Madhouse in Maryland

Northwest Stadium, the venue of the game, in 2023
Chicago Bears (NFC North) (4–2) Washington Commanders (NFC East) (5–2) 15 18 Head coach: Matt Eberflus Head coach: Dan Quinn
1 2 3 4 Total Chicago Bears 0 0 7 8 15 Washington Commanders 6 3 3 6 18
Date	October 27, 2024
Stadium	Northwest Stadium, Landover, Maryland
Attendance	64,704
TV in the United States
Network	CBS Sports

Madhouse in Maryland, also referred to as the Madhouse in Landover, The Maryland Miracle or Hail Noah refers to an American football play that took place at the end of a National Football League (NFL) regular season game on October 27, 2024, between the Chicago Bears and Washington Commanders. The play involved a last-second 52-yard Hail Mary pass thrown by Commanders rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels that was tipped at the goal line by Bears cornerback Tyrique Stevenson to wide receiver Noah Brown in the endzone to win the game 18–15.

The play marked the first Hail Mary in the final ten seconds of an NFL game since the Hail Murray play in 2020, with Jayden Daniels becoming the second rookie to throw a Hail Mary since 2006, when ESPN began to track the play. The play was cited as among the best of the 2024 NFL season.

Background

Headed into the game, the Washington Commanders held a 5-2 record for the 2024 NFL season, while the Chicago Bears held a 4-2 record. In Washington's previous game against the Carolina Panthers on October 20, 2024, Washington rookie quarterback suffered a rib injury, requiring backup quarterback Marcus Mariota to take over in a 40–7 victory.

In Washington's home game against the Chicago Bears on October 27, 2024. The Washington Commanders led in the first half against the Chicago Bears, taking a 9-0 lead into halftime. The game opened with both teams trading punts, with Washington relying on kicker Austin Seibert to successfully convert three field goals (at 27, 30, and 28 yards). Washington's offense, led by quarterback Jayden Daniels, made several effective plays including a 61-yard connection with Terry McLaurin as well as running back Brian Robinson Jr.'s 19-yard run. The Commanders' offense moved the ball efficiently, but struggled to convert drives into touchdowns, settling for field goals in the red zone.

Chicago's offense, helmed by rookie quarterback Caleb Williams, had difficulty maintaining consistent momentum despite several scrambles made by Williams due to negative plays, including a costly sack by Washington's Daron Payne that pushed them out of scoring position late in the second quarter. Defensive players such as Jonathan Allen consistently pressured Williams and limited Chicago's offensive opportunities going into the half.

The third quarter had Seibert make a 47-yard field goal to make the score 12-0. The game's momentum changed dramatically late in the third quarter when Bears running back D'Andre Swift broke free for a 56-yard touchdown run, cutting the lead to 12-7.

The fourth quarter began with a missed 51-yard field goal attempt by Washington. The Bears mounted a drive deep into Washington territory, reaching the 1-yard line, but a fumbled snap by Caleb Williams recovered by Washington's Jer'Zhan Newton at the goal line preserved the Commanders' lead.

In the game's final minutes, Chicago orchestrated a 62-yard drive, overcoming a crucial fourth down with help from a defensive pass interference penalty. Running back Roschon Johnson ran in a 1-yard touchdown with just 23 seconds remaining, and the Bears successfully converted the two-point attempt on a pass from Williams to tight end Cole Kmet to take their first lead of the game, 15-12, which persisted with 23 seconds left on the game clock. According to ESPN's win probability tracker, the Bears held a 97.9% chance of winning near the end of the game.

The play

With two seconds remaining on the game clock and beginning in front of Washington's own 30-yard-line, Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels held onto the ball for 12.79 seconds while scrambling to avoid multiple Chicago defenders before throwing the ball deep into the end zone. The ball landed into a crowd of Washington and Chicago players a few yards shy of the end zone, being tipped by Chicago cornerback Tyrique Stevenson into the hands of Noah Brown in the end zone, resulting in a game-winning 52-yard Hail Mary touchdown as time expired, giving the Commanders a 18-15 victory.

Just prior to the pass, Tyrique Stevenson was seen taunting fans of the Commanders, which he continued to do once the play started before tipping the ball to Noah Brown.

