Game report is up for your perusal as the AFC game kicks off …
Philadelphia Eagles win NFC Championship 55-23
Let’s call it now. The AFC champions, whoever they may be, have no shot against this Eagles team. Philly is going to win the Super Bowl.
But for posterity, check out our coverage of the AFC Championship game.
Thanks for following along with us here today.
Wrapup
The AFC game starts in just a few minutes, so let’s go ahead and put a bow on this one.
This game was in doubt with 32 seconds left in the third quarter. The Commanders were driving and had a chance to cut the Eagles’ lead to one possession.
But then the Commanders fumbled the ball away for the third time. The Eagles converted for the third time, and that was the game.
The margin of victory is a little exaggerated. The Commanders’ defense clearly gave up the ghost in the fourth quarter.
For the Commanders, it’s an unfortunate end to a spectacular season that exceeded anyone’s wildest dreams. With a big change in team culture and a franchise QB entering his second season, expectations will be higher next year. There may be some reverting to the norm, but this team has every reason to hope for more playoff appearances in the next few years.
The Eagles … are good. Very good. They have the best running back in football and a devastating defense, along with a couple of strong receivers and a solid QB in Jalen Hurts.
Kudos for Fox for playing “Cissy Strut,” a classic instrumental by The Meters that’s synonymous with New Orleans, site of Super Bowl XXBLDHE … check David Lengel’s piece for the exact Roman numerals.
Marcus Mariota takes over for Daniels, who had a fine game. Ekeler gets a couple of rushes before the two-minute warning.
Commanders 23-55 Eagles, 3:03 left, 4th quarter (Shipley 2yd run)
Kenny Pickett replaces Jalen Hurts at QB and hands off to Shipley, who gains another 2 yards. Another handoff, and he’s hauled down, but Luvu is offside again.
Shipley scores. Whatever. This fourth quarter has put the “garbage” in “garbage time.”
Updated
Correction – Philadelphia called timeout. That seems like overkill.
Commanders 23-48 Eagles, 3:53 left, 4th quarter: Shipley replaces Barkley … and breaks a bunch of tackles for a 16-yard run. Washington calls timeout for some reason.
Shipley again breaks free and races 57 yards. Benjamin St-Juste runs him down from behind.
Washington calls timeout again. It’s as if they want Philly to score 50 on them.
Commanders 23-48 Eagles, 4:51 left, 4th quarter: Replay shows Biadasz was hurt when Carter slapped in the head. That’s illegal, isn’t it?
Incomplete pass to no one. Short pass to Ekeler goes nowhere.
Daniels looks to the endzone for McLaurin, but Mitchell wins that battle for an interception. Fourth turnover for the Commanders.
Too bad – a 48-31 final score would’ve been a little more of a fair reflection of the game. But that matters little.
Commanders 23-48 Eagles, 5:54 left, 4th quarter: Daniels complete to McLaurin for 8, complete to Ertz for 3 (first down), incomplete to Ertz, complete to Zaccheaus for 8 (first down at PHI 43), incomplete to McLaurin, Ekeler run for 4 yards, complete to Ertz.
The tight end hurdles a defender and gets out of bounds at the PHI 29.
Washington center Tyler Biadasz is down injured.
Follow the Bills-Chiefs pregame with David Lengel …
Commanders 23-48 Eagles, 7:58 left, 4th quarter (Barkley 4yd run)
Run to the right. No Commanders in sight.
Commanders 23-41 Eagles, 8:45 left, 4th quarter: Smith goes in motion and takes the 1-foot pass from Hurts, turning it into a 6-yard gain. Barkley is stopped on the next play.
Hurts looks for Goedert, and Chinn obviously interferes. Penalty, first down on the WAS 8.
Goedert then runs for four more.
Commanders 23-41 Eagles, 10:19 left, 4th quarter: Touchback. Daniels throws the ball away under pressure. Repeat. Daniels finds Crowder for 4 yards, but he’s stopped cold.
But the Commanders are outstanding on fourth down, and Daniels completes it again, finding Ertz.
