NFL Game of the Week: Washington Commanders vs. Philadelphia Eagles

The NFL schedule makers have finally succeeded in crafting back-to-back intriguing Thursday night football games.

After the thriller that was the Bengals-Chiefs game last week this week's edition of TNF pits the Eagles and the Commanders in a battle to solidify their place in the NFC East standings.

The Commanders are coming off a rough loss to the AFC North leader the Pittsburgh Steelers.

After losing in week one, Washington has won seven of their last nine and until last week, were tops in the NFC East.

Their success can largely be attributed to the performance of their rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Daniels, the second pick in the draft and former Heisman winner has largely outplayed expectations this season. Daniels has thrown for nine touchdowns and 2,147 yards while also rushing for 464 yards and four touchdowns.

Receiver Terry McLaurin has also seen a resurgence due to the arrival of Daniels. McLaurin has caught 47 passes for 711 yards and six touchdowns. McLaurin is the only player on the team to catch more than one touchdown.

The running game has been inconsistent for the Commanders. Carries have been split between two running backs, Austin Ekeler and Brian Robinson Jr. Has scored six touchdowns on the ground white Ekeler has tallied four.

Defensively the Commanders have compiled a solid unit.

Future Hall-of-Famer Bobby Wagner leads the defense with 83 total tackles. His fellow linebacker Dante Fowler Jr. leads the team with eight and a half sacks. As a team, the Commanders have picked off opposing quarterbacks four times and have forced 10 fumbles this season.

The Eagles come into this week after thrashing their rivals the Dallas Cowboys on their own turf 34-6.

Philadelphia has had an odd season, after falling to 2-2 many fans of the organization were calling for management to fire head coach Nick Sirianni. Since that point, the Eagles have won five straight games and have performed much better.

The signal-caller for the Eagles is one of the NFL’s premier quarterbacks Jalen Hurts. Hurts had a near MVP season in 2022 leading the Eagles to the Super Bowl. This season Hurts has thrown 12 touchdowns and rushed for 10.

The Eagles' offense was bolstered in the offseason with the addition of Penn State legend Saquon Barkley in free agency. In Philadelphia, Barkley has rekindled some of his Penn State magic by rushing for 991 yards and six touchdowns this season.

A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith form one of the league’s most formidable wide receiver duos. Brown has caught 28 passes for 553 yards and three touchdowns. Smith has hauled in 37 receptions for 487 and four touchdowns.

The Eagles have a unit that has performed above expectations for this season so far.

The defense is led by new acquisition Zack Baun who has been a swiss army knife for the Eagles so far. Baun has tallied 87 tackles, two sacks, three forced fumbles and an interception.

Two other standouts have been rookies Cooper DeJean and Quinyon Mitchell. DeJean has excelled as a slot corner this season, while Mitchell has been one of the best outside corners in the NFL.

This matchup is exciting for a multitude of reasons. It has huge implications on the NFC East title race and the NFL playoff picture as a whole.

This game is also a measuring stick for how good both of these teams are. Both teams have had fairly easy schedules. Expect this one to be filled with highlight-reel plays as both these teams are capable of creating explosive moments.

Luke Stefanisko is a first-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email ljs6415@psu.edu.