Game summary

Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bears	0	0	7	8	15
Commanders	6	3	3	6	18

at Northwest Stadium, Landover, Maryland

• Date: October 27
• Game time: 4:25 p.m. EDT/3:25 p.m. CDT
• Game weather: Sunny, 58 °F (14 °C)
• Game attendance: 64,704
• Referee: Clete Blakeman
• TV announcers (CBS): Jim Nantz, Tony Romo and Tracy Wolfson
• Recap, Game Book

Game information

First quarter WAS – Austin Seibert 27-yard field goal, 8:51. Commanders 3–0. Drive: 9 plays, 56 yards, 4:12. WAS – Austin Seibert 30-yard field goal, 1:04. Commanders 6–0. Drive: 12 plays, 79 yards, 4:59. Second quarter WAS – Austin Seibert 28-yard field goal, 5:24. Commanders 9–0. Drive: 7 plays, 31 yards, 3:01. Third quarter WAS – Austin Seibert 47-yard field goal, 5:48. Commanders 12–0. Drive: 7 plays, 12 yards, 3:50. CHI – D'Andre Swift 56-yard run (Cairo Santos kick), 0:43. Commanders 12–7. Drive: 2 plays, 59 yards, 0:46. Fourth quarter CHI – Roschon Johnson 1-yard run (2-pt Conversion Good by Cole Kmet), 0:23. Bears 15–12. Drive: 10 plays, 62 yards, 3:56. WAS – Noah Brown 52-yard pass from Jayden Daniels, 0:00. Commanders 18–15. Drive: 4 plays, 76 yards, 0:25. Top passers CHI – Caleb Williams – 10/24, 131 yards WAS – Jayden Daniels – 21/38, 326 yards, TD Top rushers CHI – D'Andre Swift – 18 rushes, 129 yards, TD WAS – Brian Robinson Jr. – 16 rushes, 65 yards Top receivers CHI – Rome Odunze – 3 receptions, 41 yards WAS – Terry McLaurin – 5 receptions, 125 yards

Broadcast calls of the play

TV (CBS)

Jim Nantz, who called the play for CBS Sports, stated:

"Comes down to one last play and it’s gonna be getting longer by the second. You’re all the way back at the 30-yard-line”. “Now you can step into it. Here comes the Hail Mary with the game on the line… AND THE BALL IS CAUGHT! CAUGHT! IT’S A MIRACLE! IT’S NOAH BROWN! OH MY GOODNESS! THIS TOWN IS GOING CRAZY! IT’S A MADHOUSE IN LANDOVER, MARYLAND!"

— Jim Nantz

Significance

With the game-winning Hail Mary touchdown, the Commanders went up to 6-2 while the Chicago Bears fell to 4-3, becoming last in NFC North standings for the season. The game also gave the Commanders their best start to a season since 2008. The play marked the first Hail Mary in the final ten seconds of an NFL game since the Hail Murray play in 2020. In addition, Jayden Daniels became the second rookie to throw a Hail Mary since 2006, when ESPN began to track the play. The lengthy scramble prior to the pass caused the play to become the first touchdown pass with more than 10 seconds to throw since the stat was first tracked by Next Gen Stats in 2016.

In the post-game interview, Chicago Bears head coach Matt Eberflus stated in response to the play:

“We had those plays at the end, and it comes down to that last play. We’ve practiced that play a hundred times since we’ve been here,” he said. “I have to look at what the execution was on that. We have a body on a body, boxing guys out like basketball at the very end. We have one guy that’s the ‘rim,’ that knocks the ball down. We’ve got a back-tip guy that goes behind the pile. I’ve got to look at it, detail it out and make sure we’re better next time.”

Several athletes and sports personalities reacted to the play, including Kevin Durant, J. J. Watt, Robert Griffin III, Michael Thomas, Skip Bayless, Danny Parkins, Tom Pelissero, Matthew Berry, Albert Breer, and Adam Schefter.Chicago Tribune writer Dan Wiederer described the play as having "Double Doink shock value".

See also

• List of Hail Mary passes
• List of nicknamed NFL games and plays