Austin Ekeler battled back from two concussions this season, the latter of which put him on IR for a month, just to play for the Commanders in their first playoff game since 2020, and just the fourth of his career.
Like that 2020 Commanders visit, the last one put a bad taste in Ekeler’s mouth (the 31-30 Chargers loss to Jacksonville in the 2023 Wild Card Round), but his 27 yards led Commanders runners (non-Jayden edition), and he had a satisfying end that has Washington headed to Detroit for Divisional Weekend.
“Playoff football has kind of turned out to be the more special times and special seasons that I truly remember the most, just because of what it takes to get to the playoffs and being able to reap the benefits of hard work and all that stuff kind of coming together,” Ekeler told G&D Tuesday. “Definitely wanted to get back and make sure my body was right before I stepped back on the field and we did that, took the right steps, and now it feels good to be in the journey – not only in the journey, but also getting our first win.”
So, after watching the defense do their thing and being so involved on offense and special teams, what was Ekeler thinking as Zane Gonzalez’s kick went up, hit the upright, and then did the ‘Divisional Doink’ that sent the Commanders to Detroit?
“It’s different from everyone's perspective (on the sideline), but from my head, we were pretty close, and these guys can make these (kicks) all day, so that’s what I’m thinking,” Ekeler said. “Like, this is a nice little chip shot, you get out there and kick it in Zane, and we'll get on the plane. From our angle, it's hard to tell; obviously, we saw it hit the post, which was crazy, but we've seen enough doinks in our day that we've seen some go in, some bounce out, and we could see that that one clearly went towards the net. Then we saw the refs put their hands up and it was time to go celebrate on the field. Definitely nerve-wracking, but at the same time, even if we did miss it, we have confidence in the defense to go get a stop and let's go in overtime and then we would have won the game that way.”
Ekeler went into that drive, including his 18-yard catch just after the two-minute warning that helped set up the field goal, but the key is they’re on to Detroit, and they’re not believing they’re big underdogs.
“It’ll definitely be a fun game, fun environment. Records don't really mean anything in the postseason, it’s pretty much 0-0 because there's nothing after this – and it’s ‘Any Given Sunday,’” Ekeler said. “Saturday in our case, but we're looking forward to it. We think we're in a position where we can continue to be ourselves and we'll see what happens, right? Good things tend to happen when we're in a rhythm and we can continue to move the ball, so we’re looking to continue doing it now, and really excited to go out there and be in the second round of the playoffs and get tested. It’s our brotherhood versus their brotherhood, so I think a great heavy-hitting match for two really good teams.”
The only thing that can make a win better? If thousands of Commanders fans show up and show out like they did in Tampa, something that gave Ekeler the need to reflect on it with G&D.
“There's a buzz around the city that's spreading to other parts of the nation, so that was really cool to see out there in Tampa. There was a bunch of chants, and one of the new guys on the team even said he’s never been on a team that has this type of culture, so you guys are making an impact,” Ekeler said. “Let’s keep that going. If you are going to be out there in Detroit, I just expect more of the same. You guys have been crushing it all year with the energy, the chants, everything, so you don't change just like we're not gonna change and continue to go out there and be ourselves. We know it’s gonna be a hostile environment, but that’s what we expect from you guys; we’ve been anticipating getting to this point and we're finally here, and now it's just time to go execute. Whether you're a fan, player, coach, someone in the media, let's go out and do our jobs and hope for the best, and see what happens.”