Daniels still misses some easy ones at times, and he throws one behind Crowder. An Ekeler run goes nowhere. A third-down pass is batted down.
More fourth-down heroics? Nope – Nolan Smith races past his blocker and sacks Daniels.
Philly takes over on the WAS 31.
Three Washington fumbles. Three Philadelphia touchdowns. That’s the story of the game.
Commanders 23-41 Eagles, 12:24 left, 4th quarter (Hurts 1-inch run)
Goedert rushes for 9. Barkley rushes for 21 to the WAS 2. Only a shoe-string tackle from Chinn keeps him out.
They try the Tush Push from 2 yards out and don’t get it, but Washington is called for a neutral-zone infraction. That takes it the 1.
Another Tush Push try – and it’s a bad snap! Hurts just managed to corral it and avoid the turnover.
Luvu tries to time the snap and get through to Hurts, but his acrobatic leap over the line is too early. That’s another penalty.
And Luvu does it AGAIN! The back judge has a good laugh with him about it. The referee is less happy, saying if it happens again, it’s a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.
This time, the Eagles draw Allen and company over the line.
“Washington has been advised that at some point the referee can award a score if this continues,” says referee Shawn Hochuli.
That’s not fair. Luvu intentionally tried to jump the line twice, but that play was very different.
Fourth time’s a charm. Hurts scores from about 1 inch out.
Justin Kavanaugh writes: “As a Philly resident (and in truth more of a soccer man), I’m cheering for the Eagles to keep onside with the in-laws. But I’m secretly more excited that this magnificent stadium, the Lincoln Financial Field, will host a couple of World Cup matches in 2026. It’s a great place to watch any sport, especially with the city skyline shimmering in the distance on a summer’s evening.”
Honestly, given the geopolitical state of things, I’m not taking any future international events for granted.
Commanders 23-34 Eagles, end 3rd quarter
Just as the Commanders seemed to be on the verge of making it interesting …
Brown continues to torment Washington on the last play of the quarter, making a catch for 19 yards to the WAS 32.
Unless the Eagles turn it over at some point, this is just about done.
Fumble
The Commanders are literally handing the game away.
Ekeler makes a short catch on the ground, gets up, and has the ball punched right out of his hands.
A Commanders player comes up with the ball, but the officials rule that the Eagles had it first.
Three fumbles for the Commanders. There will be a lot of what-ifs after this game.
Commanders 23-34 Eagles, 0:32 left, 3rd quarter: Daniels finds Ertz again for 16 yards. He looks toward McLaurin, but the ball is batted away at the line. He looks for Ertz again, but the normally sure-handed tight end drops what would’ve been an 8-yard catch.
Daniels tries Ertz again, and the longtime Eagle redeems himself with a good first-down catch near midfield.
Commanders 23-34 Eagles, 1:44 left, 3rd quarter: Hurts is flushed from the pocket again on first down and again does well to get rid of the ball. On second down, Barkley races around left end for 5 yards.
What a game Frankie Luvu is having. He blasts his way through the line just as the ball is snapped and brings down Barkley for a 3-yard loss.
Eagles punt from the WAS 40. Two Eagles collide in the end zone trying to save the ball from landing there for a touchback, but they fling the ball back into the field of play to down it deep in Washington territory.
Or not – one of the Eagles had stepped in the end zone already. That’s a touchback and net punt of just 20 yards.
Commanders 23-34 Eagles, 3:45 left, 3rd quarter: Replay shows that the Commanders had some linemen illegally downfield on the two-point conversion. It’s rare that NFL broadcasters emphasize missed calls like this, but that’s two in this game.
Eagles take over on their own 31. Barkley breaks a tackle to pick up 5.
Hurts is swarmed on the next play and barely gets outside the pocket to fling the ball away without picking up an intentional grounding call. Alert play from the Eagles QB.
On 3rd and 5, Hurts finds Smith open. Martin misses a tackle, but Lattimore doesn’t – and that might have been a bit excessive.
What a game Goedert is having. He picks up 11 yards on a first-down catch.
Commanders 23-34 Eagles, 5:01 left, 3rd quarter (Daniels 10yd run)
How did Daniels do that?
