Author: Gabriela Carroll

The Eagles dropped the final game of the regular season, 24-17, to the Commanders, locking them into the No. 3 seed in the playoffs and a matchup with the 49ers.

If you were at Lincoln Financial Field for the game, here’s everything you missed on the broadcast of the regular-season finale:

Mr. Smith goes for 1,000 vs. Washington

The Birds’ offensive starters sat out Sunday’s game — except for DeVonta Smith (well, also Tyler Steen).

Since Smith went into Sunday’s game just 44 yards shy of a 1,000-yard receiving season, the team wanted to get him on the field to have a chance at hitting that milestone for the third year, play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan said.

Smith surpassed 1,000 yards on a 27-yard catch to end the first quarter and promptly left the game, and he was all smiles on the sideline with Nick Sirianni.

Josh Johnson’s age is nothing but a number that is a major storyline

Commanders third-string quarterback Josh Johnson, who started Sunday, has played for 14 NFL teams since he was first drafted in 2008 — plus stints in the Alliance of American Football and the XFL.

Eagles fans are most familiar with him after he replaced an injured Brock Purdy in the 2023 NFC championship game in San Francisco, but the 39-year-old made just his 11th career start in Sunday’s season finale.

CBS listed all of his NFL stops. Johnson has played for five teams at least twice, including Baltimore, San Francisco, Cincinnati, the Jets, and Washington.

Permission denied

Reed Blankenship, like most of the other defensive starters, spent the game on the sideline, resting for the playoffs.

But these Birds love football too much to stay away. After rookie Brandon Johnson got shaken up in the second quarter and left the game, Blankenship, who was suited up, tried to get in the game to replace him.

The coaches didn’t let him.

Cold-weather mode activated for Hurts

Jalen Hurts, on the other hand, was nowhere close to getting into the game. He was bundled up in a balaclava and a winter hat on the sideline, with only his eyes visible.

In these freezing temperatures, who could blame him? I bet more than one of you in the stands was sporting a similar look.

Respect your elders?

Eagles first-round linebacker Jihaad Campbell grew up a Birds fan in Gloucester Township, N.J., but he almost missed out on the opportunity to play with one of his childhood heroes, Brandon Graham, who famously retired a year ago and then unretired during this season.

“How funny was it when we asked Jihaad Campbell who some of his favorite Eagles were growing up, and his answer was Brandon Graham?” Ross Tucker, the color analyst for Sunday’s game, said.

“Who’s playing right now!” play-by-play announcer Kevin Harlan interrupted.

“He said, in middle school everybody liked Brandon Graham,” Tucker said.

Ross Tucker knows the two-deep

Tucker, who is part of the broadcast team for Eagles preseason games and also hosts a Birds podcast, called Sunday’s game alongside Harlan.

With most of the Birds starters sitting out the game, there may not have been a man with any network more qualified to share their insights.

“I’m pretty much the foremost expert on the Eagles backups,” Tucker joked.

Daily double falls short

As the Lions-Bears game went down to the wire, Harlan found himself calling two games at once, providing updates on the game in Chicago while also calling the Eagles-Commanders game.

The Lions hit the game-winning field goal, which could have propelled the Eagles into the second seed, just as Tanner McKee’s pass fell incomplete on fourth down, virtually ending their hopes to win the game.

The Eagles pulled out a nail-biter in the rain in Buffalo, stopping the Bills’ final two-point conversion attempt to stave off a comeback and win, 13-12.

Here’s everything you might have missed from the broadcast:

Weather woes?

It poured all through Sunday’s game in Orchard Park, N.Y. Bills quarterback Josh Allen told sideline reporter Tom Rinaldi pregame that he’d actually rather it pour than drizzle.

“Drizzle is harder to control,” Rinaldi said. “He said if it’s going to rain, let it rain. I find the ball more tacky, and it’s easier to control the pass game.”

Analyst Tom Brady, for his part, shared that back when he was an NFL QB, he downloaded basically every weather app on his phone and checked Weather Channel “about 75 times a day” before a start, so he’d know how to prepare.

Fox got a ton of mileage out of shots of just how hard it was raining.

