September 13, 2026
Colleen Claggett/for PhillyVoice
DeVonta Smith #6, Jalen Hurts #1, Dontayvion Wicks #13 and Saquon Barkley #26 of the Philadelphia Eagles celebrate after a touchdown during a NFL game between the Washington Commanders and the Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field on September 13, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
It was ugly. It was frustrating. It was a win.
Welcome back to Eagles football, where some of the names are different, but the result on the field looks remarkably the same.
In their season opener Sunday, a 24-22 win got the Eagles off to yet another good start, with many left scratching their heads after the defense nearly blew it, and the offense showed up sparingly (but just enough for the 'W'). Nick Sirianni and Jalen Hurts are both still perfect in Week 1.
As we'll do throughout the regular season (and playoffs?), here's a very early look at who's stock is soaring, and who's disappointing with football season fully up and running in 2026:
Hurts isn't going to post MVP-type numbers. Don't go looking for 300-yard games in Lincoln Financial Field. But the former Super Bowl MVP is a proven winner. After a down season (relatively, at least) in 2025, the Eagles' oft-criticized QB1 came to play and basically carried the Birds to victory by sheer talent and willpower.Â
Hurts looked damn good all around. Throwing for 203 yards at a 14-for-25 clip, Hurts was delivering the ball on time and with accuracy — with a handful of balls thrown away adding to his incompletion total.Â
In the first quarter, after a play action fake, Hurts connected with free agent pick up Dontayvion Wicks for 64 yards, as the former Packer hauled in the basket catch to set up a Dallas Goedert touchdown — another throw that was on the money. Goedert was wide open on the right side of the field, sliding through the Commanders' zone defense.
In the second, his second touchdown pass came with a defender in his eye, finding Wicks again for six to give the Eagles a comfortable 14-3 lead.
His best throw came in the third quarter with the offense coming off of back-to-back three-and-outs, and backed up due to a holding call. Look at the touch on this sideline hurl to DeVonta Smith.Â
Toe-drag swag pic.twitter.com/75cEiaRopk
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) September 13, 2026
They settled for three points on that drive.
With the offensive line struggling, quite a bit in the second half, Hurts used his legs to evade trouble frequently. Fittingly, he picked up the Eagles' first first down of the season with his legs — and ran for 48 yards on five runs in total (before kneeldowns). His 22-yard scamper in the fourth quarter on a 3rd and 17 helped lead a march 78 yards, punctuated by a second Goedert touchdown (on a catch and run).Â
Hurts is off to a great start and showed exactly what you want to see in a season opener.Â
From a broad, 10,000-foot-view perspective, the Eagles defense was fine on Sunday. There are no real reasons to doubt they could be the best unit in the game this season after they held Jayden Daniels to just 164 passing yards (he went 6-for-16 in the first half), and their opposition to 295 yards in total.
But beyond some impressive individual performances, like Jalen Carter blocking his fourth career kick (an extra point in the second quarter) and Zack Baun being a man possessed and in on every single play, the team left a lot of meat on the bone. A lot.
For anyone watching closely, the defense left sack after sack on the table, as Daniels routinely shimmied, skirted and wiggled away from defenders, extending plays and occasionally scrambling for plus yardage. The former rookie phenom didn't make too many good throws (at least for the first three quarters) and if there was any justice, he probably would have thrown a few interceptions, as the coverage from the secondary was exceptional at times.Â
But the big plays were lacking. The impact plays weren't there. The stat sheet credits Baun with two passes defended and one tackle for loss — no one else had either (aside from one Jihaad Campbell sack). There was no big turnover, with a Carter forced fumble late in the game re-recovered by the Commanders. Philly had just one sack in total (for one lost yard by Campbell), and despite generating pressure on nearly every play against the Washington subpar offensive line, they didn't even hit Daniels until the six minute mark in the third quarter.
Jayden Daniels putting on a show 🤩
— FOX Sports: NFL (@NFLonFOX) September 13, 2026
📺: FOX pic.twitter.com/dCO283m5Zy
The secondary finally broke down in the fourth, with a 33-yard catch by Antonio Williams putting the Commanders in the red zone for the first time in ages. Two plays later, Stefon Diggs found paydirt and got Washington within one point. After a corresponding Eagles touchdown, the defense again let Daniels lead DC inside the red zone and they scored again, with a Williams shoe-string catch. If not for a two-point conversion miscue from the Commanders, the game would have gone to overtime.
Next week they'll have another cupcake with the Titans in Tennessee. But it'll get real, real quick after that. The Bears hung 59 points in Week 1, they're Philly's Week 3 opponent. The Rams are after that. And missing out on turnovers and sacks against those two teams will lead to losses.
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