He takes the ball and heads right, then cuts back against the grain, finds a seam somehow and covers 10 yards for the touchdown.
Two-point conversion pass to Zaccheaus is good.
Do the Commanders have one more comeback in them? Maybe?
Commanders 15-34 Eagles, 5:36 left, 3rd quarter: Good throw to Ertz for 21 yards. He suffers a late hit out of bounds, but it is, of course, not called. Hardly matters much.
Robinson picks up 4 yards. The good news for the Eagles – Carter has come right back into the game.
Daniels finds Zaccheaus for a first down at the PHI 19.
Looks like a designed run for Daniels, and he picks up 7. He goes to ground – did Blankenship hit him late? No?
Robinson gets close to the first down at the PHI 10. It’ll be 3rd and 1.
Commanders 15-34 Eagles, 8:27 left, 3rd quarter: Daniels with a great toss to Brown for 12 yards. This hasn’t been the rookie star QB’s best game, but the score certainly isn’t his fault.
Robinson runs for 6 yards to the WAS 42, and action stops with an injury to Philly’s Jalen Carter, which would be very bad news for the Eagles heading into the Super Bowl.
Commanders 15-34 Eagles, 8:58 left, 3rd quarter (Hurts 9yd run)
Well-designed QB keeper for Hurts, and he’s barely touched as he finds a hole off center and races out to the left to get into the end zone.
So … who’ve you got in the second game?
Updated
Commanders 15-27 Eagles, 9:04 left, 3rd quarter: Brown beats Sainristil for 16 yards. Goedert takes a little shovel pass for 7. Then Hurts goes deep and finds Goedert all alone at the 15. Lattimore pushes him out of bounds at the WAS 9.
Commanders 15-27 Eagles, 10:47 left, 3rd quarter: So part one of the three-step plan to get back in the game is complete. Get a stop, get a touchdown, get another stop.
Robinson fights for 2 yards on first down, but Daniels gets dropped deep in the backfield on second down. On 3rd and 20, Daniels gets the ball to Ekeler for 7 yards.
So NOW will the Commanders punt? Not another fake?
Indeed – Way punts for 45 yards, and DeJean returns it for 9 to the PHI 42.
Commanders 15-27 Eagles, 12:39 left, 3rd quarter: Hurts keeps the ball on the first play but has nowhere to go but sideways for a 2-yard loss. He drops back on the next play but is brought down by Armstrong for a 7-yard loss.
Can the Commanders close out a three-and-out and start digging themselves out of a hole? Yes – the Eagles opt for a safe screen pass to Goedert, who gets 9 yards to bring up 4th and 10.
Will we see the first punt of this game at last? Yes!
It’s 43 yards, downed at the WAS 26.
Second-half kickoff
The Eagles bring it back to the PHI 30.
Gainwell tried to block on the play but ran into a defender who was tied up with a teammate, and he’s down hurt.
Updated
Reminder: The winner of this game will face the winner of the second game in today’s doubleheader, the Buffalo Bills or the Kansas City Chiefs.
The Chiefs have been a fun team to watch for many years, and everyone loves a certain girlfriend of Kansas City tight end Travis Kelce, but this is a country that tends to root against teams that win too often and get too many perceived breaks, so the Bills will likely have most of the rooting interest nationwide.
Commanders 15-27 Eagles, halftime
Gainwell fields the kickoff but takes no risks, and the clock runs out.
The difference in the game – two Commanders fumbles leading to two Eagles touchdowns, one of them aided and abetted by a needless penalty (correctly called). The Commanders did a lot of work to be within striking range at 14-12, but with the Eagles up 12 and taking the second-half kickoff, it’s a deep, deep hole.
Commanders 15-27 Eagles, 0:02 left, 2nd quarter (Gonzalez 42yd field goal)
Daniels finds Ertz for another 11 yards, and the Commanders are improbably in field goal range.
Gonzalez once again drills it right down the middle.
Commanders 12-27 Eagles, 0:13 left, 2nd quarter: Washington has no timeouts. Philadelphia will get the ball to start the second half. That makes play-calling interesting.
