September 13, 2026
Gregory Fisher/IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Who had Braden Mann as the Eagles' Week 1 MVP?
Jaylin Lane pushed up toward the oncoming return coverage, taking the bet that Braden Mann's punt would just end up bouncing well into the end zone for a touchback.
Instead, the ball landed and took a taunting hop left along the hash marks, dying completely still in the grass at the Washington 2-yard line.
Mann, the Eagles' punter, placed a perfect shot, pinning the visiting Commanders way back deep, and with just 33 seconds left on the first-half clock, ensuring that they wouldn't pose any scoring threat before the intermission.
And as far as the rest of Sunday was concerned, Mann did just about everything he could to ensure that they never would be.
The Eagles won a messy Week 1 opener over Washington, 24-22, Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field, and the collective effort was a mixed bag.
Zack Baun and the Eagles' defense held the Commanders to nine points through three quarters, and for long stretches, looked as imposing as ever to begin Vic Fangio's third season as defensive coordinator. But then they kept getting asked to hold the lead, cracks eventually showed, tackling got unusually sloppy, and Jayden Daniels orchestrated two fourth-quarter scoring drives that brought the day down to a 2-point try that Moro Ojomo made the deciding stop on.
And the new offense under freshman playcaller Sean Mannion? Well, for every series where you could see how it would all work – where Dontayvion Wicks was breaking ankles and Jalen Hurts was threading the seam over to Dallas Goedert for touchdowns – it was like they had to be matched with one or two more that got stuck in the mud – where the pocket was collapsing around Hurts in an instant, Saquon Barkley was left running into a wall, and the state of the offensive line left some legitimate concern, even if it is after just one week.
It all left Sunday's game close, and when the margin for error is that narrow – and heavily stuck at a standstill for most of it – every little advantage counts, which means special teams can make a massive difference.
Mann rose to the occasion and more than kept up his end of the deal to keep the Eagles ahead.
Another awesome punt by Mann! pic.twitter.com/r172kQJejf
— Shane Haff (@ShaneHaffNFL) September 13, 2026
That coffin corner punt late in the first half was easily Mann's best kick of the day, and left Washington opting to just run the ball a few yards forward to let the clock run into the break, even though the Eagles would be receiving coming back.
But Mann was called on to punt seven times in total on Sunday. He averaged around 51.6 yards per kick, and left the Commanders fielding five of them within their own 15-yard line (and four of them within their own 10).
Washington never scored off of any of Mann's punts, with four of those drives ending quickly in three-and-outs.
It's hard for any offense to get anything going when pinned back so deep, and Mann continually put Washington at that disadvantage, which held the line long enough for the Eagles to, eventually, pull away by way of Dallas Goedert's fourth-quarter touchdown.
The Eagles won in the end, but the effort is no doubt going to be rife with criticism in the days ahead; over the efficiency of Hurts and what was supposed to be a much sharper offense, and over some uncharacteristically poor tackling from a Fangio defense that prides itself on that –maybe it's just the rust.
But for as rough as it got, the Eagles always had a lifeline when it came to field position.
Braden Mann did his part to make sure of that, leaving the Commanders to start nearly every drive on their heels.
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