Commanders Could Finish Ahead of Giants With the Same Record After Thursday’s Win

Washington remains third in the NFC East, two games behind New York. But winning the season series gives the Commanders an edge if the teams finish with the same record.

New York Giants head coach John Harbaugh shakes hands with Washington Commanders head coach Dan Quinn after a game between the New York Giants and the Washington Commanders at MetLife Stadium, Nov 12, 2026, East Rutherford, NJ, USA. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

While the Washington Commanders' win over the New York Giants on Thursday night didn't change the order of the NFC East standings, it did change the conversation. Washington now sits at 3-5-1 and is two games behind the Giants, but a loss would have put them four games back with eight games left, which is virtually impossible to come back from. The good news is the Commanders now own the tie-breaker advantage with New York, something that could factor into things down the stretch.

NFC East Standings

NFC East	Record	Games Back
Giants	5-3-1	--
Cowboys	4-5	1.5
Commanders	3-5-1	2
Eagles	2-7	3.5

Why the Giants Result Matters in a Tie

The two NFC East rivals fought to a 27-27 tie in October, mainly due to gaffes by both teams in overtime, before Washington won the primetime matchup this week. Washington finished the season series 1-0-1, and Jayden Daniels has yet to lose to the Giants since turning pro.

By rule, the October tie counts as half a win and half a loss for each team. Head-to-head record is the NFL’s first tiebreaker between two clubs in the same division.

If Washington goes 5-3 over its final eight games and New York goes 3-5, both would finish 8-8-1. In a two-team tie, the Commanders would finish ahead of the Giants because they went 1-0-1 against them. Thursday’s win gave Washington that edge, but it still has to erase the two-game gap. That example assumes a two-team tie; a three-team tie involving Dallas would follow the NFL’s separate tiebreaking procedure.

Make no mistake: Washington still has to stack wins. After the mini-bye, New York hosts Jacksonville on Sunday, November 22, and the Commanders host Cincinnati the following night. A Giants loss and a Washington win would cut the gap to one game. The teams won’t meet again this season, so the head-to-head edge only matters if the Commanders make up the ground elsewhere.

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