Short passes to Ekeler and Ertz for a first down, then a penalty on the Eagles. The hands went inside the Washington lineman’s helmet, but instead of the 15-yard penalty for a face mask infringement, it’s a mere 5-yarder to the WAS 41.
Next snap – Daniels takes off for 19 yards to the PHI 35. Could be a long field goal try.
Timeout Philadelphia.
Commanders 12-27 Eagles, 0:39 left, 2nd quarter (Hurts 4yd pass to Brown)
Well, if it’s any consolation to Commanders fans, it was Sainristil rather than the expensive Lattimore who left Brown open for the easy catch.
Commanders 12-20 Eagles, 0:43 left, 2nd quarter: Barkley gets 6 yards to the WAS 4. Timeout Washington.
Barkley is stopped for no gain. Another timeout – Washington’s last of the half.
Third and goal on the 4.
Commanders 12-20 Eagles, 0:47 left, 2nd quarter: Hurts races for the end zone, but the Eagles commit a holding penalty that the refs can’t ignore.
(Note: I’m a soccer ref. I try not to criticize officials. The NFL makes it difficult. Hang around for the second game today and see if the Chiefs get some “fortunate” calls again.)
Hurts is pressured again.
Barkley takes a throw, he’s stopped well short of the first down … BUT rookie cornerback Mike Sainristil hits him as he gets a foot out of bounds. Obvious penalty. First down Eagles on the WAS 10.
Fumble
McNichols fields the kickoff, carries it loosely, Gainwell pops it free, and the Commanders have probably just lost this game.
Checking BlueSky to make sure I’m not seeing things …
“Brown rips off Lattimore’s helmet and Lattimore gets flagged.” – ProFootball Talk
Commanders 12-21 Eagles, 1:44 left, 2nd quarter (Hurts 1yd run)
Well, this is … something.
Hurts scores on the Tush Push. Meanwhile, Brown has a handle on Lattimore’s face mask and he yanks off the Washington DB’s helmet.
Penalty.
On Lattimore.
Not sure how THAT happened.
The Eagles try for a two-point conversion from the 1-yard line, but the Commanders STOP the Tush Push.
Commanders 12-14 Eagles, 1:51 left, 2nd quarter: Replay shows the officials missed a blatant holding call to free Hurts long enough to complete the pass.
Barkley picks up two yards, and the Commanders call timeout.
And let’s walk back the criticism of Lattimore, as he breaks up a pass for Goedert in the end zone. The crowd again wants pass interference, but that would’ve been weak, and the Eagles just got a big no-call in their favor.
Speaking of penalties – the Eagles are unsettled at the line, and they suffer a false start.
Big, big play here …
It’s incomplete to Brown. He and Lattimore get up jawing at each other.
But it’s pass interference on Lattimore. And it’s a legit call – Lattimore had good hold on him.
Eagles first down at the WAS 1, and this is academic now.
Commanders 12-14 Eagles, 2:00 left, 2nd quarter: Broken play on first down, and Hurts slides to the ground rather than taking a hit from Bobby Wagner. They hand off to Barkley again, and he finds 5 yards up the middle.
The Eagles are running time off the clock. This may well be the last drive of the first half, and it could be pivotal.
But on 3rd and 5, Hurts gets chased immediately and misses an open Barkley.
They’ll go for it on fourth down.
And they roast Lattimore, with Brown snaring the over-the-shoulder catch for 31 yards to the WAS 14.
Lattimore had a strong debut for the Commanders a few weeks ago, but he has been injured or beaten badly since then.
Two-minute warning time.
Commanders 12-14 Eagles, 3:42 left, 2nd quarter: Hurts drops back and has a lonnng time to throw. But time runs out, and he has to scramble for 2 yards.
The Eagles then remember they have an All-World running back. Barkley carries for 10 to the 50-yard line.
Commanders 12-14 Eagles, 5:44 left, 2nd quarter: Gainwell struggles to catch the kickoff but gets it back to the PHI 28. Hurts dinks the ball to Smith for an 8-yard gain. Barkley gets the call again but only manages 1 yard.
