December 22, 2024
Geoff Burke/USA Today Sports
The Eagles leaned on Saquon Barkley (and the defense) with Jalen Hurts out from a concussion in Week 16.
If you watch a lot of football – and if you're reading this, we're going to assume you do — the Eagles 36-33 Week 16 loss to the Commanders was a weird one.
A ton of key and sloppy penalties, five Commanders turnovers, an ejection and a ton of injuries made this a slugfest. Jayden Daniels' fifth touchdown pass with just six seconds left put them ahead for the first time, and for good in a dramatic finish to drop the Eagles to 12-3 on the year, the first loss in months.
It would be a stretch to think that some of the unusual things we saw in this one, like three-plus quarters of football from Kenny Pickett, 15 targets for A.J. Brown or a defense that was missing C.J. Gardner-Johnson due to two unsportsmanlike penalties, would be predictive of what happens for the Eagles next week or in the playoffs.
But there were two undeniable stocks that went haywire in this one. As we do each week, a look at something to feel great about, and something to lose sleep over:
After a game against the Steelers that highlighted the passing game, and relegated Saquon Barkley to an afterthought with just 65 yards rushing, the back got back on pace in the chase for a new single-season NFL rushing yards record Sunday afternoon.
The run game was emphasized early, as Barkley contributed 37 yards on the ground on Philly's opening drive including a touchdown — the first opening drive TD of the season for Philadelphia. Later in the first half, after a Washington touchdown (making good on an interception), Barkley got to the outside, and then hit his top speed for a 68-yard score:
SAQUON BARKLEY IS GONE. 68-YARD TD.
— NFL (@NFL) December 22, 2024
📺: #PHIvsWAS on FOX
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/lhBWLZclYZ
Barkley was understandably stuffed a lot more in the second half with Washington able to focus on him instead of Hurts, who would leave with a concussion (more on that in a bit), but he still finished Week 16's contest with 150 yards and two scores.
He needs 267 yards over the last two games of the season to set a new NFL record, 134 per game. He's averaged 123 per game this season so far.
The Eagles also only needed 14 and a half games to set a new franchise record for rushing yards:
Philadelphia has set a team single-season franchise record for rushing yards, breaking the previous mark established by the 2021 Eagles (2,715).
— John Gonoude (@john_gonoude) December 22, 2024
MORE: The pivotal plays from the Eagles' collapse to the Commanders
Let's start by saying that, there's a way to look at Sunday's game and say that Hurts' stock has never been higher — comparing him to the Eagles' alternatives at least. The Eagles QB1 looked fine when he played Sunday — for all of 12 plays — running three times for 41 yards and completing one pass in the first quarter. But on his final run of the game he did not go down for a slide (as he often does) and was knocked out of the game with a head injury.
By no means was getting hit in the head the fault of Hurts. He is known for his toughness and he put on his helmet, walked onto the field and tried to enter the game after a few Kenny Pickett snaps. But Hurts was called back to the medical tent a second time and was escorted into the locker room just as Pickett was hooking up with A.J. Brown for a touchdown to put the Eagles up 14-0.
As was probably expected, Pickett had a very uneven performance. He looked poised in the pocket and found several open receivers in key spots — but also threw a bad pick and had a handful of throws that were badly timed or missed the target. He did enough to win (thanks mostly to Barkley and the defense), but he doesn't seem to have the same Nick Foles ability as a backup that fans might be hoping for in that spot.
With Sunday's loss, the Eagles need to win one of their last two games to clinch the NFC East but if they do so they'll be locked into the 2-seed in the conference. The question will be whether the Eagles are able to win against the Cowboys or Giants without Hurts, allowing him to rest until the playoffs, or if they'll need him to play to clinch their spot with just two games remaining.
It will be an interesting week and Hurts' status will be mandatory to follow closely over Christmastime.
MORE: Eagles collapse in face of electric Jayden Daniels performance
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