The Eagles lost Jalen Hurts, then C.J. Gardner-Johnson, then a 13-point lead late into the third quarter, and then Sunday's game altogether, along with their 10-game win streak.
The Eagles collapsed against the Commanders, 36-33, down in Landover, dropping to 12-3 and letting their chance to clinch the NFC East this week slip away.
Despite forcing five turnovers, and dominating the possession battle, the Eagles couldn't close out, all while Jayden Daniels rallied and the Washington defense found a way to contain Saquon Barkley in the back half while getting to backup QB Kenny Pickett.
Here's how Sunday fell apart for the Birds...
An immediate swing
The Commanders were ready to take immediate risks, receiving the ball first and opting to go for it on 4th and 1 after Brian Robinson Jr. took the 3rd and 10 run for 9 yards up the middle.
They knew they needed to take any advantage they could over the Eagles. It's just that the Philadelphia defense was ready for whatever they had.
Robinson got the ball again on the fourth-down try and ran straight into a wall, while Josh Sweat was left unmarked and slipped right around the offensive line to bring the Washington running back down.
The Eagles took the ball just over 45 seconds in, and flipped that directly into an 8-play, 49-yard scoring drive highlighted by a 19-yard run from Saquon Barkley around the left edge and then the two-yard punch-in across the goal line, with a 3rd down Jalen Hurts run that got five yards tacked on from a defensive holding call in between to keep the drive going.
The Eagles went up 7-0 early, then with the Commanders trying to reset, Jalen Carter read the protection and burst right through the line, stripping the ball out of Robinson's grasp for Nolan Smith to pick up.
Eagle ball again, which got flipped into another touchdown drive, but...
Backup plan
Kenny Pickett had to finish that drive.
Hurts took off running on a 2nd and 20 from the Washington 34, and appeared to have taken a hit to the helmet while falling toward the grass for the forward progress on the 13-yard gain.
A teammate helped him up and he appeared to try to shrug off the contact and move on to the next play, but sideline spotters called him off the field, sending backup quarterback Kenny Pickett in.
Pickett worked quick passes to A.J. Brown, including the four-yard touchdown that put the Eagles up 14-0, all while concern lingered on the Philadelphia sideline with Hurts getting evaluated in the medical tent and then in the locker room. Eventually, the starting quarterback was ruled out.
Pickett became the guy under center for the rest of the day, which meant more emphasis on the Eagles' other strengths, and a different approach to offense.
There goes Barkley
In other words: feed the ball to Barkley.
The Eagles' defense forced a three-and-out the following Washington possession, but a Pickett interception after two plays nullified that, and gave Jayden Daniels' offense the opening to move a short field down for the Commanders' first touchdown.
Throwing was a risk now, the Eagles had to be measured about it, and lean even more on Barkley and the ground game.
The star running back didn't make that look like much of an ask though, splitting through masterful blocks completely untouched on a 2nd and 9 from the Philadelphia 32 to go storming off on a 68-yard touchdown run and a 21-7 Eagles lead before the first quarter was up –easily the most the Eagles have scored in the notorious opening frame all season.
With that run, Barkley was up over 100 yards rushing already, and the Eagles gained back some valuable breathing room.
Take it away
They were going to need it.
The Eagles' defense stayed after Daniels and Robinson, forcing another recovered fumble off the Washington running back when Nakobe Dean shed his block and wrapped him up, with cornerback Cooper DeJean there on the right to punch the ball loose and fall on it.
The offense couldn't turn that into points though, despite a 45-yard bomb downfield from Pickett to Brown (through double coverage), and the Commanders rebounded with a touchdown drive sparked by their own 51-yard launch from Daniel to Dyami Brown at midfield.
A deep corner to the end zone from Daniels to star receiver Terry McLaurin capped the drive, with Eagles corner Quinyon Mitchell losing McLaurin in coverage, and the Commanders were back to within one score, 21-14, approaching halftime.
Three consecutive punts and then a C.J. Gardner-Johnson interception kept the score locked going into the intermission.
Notably, when the Eagles faced 4th and 1 scenarios, they didn't attempt the "Tush Push" with Pickett.
Jake Elliott also had 56-yard field goal try to go for with four seconds left, but he missed it to continue a concerning stretch for the kicker.
You can't do that
The Eagles took the ball coming back for the second half, and though throwing, again, was a greater risk now, Pickett did go looking deep for Brown, and didn't necessarily need the completions.
