Mike Golic still remembers standing on the sideline when quarterback Randall Cunningham fell to the grass at Lambeau Field. It was Game 1 of the 1991 Eagles season. In the second quarter, Packers linebacker Bryce Paup lunged at Cunningham’s knees.
The trainers rushed to his side. Golic and his defensive teammates were stunned. This was supposed to be their year. Now, as Cunningham rolled on his back in agony, that seemed less likely.
With Cunningham out for the season, the Eagles cycled through a litany of quarterbacks in 1991. It gave the defense virtually no room for error — but instead of faltering, it rose to the occasion.
The Eagles could not rely on quarterback Randall Cunningham in 1991, after Cunningham suffered a season-ending injury in Week 1.
Over the next 16 games, the group put together one of the best defensive seasons in NFL history — if not the best — surrendering the fewest passing yards and rushing yards along with the lowest completion percentage in the NFL that season.
“I know that group all too well,” analyst Troy Aikman said on Monday Night Football on Dec. 8. “Because I played against them. Number one against the run. Number one against the pass. I could name the roster for you, on the defensive side of the ball.”
The 1991 Eagles recorded the most sacks in the league (55) and ranked third in interceptions (26). They allowed an average of 15.3 points per game.
“We knew that we were going to go as far as the defense could carry us,” linebacker Seth Joyner recalled in late November. “And that just turned the intensity up.”
The current Eagles defense is not in quite the same predicament. Their quarterback is healthy. Nevertheless, through 14 games, Jalen Hurts’ offense has not performed relative to its talent level.
And while the 2025 defense has not been as consistent as the 1991 group, it has shown flashes of the same caliber of dominance, particularly since the bye week.
If the Eagles have any hopes of returning to the Super Bowl, such a run would likely have to involve an elite defense.With that being said, here is what three members of Gang Green — Joyner, Golic, and Clyde Simmons — are seeing from Vic Fangio’s group.
Buddy Ryan was gone by 1991, but his stamp was still all over the Eagles defense.
Aggressiveness
Buddy Ryan, the defensive guru who coached the Eagles from 1986-90, had a mantra: “Score on defense.”
This meant pitching the ball from player to player if you got an interception. Or, if you got a fumble, trying to scoop and score instead of falling on the ball. Or, if you didn’t score, giving the offense a shorter field.
Ryan’s philosophy wasn’t just about preventing a team from scoring; it was about putting that team’s offense on the defensive.
That carried over to the 1991 team, even after Ryan was fired following the 1990 season. The 1991 defense, coached by coordinator Bud Carson, brought this concept to a new level.
With Cunningham out, it was unlikely the Eagles would be scoring 20-30 points a game. So, the defensive players took it upon themselves to score — or, at a minimum, make things easier for the offense.
Golic, a former defensive tackle who now hosts a show on FanDuel Sports Network, said this message was largely player-driven. It was always reiterated, either on the sidelines or in defensive meetings.
“We played aggressively anyway, but we kind of even upped that,” Golic saidin November. “And it wasn’t disparaging to the offense. It was just, like, ‘Listen, we don’t have our starting quarterback anymore. We know we do a lot on this team, but we know we now have to do more.’ So it was more of an up-tempo, upbeat, ‘Let’s do more. Let’s help out more.’”
Added Simmons, a dominant defensive end: ”We’d always prided ourselves with being a really good defense, but we knew we had to be even better to win ballgames. It started really getting tightened down. Just try to be sure to give ourselves all the opportunities in the world to win ballgames, keep people off the scoreboard, and keep the yardage down.”
Golic and Joyner see a similar aggression in the Eagles’ current group — both in the play-calling and in the players. This has been especially true with the addition of Jaelan Phillips, the return of Brandon Graham, and Nakobe Dean playing above expectations after returning from a serious knee injury.
Bud Carson (with star cornerback Eric Allen) coordinated a unit that finished No. 1 against the run and the pass in 1991.
