average Joe, anything seems possible with Daniels taking snaps.
“This season has rejuvenated our fanbase, 100%,” Montez said. “It woke a sleeping giant.”
Montez hasn’t attended a Commanders game this season. He’s been busy caring for his five-month-old son, Hayden Santana.
But a trip to the NFC Championship game may be in the cards for Montez, and — if the Commanders pull off two more wins — a name change for the infant could follow.
“If Daniels wins the Super Bowl, I might have to change my son’s ‘H’ to a ‘J,’” Montez said.
