Stefon Diggs’ first Commanders touchdown on Sunday did not just light up the scoreboard. It also set off a penalty, altered Washington’s decision-making, and got scrubbed from the NFL’s own highlight package.
Diggs, making his long-awaited Washington debut against Philadelphia after signing a one-year deal in August, was mostly quiet for three quarters. He had only a couple of catches before halftime. Then Jayden Daniels finally connected with him on a 10-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter, trimming the Commanders’ deficit to 17-15 with under ten minutes left.
What came next became the story.
Because Washington was still trailing by two, the Commanders were set for an automatic two-point try to tie the game. Diggs never let them get there.
He sprinted through the end zone, jumped onto the base of the goalpost, and fell backward onto the turf. Officials hit him with an unsportsmanlike conduct flag right away.
Here’s the full video of the moment, showing Diggs’ entire celebration from the leap through the fall. Here’s the one the NFL posted afterward, though, which conveniently doesn’t show the celebration at all.
The 15-yard penalty pushed Washington’s extra point try back to 48 yards, and the Commanders kicked instead of going for two. Philadelphia then held on for a 24-22 win, with that missed two-point chance on Washington’s final touchdown looming large in the finish.
Daniels made the impact clear after the game.
“We just got to be smart,” the quarterback said. “We probably would have gone for two there.”
For Diggs, the celebration carried a familiar cost. He was flagged for the same kind of goalpost stunt in 2017 and was fined $12,154. Based on the league’s fine schedule, this one is expected to land closer to $15,000 for a first offense this season.
So the first Washington touchdown for Diggs came with plenty of noise, just not all of it the kind he wanted. And after the way Sunday played out - on the field and in the NFL’s edited version of it - he may want to keep the next one a little more grounded.
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