It’s been almost 12 years. It only feels like forever.

It’s not a reach to say the Commanders game Sunday night against the Falcons is the biggest for this franchise since another Sunday night get-together at Northwest Stadium on Dec. 30, 2012, the final night of the 2012 regular season. The Commanders weren’t the Commanders then, and Northwest Stadium was FedEx Field. But, as is the case now, the home team was riding the wave of a rookie quarterback, the Heisman Trophy winner and the second pick in the 2012 draft — who had, in one season, reset the hopes and expectations for the franchise. Washington had Robert Griffin III behind center, and he was completing a historic rookie season.

That night, the Washington-Dallas rivalry was still a thing, and the teams were playing winner-take-all for the NFC East, with the loser going home and not making the playoffs. Washington put Dallas away in the fourth quarter behind Griffin’s and Alfred Morris’ runs and a timely interception by linebacker Rob Jackson, beating Dallas 28-18 for its seventh straight win and capturing an improbable division title. The future seemed impossibly bright with the expectation of a decade or more of RGIII excellence, playing for a hard-nosed, championship-winning coach in Mike Shanahan.

And then … yeah.

But we’re back to the future now, with Jayden Daniels, a rookie quarterback, Heisman Trophy winner and the second pick in the 2024 draft, ending what looks to be a historic first season in D.C. — and who has, in one year, reset the hopes and expectations for the franchise. Beating Atlanta would clinch a playoff spot that seemed improbable in September. Daniels suffered a rib injury midway through the season, but he’s returned in fine fettle, and the future seems impossibly bright, with the expectation of a decade or more of Daniels excellence, playing for a hard-nosed, championship-winning coach in Dan Quinn.

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