It was a typical Philadelphia Eagles game – slow start, lots of first half mistakes, points left all over the field, missed field goals, trailing at halftime, end up winning somewhat handily. This was another perfect example of judging this team before the final score is posted. I see all the angry tweets at halftime, I get bombarded with microanalysis of almost every play that doesn’t yield six points, or a turnover or sack via text from my people. I’m not going to invoke Aaron Rodgers here but Eagles Nation could use to chill a tad because it’s a 60 minute game.
GAME RECAP
Eagles (10-5, 5-2 Away) 29, Commanders (4-11, 2-5 Home) 18
MVP: Jalen Hurts – 22/30, 185 yds, 2 td, 0 int, 7 carries, 40 yds qb rating 111.1
Honorable Mention: Saquon Barkley – 21 carries, 132 yds, 1 td, 6.2 ave, long 48
Betting winners: Eagles -7, Over 44.5
Next Up: Eagles @ Bills
When: Monday December 28, 2025
TV: ESPN
Yes, it was messy. It was uneven. At times, it bordered on frustrating. Sound familiar?
Hats and T-shirts All Around
And yet, when the dust settled Saturday night, the Philadelphia Eagles were standing exactly where championship teams tend to stand, on top of the division with crisp new hats and t-shirts validating their accomplishment. It’s the first time in 21 years and NFC East team has repeated as division champions.
Despite a night filled with self-inflicted wounds, the Eagles leaned on Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley, and a grinding second-half surge to put away the Washington Commanders 29-18.
This was far from a clean performance by the defending Super Bowl champions. Philadelphia’s Will Shipley fumbled the opening kickoff. The tush push drew two penalties. Jake Elliott pushed three field-goal attempts wide left in the first half and the Eagles even went to the locker room trailing 10-7.
None of it ultimately mattered.
Hurts’ Redemption Tour Right on Schedule
Hurts steadied the game once the Eagles committed to playing through him. Hurts completed 22 of 30 passes for 185 yards, two touchdowns, and no turnovers. Fifteen of those completions went to A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, as Philadelphia leaned back into star receivers long enough to get their ground game going.
Hurts hit Smith on a 5-yard touchdown in the first half, then delivered the go-ahead score in the third quarter with a 15-yard strike to Dallas Goedert, finishing a punishing 17-play, 83-yard drive that consumed more than 10 minutes of game clock and flipped the momentum for good.
Hurts added 40 rushing yards on seven carries, consistently extending plays and keeping Washingtonâs defense off balance as the Eagles improved to 10â5 and won their second straight after a three-game skid.
Barkley Delivers the Blows
Barkley delivered the knockout blows. The running back churned out 132 yards on 21 carries and powered in a fabulois 12-yard touchdown burst, punishing a Commanders defense that eventually wore down. His late 2-point conversion pushed the margin to 19 and sparked a post-play scrum that summed up the nightâs growing tension.
Philadelphia finished with a commanding 385â220 edge in total yardage.
The atmosphere inside Northwest Stadium was rockin’ the green handing Washington their ninth loss in the past 10 games. âE-A-G-L-E-Sâ chants echoed throughout the night, and Cooper DeJeanâs interception of Josh Johnson drew raucous celebrations from a crowd that felt more South Philly than Maryland.
Washingtonâs quarterback situation never stabilized. Marcus Mariota, starting in place of Jayden Daniels, exited in the third quarter with a right hand injury with Commanders clinging to a 10â7 lead. Johnson, the third-stringer, couldnât stem the tide.
Rough Start
The night began ominously for Philadelphia when Will Shipley lost the opening kickoff after a hit by Mike Sainristil, setting up an early Washington field goal. Hurts responded immediately, engineering a drive that was almost entirely his own, completing 4 of 5 passes for 53 yards, adding a 14-yard scramble, and finishing it with a touchdown toss to Smith.
Hurts wasnât flawless. He missed a couple open receivers, including a notable overthrow of Brown and a also had a miscommunication with Smith, but he never lost control of the game and that was all that mattered.
Elliott’s Struggles Extremely Concerning
Elliottâs struggles loomed early. A 43-yard miss in the first quarter set the tone. A 57-yarder before halftime sailed wide left but was wiped out by an offsides penalty. The re-kick from 52 yards went wide left again. It was an off night for a kicker whose starting to stack off nights gpong back to their three game skid, missing game altering kicks against the Cowboys and Chargers sandwitched around a critical misse extra point versus the Bears that ended up altering the course of that game as well. All three less than standard performances led directly to the Birds’ three game skid. Â
Still, the Eagles kept coming.
Goedertâs third-quarter score marked his 10th touchdown reception of the season, tying a franchise record for tight ends set by Pete Retzlaff in 1965. Veteran defensive end Brandon Graham added another sack, continuing to defy time at 37 years old.
It wasnât pretty and it wasn’t sharp. It wasnât dominant from start to finish. Sound familiar?
Philly’s Winning Formula
But it was ultimately winning football, Philly style, weathering mistakes, leaning on stars, and finishing strong.
The Eagles are division champions again and if Saturday night proved anything, itâs that even on their messiest nights, they still know how to win when it matters most.
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