Pickett tossed two lobs up for the Eagles' top receiver, and on both of them, Washington corner Marshon Lattimore was tagged for costly defensive pass interference penalties of 38 and then 23 yards, helping to push the Eagles all the way down to the Commanders' 11-yard line.
Elliott went on to hit the chip shot from in close to give the Birds a 10-point cushion.
Discipline was becoming a factor.
MORE: Barkley's chase continues, Eagles can't overcome Hurts' concussion
Slip and slide
So was the turnover battle.
On the next Commanders possession, Daniels checked a screen right to Dyami Brown, and Zack Baun made the quick shift in coverage to drop down and lay out the hit.
The ball popped out, Nolan Smith fell on it, and the Eagles suddenly had the ball back again in Washington territory, well, until Garder-Johnson got ejected for his second unsportsmanlike penalty, which pushed the ball back 15.
Earlier, in the first half, Garnder-Johnson got his first foul and warning during a post-whistle scrum with Brown, and following his interception later on, it was a major loss for the Eagles' secondary in a spot where they really didn't need it.
They still got the ball back, got help from two more sloppy Washington penalties (a facemask and then another DPI from Lattimore), and tacked on another three with a 40-yard Elliott kick after a lengthy drive of 14 plays and 8:13 of game clock, but only for 36 yards of progress – and after narrowly avoiding a dangerous Pickett fumble that could've flipped the game on its head had the Eagles not recovered it.
Killing time
Still, the Eagles padded their lead up to 13 points, 27-14, and looked to be shifting into clock-controlling mode in an attempt to just outlast Washington – much like they did against Pittsburgh last week.
When the Commanders took the ball back following Elliott's kick late into the third quarter, the Eagles had held the ball for 10:32 of the frame, the FOX broadcast showed. Washington only had it for 32 seconds.
Far from in the clear
Problem was, the Eagles were trying to control the clock without Hurts dictating the tempo, and without Gardner-Johnson on the other side over top at safety.
Washington had opportunity.
Facing a pivotal 4th and 11 at the Philadelphia 41, Daniel stepped up and out of pressure, tucking the ball and running into the open field.
Baun, DeJean, and Tristin McCollum each tried to close in on the quarterback a few steps ahead of the first-down marker.
He split through all three of them, shedding off another tackle from Nakobe Dean, too, before Reed Blankenship finally dragged him down at the Philadelphia 12.
The stop fell right out of the Eagles' grasp. The Commanders had life and were in the red zone.
Daniels hit former Eagle Olamide Zaccheaus for the four-yard touchdown a few plays later.
Zaccheaus broke free from McCollum in coverage (Gardner-Johnson's replacement) on the play. The Commanders were within six, 27-21, after PAT early into the fourth.
Bent
Momentum swung.
Washington's defense knew Barkley was the first option, and prioritized stacking the box to minimize any damage he could do as much as they could, while essentially daring Pickett to throw.
When he tried, they got right to him.
Bobby Wagner hit Pickett on a 2nd and 14 and a frantic incompletion – after Barkley was knocked four yards back the play prior and on a sequence that was initially ruled a fumble until the review proved otherwise.
Either way, the Eagles couldn't move. They had to punt. Washington got a short field at the Eagles' 49.
Daniels and the Commanders' offense used that to jump ahead, 28-27, on another pass to Zaccheaus and in blown coverage.
Broken
The Philadelphia drive that followed wasn't pretty either, but they took the lead back and chipped 5:18 away.
A completion from Pickett on the run to Brown and spin from the receiver off his tackler to get across the first-down marker kept the Eagles' drive alive on a 4th and 7, and moved them 15 yards to the Washington 35.
The Eagles only pushed a bit further, but it was enough for Elliott to hit on a 50-yard field goal to send them back up 30-28 with 3:48 left.
On a 3rd and 5, Daniels fell into pressure and tried to force a throw over the middle to receiver Luke McCaffrey. Darius Slay jumped in front of the pass and tipped the ball up. Blankenship caught it, then turned the corner to run back down to the Washington 27 with 2:53 left.
The Eagles were in control again, but came a DeVonta Smith drop shy of getting a first down within the two-minute warning.
Elliott hit another field goal, this time from 40 yards out, to put Philly up five, 33-28.
Washington, however, still had 1:58 to score six.
The defense had to save them one more time.
They couldn't do it.
Daniels got the Commanders 57 yards downfield in nine plays and 1:52, completing the go-ahead to Jamison Crowder in the back of the end zone with only six seconds left.
Then Washington got the two-point conversion.
The Eagles were cooked.
MORE: Eagles collapse in face of electric Jayden Daniels performance
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