Jalen Hurts was lying face down, grabbing his helmet after a tough hit. The Philadelphia Eagles quarterback was tackled hard by Washington linebacker Frankie Luvu in the second quarter, with his head hitting the turf. Hurts was checked for a concussion—he joked, “I guess I beat the protocol”—and stayed in the game.
Hurts later ran for a go-ahead touchdown, while Saquon Barkley rushed for 146 yards and two fourth-quarter touchdowns, helping the Eagles extend their NFC East lead with a 26-18 win over the Commanders on Thursday night.
“Really,” said coach Nick Sirianni, “what we talked about at halftime was this was going to be a grimy, gritty game.”
After three quarters of lackluster offense from the Eagles, Barkley and Hurts helped the team score 20 points in the final quarter.
The Eagles (8-2) extended their winning streak to six games since their bye. Fans cheered when Hurts came back onto the field for the second half, and he finished the game with 221 yards passing.
“When you see grass coming out of his helmet, yeah man, he got rocked a few times,” said offensive lineman Lane Johnson. “I thought he did a good job coming in the second half, and really putting it behind him.”
Hurts laughed after the game when he couldn’t remember details of a specific play. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Probably not the right thing to say right now,” he joked.
The Eagles’ defense also played a key role in the win.
With the Eagles ahead 12-10 in the fourth quarter, Washington was in position to take the lead with a field goal. But coach Dan Quinn decided to go for it on fourth down. Jayden Daniels scrambled, but he was stopped for no gain. Less than three minutes later, Barkley scored on a 23-yard run.
“I trust my teammates. I trust the unit,” Daniels said about the decision to go for it. “I always trust the coaches. I never question them.”
Jake Elliott made the extra point after Barkley’s touchdown, giving the Eagles a two-score lead. Earlier in the game, Elliott had missed two field goals and an extra point attempt.
Daniels, who finished 22 of 32 for 191 yards and a late touchdown pass, was intercepted by safety Reed Blankenship on Washington’s next possession. Just 12 seconds later, Barkley sealed the win with a 39-yard touchdown run.
With 1,137 rushing yards through 10 games, Barkley took the lead for most rushing yards in the NFL, surpassing Derrick Henry of the Baltimore Ravens. Both Barkley and Henry were signed as free agents in the offseason.
“You can’t be great without the greatness of others,” said Sirianni. “Saquon was great tonight but the offensive line was really good.”
Washington entered the game hoping to take first place in the division but ended up with their second straight loss.
Elliott, who holds the franchise record with seven field goals of 50 yards or more in a season, struggled again, missing all four attempts from 50 yards or more in 2024. He did make field goals of 21 and 31 yards.
This game had been billed as the biggest NFC East matchup in nearly 30 years, but the first half lacked excitement. Hurts struggled early, underthrowing passes—including two to DeVonta Smith—and showing frustration when a pass sailed out of bounds with no open receiver.
Washington took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter after Brian Robinson Jr. ran 18 yards to the 1-yard line and then punched in a touchdown. Zane Gonzalez, who had been called up from the practice squad due to Austin Seibert’s hip injury, kicked a 45-yard field goal in the third quarter to give Washington a 10-3 lead.
However, Gonzalez didn’t get another chance to score late in the game. The Commanders were stopped on second- and third-and-1 plays, and Daniels was tackled short on a fourth-and-2 at Philadelphia’s 26-yard line.
The Eagles quickly capitalized. Hurts connected with Dallas Goedert for a 31-yard gain, but Goedert fumbled. Fortunately, tight end Grant Calcaterra recovered the ball, and Barkley scored three plays later.
In the final minute, former Eagle Zach Ertz caught a touchdown pass and then hauled in a 2-point conversion, getting both feet down in the back of the end zone to cut Washington’s deficit to eight. The Commanders tried an onside kick, but the Eagles recovered.
“We’ll get there,” Quinn said. “But over the last two weeks, we weren’t able to demonstrate that and express that to the fullest level.”
