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December 30, 2025

Eagles-Commanders Week 18 odds preview: Will Jalen Hurts and the starters play for the 2-seed?

The Eagles have a chance to grab the No. 2 seed in the NFC with a win over the Commanders and a Bears loss, but they face a decision of whether to play the starters.

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Jalen-Hurts-Eagles-Commanders-Week-16-NFL-2025.jpg Geoff Burke/Imagn Images

We'll see if Jalen Hurts and the starters play this week.

The Eagles will wrap up the regular season at home this Sunday, with a chance to make one more move up in the NFC playoff field if all goes right. 

If they get another win against the Commanders, coupled with a Bears loss to the Lions, the Eagles will get the No.2 seed. If they lose, or the Bears just win, the Birds will settle in at No. 3. Both the Eagles and the Bears will play at 4:25 p.m. on Sunday. No matter what, the Wild Card game the following week will be at Lincoln Financial Field. It's just a matter of against who.

Week 18 has to decide that, and as far as the Eagles' side of things are concerned, the sportsbooks like Philadelphia to clean up against Washington.

Here's a look at the odds and money lines...

Sportsbook Spread Money Line Total O/U 
 DraftKingsPHI -7WSH +250
PHI -310
41.5
FanDuel PHI -6.5WSH +260
PHI -320
41.5
BetRivers PHI -7WSH +255
PHI -345
41.5
BetMGM PHI -7WSH +280
PHI -350
41
Caesars PHI -7WSH +270
PHI -335
41

*Lines as of Tuesday, Dec. 30

Keep in mind that the spread can fluctuate depending on whether or not the starters play.

Head coach Nick Sirianni spoke to the media during a video call on Monday and said he hasn't made a decision on what to do with the starters yet.

"We'll end up doing what we think's the best for the team," Sirianni said. "As we go through our process, we're still thinking through that. That's not a decision I have to make today, or even tomorrow."

But whoever is taking the first team reps at practice this week – like at quarterback between Jalen Hurts and Tanner McKee – should tell you everything you need to know soon enough.

The Eagles' starters could afford a closing week of rest with a potential four more postseason games ahead of them should they make another run, but on the flip side, the offense still has a whole lot to sort out following this past Sunday's win over the Bills, after their ability to move the ball completely disappeared through the second half. 

The defense? That hasn't been anything to worry about. Jalen Carter returned and looked like his usual game-wrecking self again in Buffalo, and Vic Fangio's unit has been playing to a championship-caliber level. 

But Sirianni and Kevin Patullo's offense? They couldn't keep the ball for any more than three plays, much less three minutes, which kept sending the defense back out there to get exhausted while giving Josh Allen and the Bills every last chance to steal Sunday's game. It took what turned out to be a crucial blocked PAT by Carter and then a botched two-point attempt for the win on a bad throw by Allen to fully avoid that and escape.

The thing is, the Eagles more than likely won't if they try to survive that way in the playoffs. 

The regular season's final matchup against the Commanders probably won't force their hand, though. 

The Eagles walked right past Washington, 29-18, on the road two weeks ago, and the Commanders overall, after losing 10 of their last 11 games and repeatedly losing quarterback Jayden Daniels to injury until fully shutting him down, just need this disaster of a season for them to be over with. 

There's a chance the Commanders could just play out Week 18 with third-string QB Josh Johnson, as backup Marcus Mariota is dealing with injury himself, and if that's the case, the Eagles might just have a pretty good chance with their second-stringers anyway.

And hey, it would be the setup for another Tanner McKee game, too.


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