September 13, 2026
Colleen Claggett/for PhillyVoice
Zack Baun #53 of the Philadelphia Eagles reacts after tackling Jacory Croskey-Merritt #22 of the Washington Commanders during a NFL game between the Washington Commanders and the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on September 13, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The Eagles took their first test of the 2026 season, against NFC East foe Washington. And, well, they won 24-22, so they passed.
The new offense didn't look pretty for much of the game, but Jalen Hurts and Dallas Goedert picked up from last year and connected twice for touchdowns, including a game-sealer in the fourth quarter for 43 yards with lots of YAC.
The defense was a tad rusty in its debut, struggling to corral Commanders QB Jayden Daniels and getting leaky in pass coverage late, but made a huge stop on a late Washington two-point conversion that would have tied the game.
Hey, it's a work in progress – and we'll grade them accordingly.
Let's hand out the grades:
The year 2025 called. It wants the Eagles offense back. It might've looked different formationally, but results were largely the same – Saquon Barkley ran into brick walls a lot, Hurts popped a few big pass plays, and an undermanned opponent hung around too long. Landon Dickerson was frequently beaten and pushed around, a bad sign coming off last season.
Rushing offense: Barkley's run issues were largely the product of an interior offensive line that didn't look much more mobile and athletic than last year. He sprung one big run – a 42-yarder with a few nice inside cuts and also two Commanders running into each other – and basically got not much on the others. That run accounted for about 50 percent of his rushing total. Hurts ran for his life a few times, and that helped, but that was largely due to blocking breakdowns.
Pass offense: Hurts did Hurts things – found his new weapon, Tay Wicks, for 64 yards thanks to Commanders CB Mike Sanristil getting lost, threw a beautiful seam-splitter to Dallas Goedert in the end zone for a touchdown after Goedert bent between the corner and safety, and with pressure in his face found Wicks in the left side of the end zone as Sanrisitil once again struggled with the concept of space and positioning. He popped a signature Hurts sideline strike to DeVonta Smith.
But there were also some 2025 moments. Barkley missed Sonny Styles on a blitz and Hurts got sacked, then Hurts bailed the pocket on a four-man rush that was picked up by the o-line and threw the ball away instead of hanging in the pocket. Hurts didn't show a whole lot of timed passes over the middle that were expected to be a big part of the offense and Smith was targeted just six times. It's a work in progress.
Zack Baun was terrific and will get his lone category here eventually. It's a fair debate if the Eagles win the game without him. The rest of the defense was a mixed bag, but if the Eagles are going to be elite, they'll have to be more disruptive, especially against offenses like Washington that don't have much firepower. (Hello, Week 2 Titans).
Rush defense:
The Eagles were pretty good here but could have been tighter for a group with Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis up front. Commanders RBs rushed for more than 100 yards despite having modestly talented RBs and an offensive line without Laremy Tunsil.
Pass defense:
The Eagles lost Marcus Epps early to a shoulder injury, so Michael Carter II stepped in quickly in nickel as Cooper DeJean moved to base. Jayden Daniels was pressured quite a bit, but the Eagles didn't hit very often and only sacked him once. They let Daniels run for 14 yards on a 3nd-and-15.
DeJean committed an illegal contact on Washington's first drive that put three on the board and allowed a critical 16-yard strike to rookie Antonio Williams – his first NFL catch – to set up a TD run on the next snap, then got penalized again for contact on a field goal drive and allowed the Diggs touchdown in the fourth. If he's the best nickel in the league, all that can't happen.
The Commanders made three trips to the red zone and scored on all three but the Eagles did get a big stop on Washington's attempt to tie the game on a ridiculous shovel pitch PAT.
Much like some games last year, P Braden Mann could be considered game MVP. He pinned the Commanders inside their own 10-yard line three times.
Jake Elliott made both of his PATs and his 35-yard field goal, so he's good for Week 1. Jalen Carter once again blocked a PAT, which became pretty big as the game remained tight in the fourth quarter and Washington needed to attempt a two-point conversion with 1:01 to play after a touchdown.
Sean Mannion's debut as OC didn't go spectacularly. As we mentioned, the offensive results were very similar to last season. He and his new OL coach Chris Kuper struggled after halftime to find better answers against Washington's multiple-front defenses, leading to several unblocked Commanders dropping Eagles in the backfield. It's Week 1, so we won't be too hard on them.
Nick Sirianni made a curious decision to hurry up and run a play in the third after a DeVonta Smith sidelined bomb. Sirianni must have worried about a replay but from my vantage point, there was no question Smith was inbounds. The next play was a dud, and the Eagles eventually settled for a field goal.
Vic Fangio probably played it too safe near the end, sticking with either four-man rushes or simple blitzes, which generated pressure at times but not in key moments. Daniels hit Stefon Diggs for a 6-yard TD in the fourth on an easy pitch-and-catch slant. If Washington didn't miss a field goal, an extra point and have to attempt a PAT on that Diggs TD instead of going for two, the Commanders might have won.
Zack Baun single-handedly stalled Washington's second drive in the second quarter with an ankle tackle on Croskey-Merritt after JCM had burst through the line of scrimmage for 9 yards, then got his hands on a pass to Stefon Diggs two plays later for a PBU, then blew up a screen by running right through 324-pound OG Chris Paul to swarm Croskey-Merritt for another loss. He also nearly intercepted a pass 20 yard downfield on the next drive but was out of bounds. In the third, he chased down Richaad White on a catch in the flat after White turned upfield and dropped him a yard shy of the marker, forcing another punt.
Also bonus point to "Lincoln," the pre-game bald eagle mascot who took an extra path around the crowd before beelining back to its trainer. He moved way better than the Eagles' offense did.
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