Both Giants and Commanders have similar records, so they play a tie.

The Giants and Washington Commanders were not predicted to battle for playoff spots when the N.F.L. season started three months ago. Before Sunday's match at MetLife Stadium, both teams qualified for the postseason thanks to their ball-control offenses and stingy defenses.

An overtime tie between similar teams was fitting as the regular season ended. In the end, the result resulted in the Giants finishing 7-4-1 and the Commanders finishing 7-5-1, complicating each team's challenging stretch run.

Both teams failed to score in overtime after going into the half tied at 13. Both teams traded touchdowns in the second half. In the end, Giants kicker Graham Gano missed a field goal from 58 yards that would have won the game. In The Upshot's playoff simulator, tying on the road increased the Commanders' playoff chances to 74 percent from 68 percent.

A first-place finish for the Philadelphia Eagles

Seventy-three percent of Giants fans believe the team will make the playoffs, up from 64 percent originally. It's a competitive N.F.C. East, and the Giants still need two games to catch the Philadelphia Eagles in the first place, who won a game on Sunday to improve to 11-1. It will be two weeks before the Giants play again with the Commanders. Giants Coach Brian Daboll assured me that everything would be fine.

"It's a long way to go." According to quarterback Taylor Heinicke, the tie "feels like a loss." The players struggled to process the result. For what the Giants called a Legacy Game on Sunday, the Giants wore their 1980s uniform against an old rival, a homage to the era when pass-happy offenses dominated the N.F.L. Giants running back Saquon Barkley had 63 yards in the first half, including a 13-yard touchdown - surpassing his 1,000 yards for the season.

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Jones fumbled at midfield after running by

There were several first downs by quarterback Daniel Jones, but it was challenging to tell if it was on purpose or if he couldn't find an open receiver. The run added another 71 yards to the total, and Jones scrambled for another several yards. A run by Jones resulted in a fumble at midfield that was converted into a field goal for the Giants on their first drive.

As the Commanders' first-quarter lead grew to 10-0, Heinicke connected with Terry McLaurin for a 19-yard pass. McLaurin tallied eight catches for 105 yards for the Commanders. His pass attempt for 275 yards and two touchdowns was 27 for 41 for Heinicke. As a result, Jones completed 25 of 31 passes, including a 55-yarder to receiver Darius Slayton. The rest were screen passes thrown to Barkley and Isaiah Hodgins.

Heinicke made five incomplete passes

Despite having nearly 13 more minutes to play than Washington, the Giants' offense pushed them to a win. In the third quarter, when Jones passed a 6-yard touchdown to Hodgins, the defense seemed to take over. Five passes by Heinicke were incomplete, and he lost one fumble. A combination of Kayvon Thibodeaux and Oshane Ximines applied pressure on him. Dexter Lawrence, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and Oshane Ximines sacked Heinicke five times.

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Responding to Washington's attempt

Lawrence dropped Heinicke when Washington attempted to respond after the Giants took the lead. Kicker Joey Slye missed wide right on the 52-yard field goal attempt after Lawrence dropped Heinicke. It is clear, however, why Washington Coach Ron Rivera kept Heinicke starting since he replaced Carson Wentz. Even with a few sloppy passes that nearly led to interceptions on Sunday, he had a great game despite his turnovers.

Having gained 20 yards off receiver Curtis Samuel, Heinicke rolled left on fourth-and-4 with less than three minutes left to tie the game. After Heinicke found Samuel, he found Jahan Dotson running into the end zone, gaining 28 yards. During overtime, the Giants punted when Jones failed to find Slayton downfield twice.

There was a coin flip in which the Giants won

Aside from Heinicke, the Commanders could not score, so overtime was necessary. The Giants won a coin toss, but a first down was not converted. The Commanders took over on their 33-yard line and needed to score only a field goal, but their drive stalled at midfield, so the Giants had a second chance. Jones completed passes to Hodgins, Daniel Bellinger, and Barkley.

Despite colliding with Barkley and Richie James in the backfield on third-and-2 past midfield, Jones managed to gain no ground. With 28 seconds remaining, Gano's final kick came wide of the goalpost, effectively ending the game. Thibodeaux nearly ended it on safety when he sacked Heinicke on the 2-yard line.