Sunday, noon. TV: Channel 11 (Fox), Fox Deportes
Line: Eagles by 6½. Over/Under: 47½.
How the Commanders can win: Let rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels do his thing. He’s not rattled by big moments. Defensively, it’s a pick-your-poison matchup for Washington. The Commanders need to find a way to slow either running back Saquon Barkley or receiver A.J. Brown. After Barkley ran for more than 100 yards against them in the opening quarter in Week 16, the Commanders clamped down on him the rest of the way. Brown always has been a problem for them. Washington doesn’t have great run defense, as Detroit’s Jahmyr Gibbs demonstrated in the divisional round. The Commanders tend to get in their own way with penalties and turnovers, so if they can limit those… A key player to watch on defense is corner Marshon Lattimore, twice flagged for pass interference while covering Brown last month.
How the Eagles can win: They need to run the ball. That’s their formula. Barkley tends to hammer a defense early and typically breaks through at some point. Defensively, the Eagles have limited explosive plays, done enough to stop the run and tend to force turnovers, something they didn’t do as well earlier in the season. Quarterback Jalen Hurts can’t turn over the ball, and he’s been pretty good about that and careful about avoiding risky throws. His left leg is hurting — how much, we don’t yet know — and that could be an issue if it makes him less mobile. He’s tough, though. On defense, tackle Jalen Carter is a wrecking ball. He draws so many double teams that it frees teammates with one-on-ones. Still, the key is defensive coordinator Vic Fangio. He’s made everybody better.
Prediction: The Eagles likely would have swept both games with the Commanders but for Hurts’ concussion in their last meeting. Daniels is so poised and so hot, he’s going to present big problems. These division opponents know each other well, and the injury to Hurts could wind up making the Eagles slightly more one-dimensional. An upset could be in the works. Commanders 30, Eagles 28