Will we see the Tush Push again? Yes indeed. First down on the PHI 38.
Commanders 12-14 Eagles,7:05 left, 2nd quarter (Daniels 36yd pass to McLaurin)
Game on!
Daniels throws over the middle to “Scary Terry,” who evades one tackler and makes two more pay for poor pursuit angles.
Washington opts to go for the tie on a two-point conversion, but the play call – sending everyone to the right and then throwing back to the left, where Ekeler is facing off alone against two defenders – is ineffective.
SCARY TERRY TO THE HOUSE
— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2025
📺: #WASvsPHI on FOX
📱: Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/7X1n8rn4KR
Updated
Commanders 6-14 Eagles, 7:18 left, 2nd quarter: Daniels scrambles for 6 yards, then finds Bates over the middle for a first down at the PHI 43.
Robinson gets a sliver of space and picks up 7 yards.
Daniels misses a throw to Brown, just a little too late getting the ball out on a screen pass. He has only completed 11 of 20 passes so far.
But …
Commanders 6-14 Eagles, 8:49 left, 2nd quarter: BLITZ, and Frankie Luvu gleefully slams Hurts to the ground. That brings up 4th and 15, and Jake Elliott comes in for a 54-yard field goal attempt. He pushes it right.
Huge stop for the Commanders.
Commanders 6-14 Eagles, 9:43 left, 2nd quarter: Gainwell gets a 4-yard gain, and then Barkley rotates back in. But Hurts goes to the air and ends up backpedaling before throwing the ball away to avoid the sack.
Time out for the Eagles – 3rd and 6 on the WAS 27.
Commanders 6-14 Eagles, 11:02 left, 2nd quarter: Short run by Gainwell. Pass to Gainwell for 8 yards with an acrobatic leap.
And now it’s the vaunted Eagles’ “Tush Push,” with Hurts getting a couple of teammates behind him to shove him through the line for a first down at the WAS 32.
Commanders 6-14 Eagles, 11:30 left, 2nd quarter: Hurts is lucky to evade a pass rush, and he flings the ball to Brown but can’t connect. The Philadelphia crowd wants a pass interference call. Commanders fans probably want a holding call back in the Eagles’ backfield.
We do indeed get a penalty on the next play, but it’s a false start. Second and 15.
Kenneth Gainwell sneaks out the backfield to pick up a pass across the middle to pick up 8 yards.
The Commanders secondary is again found wanting, as Goedert makes a catch and runs over a defender for an easy first down at the WAS 41.
Commanders 6-14 Eagles, 14:00 left, 2nd quarter: Another solid return by Shipley brings the ball to the PHI 29.
Hey, Barkley’s human. He’s wrapped up and thrown for a loss by Jonathan Allen, the Commanders’ lineman who recently returned from injury.
Hurts responds with a 15-yard pass to Brown for a first down at the PHI 41.
Updated
Commanders 6-14 Eagles, 14:43 left, 2nd quarter (Gonzalez 46yd field goal)
Daniels goes for the end zone, but Brown is well covered. Daniels spends most of the next play running around trying to find an opening under pressure but finds none.
Gonzalez puts up another perfect kick.
If I may gripe about advertising again … whose idea was it to abbreviate “chicken nuggets” as “nuggs”? Is that a tacit admission that there’s no chicken to be found?
End 1st quarter: Commanders 3-14 Eagles
Even Daniels can’t elude every pass rush. He takes a sack. He drops back on the next play, and it’s redemption time for Brown, catching a sharp pass in traffic and picking up 24 to the PHI 28.
Robinson goes up the middle and gains nothing on the last play of the quarter.
Commanders 3-14 Eagles, 1:42 left, 1st quarter: McCaffrey takes the kickoff to the 27-yard line. Robinson picks up a yard and no more. They try again with Robinson and get two yards. So if they run the same play five more times, they’ll get 64 yards on the last attempt.
Third and 6 from the WAS 31, and they throw deep for McLaurin. It’s five yards over his head. This is too far even for Quinn. Tress Way, for many years Washington’s best player, comes in to punt.