Fred’s foible

After the kickoff, the Birds took a 5-yard illegal formation penalty on the opening play because offensive lineman Fred Johnson came on the field for the first drive sans helmet.

“Then you have Fred Johnson, who went on the field without a helmet somehow,” play-by-play man Kevin Burkhardt said.

“Felt the raindrops on his head and realized he made a mistake,” Brady said jokingly.

Facing Vic Fangio

Over the course of his decades-long NFL career, Brady faced Vic Fangio’s defenses a few times.

With the Eagles on pace for another elite season under Fangio, Brady shared his personal reaction to their defensive coordinator.

“Vic Fangio is the type of coordinator where, when you know you’re going up against him you go, ‘Ugh. Do we have to?’” Brady joked. “Such a talented coach; he’s been doing this for four decades. Pretty remarkable, his success.”

Saquon Barkley vs. James Cook

Bills running back James Cook is having the best year of his career, and entered Sunday’s game leading the NFL in rushing yards for the first time.

Barkley sent Cook a message on Instagram telling him to “go finish it,” and claim the NFL rushing title. But Barkley told sideline reporter Erin Andrews that he’s still extremely competitive and was looking to outplay Cook on Sunday.

He put up 68 yards on 19 carries, compared to Cook’s 74 yards on 20 carries.

Brady vs. Buffalo

There’s no love lost between Brady, a longtime New England Patriot, and the Bills fan base, which was at his mercy for nearly two decades. Even now, when Brady comes to Buffalo, he brings former teammate Rob Gronkowski, who’s from the Buffalo area, with him to serve as a bit of a human shield.

The former quarterback didn’t get a warm welcome on Sunday at Highmark Stadium, though.

“Warm embrace, a lot of people, that one-finger salute they were giving me as I looked down from the press box, reminding me how much they enjoyed me coming to town, I guess,” Brady said.

“They’re saying you’re No. 1!” Burkhardt joked.

Tuck rule talk

The Birds’ first turnover of the game came off a fumble by Allen that almost got ruled an incomplete forward pass.

With Brady on the call, you may have thought he would broach the subject. He’s famous for the controversial tuck rule play in an AFC divisional-round game during the 2001 season, in which he avoided a fumble because of his forward arm motion.

Unfortunately, he did not broach the subject. Rules expert Dean Blandino did, though.

“It was really close; I think that’s why they let it stand,” Blandino said. “To me, it looks like a pass because once that hand comes forward, until he brings it back toward his body, you know the old tuck rule, Tom, it remains a pass. They probably said it was too close to change.”

Mewing?

Bills coach Sean McDermott is from Lansdale and got his coaching start as an intern with the Birds under Andy Reid. In some ways, he and Nick Sirianni swapped places. Sirianni grew up in Jamestown, N.Y., in far Western New York.

“We knew he was a wideout at Mount Union when he went to college,” Burkhardt said. “How about Southwestern Central High, in Jamestown? Look at him, looking lean and mean.”

“He’s mewing,” Brady said.

Tom, you’re in your 40s, you shouldn’t know what mewing is. But for those of you who don’t know, it’s a facial expression that’s become a popular TikTok trend.

The two-point conversion

The Bills battled all the way back in the fourth quarter, scoring two touchdowns, including one in the final five seconds. McDermott elected to go for two to effectively end the game, and Allen’s pass missed receiver Khalil Shakir by several yards. Fox caught him looking visibly frustrated after the miss.

“He had him, and Josh knows it,” Brady said. “He had him by 3 or 4 yards.”

The Eagles officially clinched the NFC East with a 29-18 win over the Washington Commanders on Saturday in Landover, Md.

If you want to relive the big win, here were the best and worst moments from the broadcast:

Tush Push

Surprisingly, on an early fourth-and-1 near midfield, the Birds didn’t line up for their signature Tush Push play. Instead, Jalen Hurts set up in shotgun, and the Eagles unsuccessfully attempted to draw the Commanders offside.

Analyst Greg Olsen didn’t hate the decision to fake the fourth-down attempt — but thought the Birds tried it with the wrong formation.

