Graham owns late penalty on Heinicke: 'I was just trying to touch him down'

A backbreaking late hit from Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham essentially sealed a stunning upset for the Washington Commanders in the dying minutes of Monday night's NFC East clash.

Trailing 26-21 with just under two minutes to play, the Eagles appeared to be on the verge of getting the ball back with a chance to win when Taylor Heinicke gave himself up under pressure on third down.

Graham made late contact with the downed Commanders quarterback, though, drawing a 15-yard penalty and an automatic first down that would allow Washington to nearly run out the time.

BRANDON GRAHAM WHAT ARE YOU DOOOOOINGGGGG pic.twitter.com/mymZ34O8oJ

- Jackson Didlake (@diidlake) November 15, 2022

Philadelphia got the ball back with five seconds remaining, but its attempt at a miracle lateral play resulted in a defensive touchdown that made it a 32-21 win for Washington.

"In that position, I just gotta know," Graham told reporters postgame. "If he goes down, it's OK. I was just hustling to the play, just trying to make sure he was down. Just trying to get off the field."

He added: "I was just trying to touch him down. It just looked like he was going to get up. You just never know. But that's on me. I'm gonna own that one. It's on me."

Referee Alex Kemp explained the ruling to the pool reporter.

"I had ruled the quarterback had clearly given himself up," Kemp said, according to Dan Zangaro of NBC Sports Philadelphia. "Therefore, he is down and a defenseless player. The contact by Philadelphia No. 55 was not only late but also to the head and neck area."

Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni didn't take issue with the call, focusing instead on turnovers and the time of possession battle as contributing factors to the surprise defeat.

"Hey, that's not what lost us the football game," Sirianni said. "I'd have to watch it on tape again. I saw it live, I kinda looked down the field. But they got a tough job. I'll look at it, but that's not at all what lost us the football game."

The Eagles fell to 8-1 with the loss, ending their undefeated run after the first-ever 8-0 start in franchise history. They'll look to rebound with a trip to play Indianapolis and interim head coach Jeff Saturday.

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