It has freed up the pass rush, allowing Fangio to be more unpredictable — a Ryan/Carson staple. Fangio isn’t blitzing as much as those teams, but he is mixing in different looks. One example is that he favors a simulated pressure in which at least one linebacker rushes and one lineman drops into coverage.
“Bud Carson as the D coordinator, he was a very aggressive coordinator, and certainly Vic’s a very aggressive coordinator,” Golic said. “And players love playing aggressively. You’d rather be attacking than reacting. So that’s probably the biggest comparison.
“I mean, obviously I’m biased toward my 1991 team. The stats were ridiculous. But I would say overall, yeah, the aggressiveness of the two units would be comparable.”
He added: “A lot of it is just trusting the person next to you, behind you, in the secondary, and them trusting us up front that we’re going to get there. Players know when they’re going to be on an island and understand that and accept the responsibilities of it. And coaches like Fangio and Bud Carson certainly weren’t afraid to be aggressive and put people on islands.”
Those who witnessed both play see similarities between current Eagle Jalen Carter and the legendary Jerome Brown (99).
Players who would fit on Gang Green
There was only one player whose name came up repeatedly as example of someone who evoked the 1991 team — and it shouldn’t come as a surprise.
The family of Jerome Brown said in March that they see some of the late Eagles defensive tackle in current Eagles DT Jalen Carter,who has been sidelined the past two weeks with shoulder injuries. To the 1991 Eagles, the comparisons are obvious.
Simmons, the defensive line coach at Bowling Green, doesn’t have much time to keep tabs on the Eagles. But even in the limited games he has watched, Carter has stood out.
“I know they’ve got a couple good players in there, like a Jalen Carter, who is such a big man, and so explosive, and a game-controlling guy,” Simmons said last month. “He’s special. You don’t see a lot of people that big, who are that explosive.”
“He plays on the other side of the line [of scrimmage],” Golic added. “I mean, he just plays with leverage, with strength. You know, and the ends were bigger at that point. Reggie [White] was 315 pounds, Clyde was 290 pounds, Jerome was 300, I was in the 280s, 290, so was Mike Pitts.
“Jalen [Carter] is a 300-pounder who is quick off the ball and plays on the other side of the line. That’s what we always did. We always played on the other side of the line. And he would have, jeez … I mean, put him on that line, with Jerome [Brown] in the middle, would have been ridiculous.
“If there’s one player on that defense that would have fit in our defense, it definitely would have been Jalen [Carter].”
Clyde Simmons (96) draws comparisons to current Eagle Jaelan Phillips.
Joyner, a former linebacker who hosts pregame and postgame Eagles shows on YouTube, made a different comparison. In Phillips, he saw a bit of Simmons — a multifaceted player who could run different formations and be put in different spots.
“I probably would have to compare him to Clyde,” Joyner said of Phillips. “I definitely wouldn’t compare him to Reggie [White, a Hall of Famer] because there’s just no comparison to that guy. But I think when you when you think about Clyde, especially under Buddy … because under Buddy, we ran a little bit of everything. We ran 30 front and 40 front, unders, overs, swim package, with all three linebackers off the ball in an even front. We ran a little bit of everything.
“And in the 30 front, Clyde was pretty much the weakside outside linebacker. Like, we could line up in a four-man front, quarterback getting his cadence. We could shift to a 30 front, Clyde would kick his hand off the ground, and stand up as an outside linebacker. And sometimes even drop into coverage, believe it or not.
“Those are some of the intangibles that Jaelan Phillips brings to the table. Because like I said, I was shocked to see Vic actually drop him off in coverage out of that five-man front [against the Lions]. And in some of the zone blitzes where you brought a linebacker from the other side and you dropped him off into the flat. He brings a versatility.”
“It’s definitely possible” for the Eagles to win back-to-back, titles, ex-Eagles defensive tackle Mike Golic says.
A Super Bowl-caliber defense
All three former players looked at the 1991 season as a lost opportunity. They believe that if Cunningham had stayed healthy, they could have won a Super Bowl.
Instead, the 1991 Eagles went 10-6 and didn’t make the playoffs. But these Eagles are in a different spot, which leads Simmons, Joyner, and Golic to believe the outcome could be better for them.