“If you’re going to do it, make it look like quarterback sneak,” Olsen said. “Get under center. Those defensive linemen are champing at the bit trying to defend the Tush Push. Maybe a little more likely. You line up in the gun, you do some shifts and motions, it doesn’t have the same effect.”

Brawl breakdown

After the Birds’ successful two-point conversion made it 29-10 with 4 minutes, 26 seconds left in the fourth quarter, we got a full-scale brawl worthy of the Broad Street Bullies.

“This has turned into a full-blown shoving match,” play-by-play broadcaster Joe Davis said. “Tyler Steen is throwing punches.”

“We’ve got flags, we’ve got hats,” Olsen said.

“There are no flags left in the belts,” Davis said. “They’re all on the field.”

It led to three ejections, including Steen, and plenty of screen time for Big Dom. These teams play again in just two weeks.

Trust the replay

After Commanders running back Chris Rodriguez appeared to gain a first down on a second-quarter rushing play, replay review overturned it, forcing a fourth-and-1. Dan Quinn elected to challenge the call anyway.

“They’re going to challenge the challenge!” Davis said. “Replay, take a look at the replay that you just replayed.”

After a commercial break, the call stood, as expected.

“Replay room saying, ‘Did we stutter?’” Davis said, after returning from commercial to the call standing on the field.

The Commanders still converted the fourth down and scored a touchdown on that possession, though.

Tush Push Part 2

There’s never been more attention on the Tush Push than this season, after the NFL spent the offseason debating whether to ban the play.

But as the season began, the conversation shifted toward the Eagles’ offensive line, and whether the Birds were gaining their advantage by jumping early on the play. Since then, it’s been officiated pretty harshly, including two false-start penalties on Saturday.

“These officials have incredible eyes, because we’re looking, I don’t know the fancy terms of frames per second, but we’re looking at super slow-mo, and he is moving a frame early,” Olsen said after Landon Dickerson’s third-quarter false start. “That’s how they want this enforced. If they’re going to let Philly continue to run this, which I am a huge proponent of the quarterback sneak and the way Philly does it, I think it’s a huge weapon and they should be allowed to do it, but obviously they’re going to officiate it very tightly.”

Has the discourse over the play moved it too far in the opposite direction? Olsen wasn’t sure.

“That is a fraction, I think we can get carried away trying to overdo it, but his hands do move,” Olsen said. “That official’s got good eyes.”

Marcus Mariota’s injury

Josh Johnson, famous to Eagles fans for his appearance in the NFC championship game for the 49ers following the 2022 season, made an appearance of his own after Marcus Mariota suffered an injury.

Footage later showed that Nolan Smith accidentally stepped on his hand, and Mariota was seen with a bandage on his right hand on the bench later in the game.

Road warriors

After the Birds’ third touchdown, Davis remarked on the game as a reflection of their 2025 season.

“This game is kind of emblematic of the whole year for Philadelphia — not easy, but they’re in front,” Davis said. “They’ve grown this lead, silenced this crowd.”

The first part is mostly true, but Joe, I don’t know what stadium you were in, but it sounded pretty darn loud every time the Eagles did anything on the broadcast. The “COOP” after the Cooper DeJean interception spoke for itself.

The Eagles also hit a great celebration afterward.

Jordan Davis’ day

2025 has been Jordan Davis’ breakout year, but Joe Davis said Saturday was “the game of his life,” with six tackles and two tackles for losses.

“He’s having an unbelievable season,” Olsen said.

“I don’t know if he’s making that tackle in previous years,” Joe Davis said. “He dropped about 25 pounds this offseason, and he’s been a different guy. He thanks Peloton and Ally Love rides for helping him drop all that weight.”

If you haven’t read this great Alex Coffey story about Love, you’re missing out.

Not-so offensive

The last team to win a Super Bowl with as large a disparity between the defense and the offense was the 2015 Denver Broncos, who rode an elite defense to victory.

But Olsen is not as concerned with the offense as it seems like a lot of the fans are.

“This offense is better than people give it credit,” Olsen said. “There’s something about this Eagles offense that, I think they’re better than their stats; I think they’re better than their trends. The talent, the fact that they just went on a historic run just a year ago.”