Daniels, as excellent as he has been this year, is occasionally thrown to rushing through his progressions and throwing the ball to no one.
So Way … THROWS THE BALL!!! FIRST DOWN! Ben Sinnott was wide open. To the PHI 48 we go.
Also, if I see this “DA BEARS!” ad one more time, I’m going to break a finger going for the mute button.
It’s not the 1990s, folks. It may seem that way because the NFL team in Washington is relevant again, but …
The good news for the Commanders: They fell into a hole against Philadelphia the last time they played, and they stopped Barkley the rest of the way for the comeback win.
The bad news: Everything else. They’re not at home. Jalen Hurts is playing well.
Commanders 3-14 Eagles, 3:43 left, 1st quarter (Barkley 4yd run)
Too, too easy. Barkley races to the right with virtually no opposition.
Commanders 3-7 Eagles, 4:14 left, 1st quarter: The Commanders’ new-ish defensive back, Marshon Lattimore, makes his presence felt by breaking up a pass. But the next pass is an easy 10-yard gain for Dallas Goedert.
Hurts has all day to throw, and DeVonta Smith makes a nice catch in bounds … or was he? The Eagles rush to the line and get another play off before the Commanders can challenge. That goes nowhere, but then AJ Brown makes a catch and zips past a hapless defensive back for another first down.
Ball on WAS 4.
Fumble to the Eagles
Good route across the middle, Dyami Brown is picking up good yardage, but Zack Baun punches the ball out of his hands and Reed Blankenship picks it up.
Just like that, Eagles take over on the WAS 48.
Updated
Commanders 3-7 Eagles, 6:19 left, 1st quarter: McCaffrey runs the kick back to the Washington 27. Ekeler picks up 4 yards. Daniels finds Ertz across the middle, just a hair shy of the first down. Robinson nets the rest.
First down Commanders on their own 39.
Commanders 3-7 Eagles, 7:39 left (Barkley 60yd run)
Well, that didn’t take long.
Rookie Will Shipley runs the kickoff back 35 yards to the Eagles 40. Barkley says, “Thanks very much,” and breaks about 20 tackles on his way to the end zone.
Slight exaggeration. Just know that many Commanders had a chance to stop him and did not. Jeremy Chinn in particular will be kicking himself.
In a nutshell, that’s why the Eagles are favored in this game. Also raises the question of why the Lions didn’t just pound the ball into the Commanders’ soft run defense all game last week.
SAQUON ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!
— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2025
📺: #WASvsPHI on FOX
📱: Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/26534Ls9Mx
Updated
Commanders 3-0 Eagles, 7:57 left, 1st quarter (Gonzalez 34yd field goal)
Zain Gonzalez, who doinked one off the uprights to win a shocker over Tampa Bay in the first round of the playoffs, puts this attempt straight down the middle from 34 yards out.
Updated
Commanders 0-0 Eagles, 8:30 left, 1st quarter: Handoff to Austin Ekeler this time for just 1 hard-fought yard. Daniels faces a tough pass rush and dishes the ball out to Jamison Crowder, but the one-time Duke player can’t scoop it off the ground. Long third down, and it’s a quick pass to Ekeler for 6 yards.
That’s fourth and 3. SURELY Quinn won’t go again …
Nope. Field goal try.
Commanders 0-0 Eagles, 9:50 left, 1st quarter: Back to Zacchaeus in the flat for 5 yards. Robinson drives through a pile for 3 more. Daniels again targets Zacchaeus, but the play is blown up in the backfield.
Dan Quinn wouldn’t go for it again, would he?
Yes he does.
Daniels back in the backfield, sees no one open, takes off … first down! Lost his shoe, moved the chains.
Commanders 0-0 Eagles, 10:58 left, 1st quarter: A good run by Brian Robinson picks up 5 yards, but two Daniels passes miss the mark – the latter almost defended well by Cooper DeJean. The Commanders make a habit of going for it on fourth down, but this is a bit too far.
Or is it?
