October 27, 2023
The wound from the Phillies' baffling defeat in the NLCS is still fresh, but the Eagles are still on the grind and may have just hit their stride – if last week's statement win over Miami is anything to go by.
The Birds will get the Commanders for the second, and final, time this season down in Landover. Will they roll straight through their NFC East foe?
Here are our thoughts and predictions:
TV: FOX (Chris Myers, Mark Schlereth, Kristina Pink)
RADIO: 94.1 WIP (Merrill Reese, Mike Quick)
| Book | Spread | Money Line | Total (O/U) |
| DraftKings | PHI -6.5 | PHI -278 WSH +225 | 43.5 |
| FanDuel | PHI -6.5 | PHI -295 WSH +240 | 43.5 |
| BetMGM | PHI -6.5 | PHI -300 WSH +240 | 43.5 |
| UniBet | PHI -6.5 | PHI -295 WSH +225 | 43.5 |
| PointsBet | PHI -6.5 | PHI -300 WSH +240 | 43.5 |
A lot of oddball, unlucky plays went against the Eagles in this matchup Week 4, and the Eagles came away with a win anyway.
The Commanders are 27th in point differential (-50), 27th in DVOA, 28th in pass defense (248 passing yards allowed per game), and they are on pace to give up the second-most sacks in NFL history (they have already allowed 40 sacks). They have bad matchups across the board against this Eagles roster, most notably their offensive line against the Eagles' pass rush, and their secondary against the Eagles' receivers.
Yes, the Commanders tend to give the Eagles fits, but we probably don't need to overthink it. The Eagles are really good, and the Commanders are really bad.
It's the final "lay up" game for a while, and I think the Eagles will take advantage. They made a statement in their win last week and I think this game will serve as a successful tune-up before the gauntlet of Dallas, Kansas City, Buffalo and San Francisco arrives in November.
Defensive coordinator Sean Desai has his unit playing as well as Jonathan Gannon ever did. After a dominant showing against that much-hyped Dolphins offense, I’m expecting more of the same for the Eagles, particularly with their pass rush.
I’ll say Haason Reddick and Josh Sweat combine for three sacks and the Birds’ vaunted interior defensive line crew completely stifles the Washington run game with the Commanders only tacking on a second touchdown in garbage time.
On the offensive side of the ball, why argue against A.J. Brown going for 125 receiving yards again? He will continue to make his case as the NFL’s Offensive Player of the Year.
Still kind of reeling from the Phillies' collapse, honestly. I think the Eagles take care of business rather easily here. What I saw last Sunday night against the Dolphins, to me, was a sign that things are really starting to click defensively, which I think will carry over into a total nightmare for Sam Howell and the Commanders' offense, especially with Kevin Byard out there in the defensive backfield now.
We'll see the Eagles hit their stride and just unload on a weak Washington team ahead of the boss rush phase of the schedule, and the sting from the Phillies will lessen just a tiny bit.
Philly may have figured something out while also adding the biggest possible concern. Yes, Jalen Hurts played the second half of last week's game with a brace, but the Eagles have now found consistent ways of winning games where Hurts isn’t the key reason. Be it A.J. Brown or Haason Reddick, so many names can hurt the opposition right now. It’s hard to see a slip-up the second time around against Washington. They should dominate both lines of scrimmage and put ridiculous pressure on Sam Howell. Birds roll here, 33-16.
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