WASHINGTON (7News) -- In an overnight vote that will likely be reminiscent to many Washington Commanders fans of the thrilling victory over the Chicago Bears on a Hail Mary touchdown pass, the Senate passed the bill that grants D.C. control of the old RFK Stadium site - paving the way for the city to potentially build a new NFL stadium and try to lure the team back to the District for their home games - less than an hour after the legislation was thought to be dead.

Earlier this week, D.C. leaders rejoiced when the language of the bill transferring control of the stadium site to the city was added to the must-pass funding bill to avert a government shutdown.

However, House Republicans stripped the Continuing Resolution of this measure after President-elect Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk told them to reject this version of the bill over other objections - though Musk did single out the stadium provision in a post on X that provided inaccurate information about what it would do.

The House and Senate went ahead and approved the funding legislation to prevent a shutdown and keep the federal government operational until mid-March, without the RFK Stadium measure.

D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton even released a statement after the passage of this bill, stating her disappointment that the RFK Stadium language was scrapped, but she went ahead and said she was optimistic the bill would pass when the next Congress takes over in January.

But less than an hour after the Senate's approval of the funding package, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., introduced the D.C. Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium Campus Revitalization Act on the floor and asked for its passage by unanimous consent.

With no objections, the bill passed the Senate and now heads to President Joe Biden's desk for his signature.

The bill transfers control of the federally-owned stadium campus to D.C., allowing the city to use the land for the following purposes:

The House passed the House with overwhelming bipartisan support in February but had been left toiling in the Senate for months.

Members of Congress from the Maryland delegation in both chambers raised concerns about the bill.

Currently, the Commanders play their home games at Northwest Stadium in Prince George's County, and lawmakers from the state sought out assurances the area where the Landover stadium sits would be redeveloped if the team moved.

Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., also ran interference with the bill.

The senator, who is a member of the committee that ultimately advanced the bill to the full floor, signaled earlier he would block the bill. His opposition was rooted in his push for the NFL and Commanders to restore the original Native American logo, which was replaced after the team retired the Redskins name after the 2019 season amid years-long calls to do so by some Native Americans and activists who found the now-former team name to be a racist slur.

Daines, who has said he was not looking for the team to restore the Redskins name, demanded the team either use the original logo depicting the early 20th-century chief from Montana's Blackfeet Tribe or meet with the family of the former logo's designer to work out a way to honor both him and the chief.

He eventually relented and did not block the bill.

Now, D.C. local elected officials have the ball in their court - or, more appropriately, field - to decide what to do with the land, such as using tax dollars to help build a new stadium.