No, it’s not, and Daniels finds Ertz for seven yards!
Commanders 0-0 Eagles, 12:16 left, 1st quarter: Another two wayward plays (pass batted away, short pass to tight end John Bates) brings up 3rd and 6 again. Daniels finds Zaccaheus short of the first-down line, but without a defender near him, he picks himself up and moves the chains again.
Commanders 0-0 Eagles, 13:31 left, 1st quarter: Daniels scrambles to avoid a sack and picks up a yard. A pass to former Eagles tight end Zach Ertz (husband of a veteran US women’s soccer player) picks up a couple of yards, and then McLaurin does well to dig out a low throw and pick up a first down.
Kickoff
Eagles win the toss and defer to the second half, so they’ll kickoff. Luke “not that one” McCaffrey bobbles the ball in the end zone but accepts the touchback.
Daniels takes the field …
ICYMI – former Commanders owner Dan Snyder, who presided over decades of unaccomplished football and off-field controversies, is apparently beside himself that the team has done so well without him.
The national anthem is being performed by a Broadway star wearing Eagles gear. Is that allowed?
An actual eagle is flying, taking a circuitous route to its handler but getting there eventually.
Both teams were on the field. No one was shown kneeling.
Updated
The last time these teams met …
Philadelphia jumped out to a 21-7 lead in the first quarter on a 68-yard run by Barkley. The Commanders cut it to seven by halftime, tightening up on defense and getting a 32-yard touchdown pass from Daniels to McLaurin.
The Eagles got two field goals for all the scoring in the third quarter, taking a 27-14 lead. But Washington answered with two TD passes for Olamide Zacchaeus for an improbable 28-27 advantage. Jake Elliott restored the Eagles’ lead with a 50-yard field goal, and after a rare Daniels interception, Elliott hit from 40 to make it 33-28 with 1:58 left.
Then came one of the best drives’ of Daniels’ young career. With six seconds left, he found Jamison Crowder in the end zone. Washington punched in a two-point conversion for a 36-33 win.
But the Eagles were missing QB Jalen Hurts in that game. The odds are against Washington repeating that success on the road, facing Hurts.
Or do they?
Yes. Yes, they do. This would be a substantial update. But the Commanders were big underdogs last week in Detroit, too.
From BlueSky:
“Beau - nice intro, and you’ve got me intrigued by a game that I wouldn’t usually pay a lot of attention to. I know I can find this out myself but could you add when it actually starts and when is it likely to finish? Cheers.”
The official time is 3 p.m. Eastern, or 19 minutes from now. The national anthem and coin toss may push that time back a bit.
It should be over by 6:15 p.m., unless we go into overtime, in which case we might be here until tomorrow. (But usually not.)
How do celebrities end up on the field crashing the pregame show?
Today, it’s Bradley Cooper. Coincidentally, I just ran through his duet with Lady Gaga in practice for an upcoming rehearsal.
Washington also has its share of celebrities, like … um … Dave Grohl? Sort of?
OK, Kevin Durant, sure. And … Matthew McConaughey? Mr. Texas?
And Taraji P. Henson.
This is what passes for trash talk in the genteel Mid-Atlantic/Northeast US …
Person 1: “lol waaay more people wearing Bills stuff than Commanders stuff at the Wegmans in DC today”
Person 2: “No Eagles? 🦅 At all, haha?”
Person 1: “They’re at the Wawa.”
For the record, the day the Wawa opened in my town was one of the happiest days since my kids were born.
The weather is ...
… probably not a factor.
Currently 41 degrees Fahrenheit. In Celsius, that’s “meh, jacket weather.” Mild wind. Virtually no chance of rain, snow, hail, sleet, sneet, slail or any other wintry mix.
A zoo, you say?
One bright spot in the DC region recently – we have pandas again. They, at least, are enjoying the snow.
Yes, you can also yell at me on BlueSky.
Updated
Preamble
Hello from the penultimate wave of NFL games this season.
By way of disclaimer, I should mention that I live in Northern Virginia, just a couple of miles outside the Capital Beltway. But I won’t let proximity to one of these two teams sway my thinking today.
