September 29, 2023
The Eagles are finally playing a game on a Sunday again! And at 1 p.m.!
Cherish it, because the schedule makers only gave the Eagles that twice – such is the cost of becoming a primetime darling.
Anyway, the 3-0 Eagles will face the 2-1 Commanders in their first NFC East matchup of the season.
Philly, as of Thursday, is a heavy 8-point favorite, and our writers are pretty much in line with that.
Here are our thoughts and predictions:
TV: FOX (Joe Davis, Daryl Johnston)
RADIO: 94.1 WIP (Merrill Reese, Mike Quick)
| Book | Spread | Money Line | Total (O/U) |
| DraftKings | PHI -8 | WSH +300 PHI -380 | 43.5 |
| FanDuel | PHI -8.5 | WSH +340 PHI -430 | 43.5 |
| BetMGM | PHI -8.5 | WSH +300 PHI -400 | 43.5 |
| UniBet | PHI -8 | WSH +300 PHI -385 | 43.5 |
| PointsBet | PHI -8.5 | WSH +310 PHI -400 | 43.5 |
Sam Howell has been sacked 19 times already this season. The next closest team has taken 13 sacks. That's especially concerning since two of the teams that Washington has faced were the Cardinals and Broncos, who are easily both "bottom quarter of the NFL" teams. It is imperative that they find some success on the ground to take pressure off of Howell and an offensive line that has below average starters at LG, C, and RT.
Unfortunately for the Commanders, the Eagles have been able to consistently eliminate the run and make their opponents one-dimensional, and Howell could have another long day, like he did Week 3 against the Bills.
On the other side of the ball, the Eagles' smash-mouth run game has been utterly dominant, and while the passing attack isn't where it was in 2022 just yet, there have been improvements from Week 1 to Week 2 to Week 3. The Commanders' biggest strength — their talented foursome up front — should be neutralized by the Eagles' elite offensive line.
This is the beginning of what I think is the easiest stretch of the season for the Eagles, with the Commanders, Rams and Jets as the next three opponents on the slate for Philly before the schedule gets much tougher.
I think the Rams game is much more of a trap game than this one, as Washington really has no formidable quarterback to speak of and the Eagles have a lot of momentum in their secondary right now. I think this is a comfortable win and I think if Hurts is over the flu he could post some 2022-like numbers.
The Eagles passing game hasn’t approached their 2022 ceiling. That changes on Sunday with a thrashing akin to last year’s fireworks. Momentum will also build nationally about the play of Jalen Carter, going from simply being the best rookie in the sport to one of the best defensive players period.
The Eagles are going to run the ball and Washington won't be able to do anything about it.
Jalen Carter is gonna go feastin' and Washington won't be able to do anything about that either.
If by chance Josh Harris and Michael Rubin are at the game and shown, they will be booed viciously.
Things will look real bad at QB, for Washington in this game specifically and across the NFL in general, but Carson Wentz's phone will remain silent.
The Eagles finally played what looked to be a complete game, despite criticism of Hurts throwing the football. Defensively they seem sharp. Winning battles on the D-line as Jalen Carter is already proving his worth. Washington is tricky. They beat a good Eagles team last year and are better this year. Sam Howell is working out OK in Eric Bienemy's offense, not doing too much. Their defense is revamped as head coach Ron Rivera can just focus on that side of the ball. They run it well and will try to keep the Eagles' offense off the field, especially Hurts.
The Eagles will eventually win but this won’t be easy. I wouldn’t be shocked if they had to come from behind or break a tie late in the game.
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