NEW ORLEANS — Jayden Daniels was only a year old the last time Washington’s NFL franchise won a road game right after its bye. He was 11 when the team last won a game at the Superdome, and he was a decade from being born the last time Washington started a season 9-5.

On Sunday, the soon-to-be 24-year-old was the orchestrator of Washington’s nail-biting, 20-19 win over the Saints as the Commanders overcame injuries and critical mistakes to inch closer to a playoff berth and strike through another dubious record of their past.

The Saints scored a touchdown as time expired, but instead of trying for a game-tying extra point, they failed on a two-point conversion attempt, allowing Washington to escape.

Daniels completed 80.6 percent of his passes (25 of 31) for 226 yards, two touchdowns and a 118.5 passer rating to go with 11 carries for a team-high 66 yards. He also took a concerning eight sacks.

Now 9-5 for the first time since 1992, Washington’s chance of making the postseason is well over 90 percent, according to most projections. But the Commanders didn’t make it easy on themselves. Washington committed nine penalties, and its list of injured players continued to grow.

After a week off, the Commanders started with the same intensity with which they closed their Week 13 win over the Tennessee Titans. More impressive, however, was their ability to adapt amid adversity.

The Commanders were already without two of their top playmakers, running back Austin Ekeler and wide receiver Noah Brown, who are on injured reserve. Center Tyler Biadasz was added to the injury report hours before the game because of an illness and was made inactive.

Then in the second quarter, tight end Zach Ertz suffered a concussion on a 19-yard, one-handed catch that set up a touchdown. Zane Gonzalez also was inactive, making Greg Joseph the fourth kicker to suit up for Washington this season.

Making matters worse, Washington got in its own way with penalties and blown coverages. The Commanders scored three times to officially score once on their opening drive. A 45-yard field goal by Joseph was nullified because of a Saints penalty, and a subsequent touchdown catch by wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus was negated because of an illegal shift by Washington. Daniels also fumbled in the red zone and stumbled on his 16-yard pass that hit Terry McLaurin in the chest in the end zone.

McLaurin traveled from the right side of the formation to the left corner of the end zone to get open for Daniels and jumped over two Saints defenders for the catch.

Two possessions later, after rookie cornerback Mike Sainristil picked off a pass by Jake Haener that was intended for Alvin Kamara, Washington overcame a holding penalty on running back Brian Robinson Jr. when Daniels connected on two 12-yard passes, first to Dyami Brown and then to Jamison Crowder. Daniels converted a third and two to keep the drive alive and, after finding Ertz for the 16-yard catch that left him injured, Daniels found McLaurin again on another crosser to the left corner of the end zone, this time from three yards.

It was McLaurin’s 11th touchdown catch of the season and the 36th of his career, tying him with Ricky Sanders for the eighth most in franchise history.