…
It’s just that it’s been a really difficult time in the DC metro area (or DMV, as we call it, prompting a lot of confusion with the Department of Motor Vehicles). It snowed weeks ago, and the ground is still an ugly combination of white snow and black exhaust. We’ve had all the chaos of a change in administration, there’s a lot of uncertainty … so, yeah. It might be nice for this area to experience some joy.
That said, these aren’t the Eagles that the rest of the NFC East is used to hating. There’s a lot of respect here for Saquon Barkley, who has been gracious about the NY Giants’ unfathomable decision to let him walk away. Coach Nick Sirianni also seems like one of the good guys in this oft-cantankerous league.
…
But wait … haven’t Commanders fans suffered enough? When did the Eagles last win it all? Seems like last week. The Commanders last won the Super Bowl in 1991. I was alive – in fact, that’s the year I graduated from college – but a lot of DC residents weren’t. Since then, the organization has been a model of futility and hostility.
Perhaps the future looks bright with Jayden Daniels wrapping up a rookie season for the ages. But Washington fans remember the last time a franchise QB came to town – Robert Griffin III, who blew up the league in 2012 but suffered from injuries for the rest of a short career that ended up the road in Baltimore.
So would it hurt anyone if the Commanders took a turn?
Oh … Barkley? Yeah, fair point. Like Terry McLaurin, Washington’s all-important wide received, he has served many years with a team that was mediocre or worse.
So there are a lot of rooting interests out there. Feel free to share yours by email. Or bobsled. Still frozen out there.
Updated
Beau will be here shortly. In the meantime, here’s Graham Searles on the key matchups for today’s game:
What Washington need to do to win: The Commanders must maintain the improved level of defense they have achieved in these playoffs, while attempting to keep the ball out of Barkley’s hands as much as possible with a methodical, time-sapping run game. Washington forced only 17 turnovers in the regular season, but they generated five against the Lions last week and another against the Bucs in the wildcard round. Those turnovers led to three touchdowns.
Much like the defense, if Washington can gather the same production from running backs Brian Robinson Jr and Austin Ekeler as they did against Detroit, they will be difficult to stop. The pair combined for 128 rushing yards – just 17 short of their total from the previous three games. Steering the script away from needing explosive passing plays in the face of elite coverage from Quinyon Mitchell and Darius Slay is essential.
What Philadelphia need to do to win: Mea culpa. The Eagles do not need to pass the ball. In the wildcard round Jalen Hurts delivered the lowest chance of a passing attempt providing a positive outcome of any winning playoff team in the past 10 seasons. Last week, Hurts had 65 net passing yards, the lowest of any team in a postseason game in the past decade, win or lose. Unfortunately for Washington, with Barkley driving the Eagles offense the numbers matter little. When every ball the running back touches has the potential to go the length of the field, as long as Hurts doesn’t turn it over in between handoffs, Philadelphia have a mighty upper hand.
The snow and ice had their part to play in the lack of air yards last week. It will be Washington’s weak run defense that could leave them stagnant on Sunday. Detroit’s runners stacked up 201 yards and three touchdowns against the Commanders last week, the Eagles will expect Barkley to do something similar this weekend.
Key player for the Commanders: Jayden Daniels, quarterback. The rookie is the reason Washington have come from last in the NFC East in 2023 to the verge of the Super Bowl. He has shown an ability to lift his teammates’ level when it really matters. Take the lesser-spotted Dyami Brown. The receiver averaged 19 yards per game in the regular season; in the two playoff wins since, he has 187 yards while receiving more targets and outgaining Terry McLaurin. The Eagles will be nervous of throwing too much attention McLaurin’s way now Daniels has realised Brown’s potential.
Key player for the Eagles: Jalen Carter, defensive tackle. After leading a brutal onslaught on Matthew Stafford against the Rams last week, the pass rusher will be keen to show Daniels is not as immune to pressure as he appears. What could tip the scales is the injury to Washington’s right guard Sam Cosmi. Replacement offensive tackle Trent Scott will need help to stop the disruptive Carter.
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