Joyner sees the same confidence in the 2025 group that the 1991 group had. Golic sees it, too.
Now, it’s a matter of play-calling and playing with the same confidence on the offensive side of the ball.
“It’s definitely possible [for them to go back-to-back],” Golic said. “Listen, the offense, it’s tough to duplicate. The [offensive] line has not been what it was last year. They still run more than they pass. They still try and live off the run. But you can never negate a great defense. What a great defense will do will always keep you in the game, always.
“So you look at some of the top defenses, like Denver, like Houston, Philly, certainly is one of them, you’re always going to be in the game. And then you just need the offense to produce some. And certainly the Eagles offense has the ability to [do that].
“Statistically, they’re not what they were last year, but they have the ability to show it. But when you have a really good defense, you’re going to be in every game.”
That feeling you experienced at approximately 3:35 p.m. Sunday was the earth beginning to rotate on its axis again.
The Eagles won a game for the first time in approximately a month and all is right in Philadelphia, for now. The defense remained dominant. The offense was mostly sharp and efficient. Jake Elliott didn’t miss any of his kicks for the first time since Week 11 against the Detroit Lions.
With three games remaining in the regular season, the Eagles are just one victory (or one Dallas Cowboys loss) from winning the division and becoming the first back-to-back NFC East champions in 20 seasons.
This Saturday, the Eagles’ obstacle is the 4-10 Washington Commanders, their struggling division rival that ended its eight-game losing streak on Sunday with its first win (29-21 over the New York Giants) in over two months.
Here’s what we know (and what we don’t) about the Eagles ahead of their Week 16 matchup against the Commanders:
Can Jalen Hurts stack positive performances after a strong outing against the Raiders?
The Raiders effect?
Now that the proverbial confetti has settled, how much stock can the Eagles really put in a win over the now-2-12 Las Vegas Raiders?
Time will tell if the Eagles can sustain their all-around dominance for the rest of the year. But there’s no denying that the Raiders are one of the most inferior teams of the last decade, boasting the 19th-worst points differential (-167) and the fifth-worst yards per offensive play (4.38) in that span.
Credit where credit is due, though. The Eagles could have stooped to the level of their opponent by committing the self-inflicted wounds that have plagued them throughout the season. They could have used the windy conditions as an excuse for a lack of efficiency in the passing game.
Instead, the Eagles incurred just three penalties, their lowest total in a game this season. Jalen Hurts and his receivers registered the league’s second-best single-game expected points added per pass (+.87) in 2025, a metric that measures the average points an offense adds on a passing play.
A close win would have been concerning. A blowout provides hope that the Eagles can potentially sustain this level of complementary football into the playoffs.
The Commanders won’t provide the Eagles with the best litmus test this week. They’ve been one of the NFL’s lowliest defenses this season, conceding a league-worst 7.5 yards per passing attempt and a sixth-worst 4.7 yards per carry. Their offense has experienced a sharp drop-off compared to 2024 with Jayden Daniels dealing with various injuries throughout the season.
Former Eagle Marcus Mariota will get the call for the Commanders under center on Saturday.
Another backup quarterback
For a second straight game, the Eagles are set to face off against one of their former backups. This time, it will be Marcus Mariota at the helm of the Commanders offense on Saturday.
Daniels, the NFL’s 2024 offensive rookie of the year, has missed seven games this year due to a litany of injuries, including a knee sprain, a hamstring strain, and now an elbow issue. He initially dislocated his elbow injury in the team’s Week 9 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, and while he returned to action a month later, he aggravated the injury in his first game back against the Minnesota Vikings.
After the second-year quarterback missed the Week 15 win over the Giants, Commanders coach Dan Quinn announced Monday afternoon that he is being shut down for the rest of the season.
But the injuries to Daniels aren’t the only reason behind Washington’s decline in 2025. The Commanders lack playmakers on offense, and they’re now down two more with former Eagles tight end Zach Ertz tearing his ACL two weeks ago and wide receiver Noah Brown exiting Sunday’s game with a rib injury. Laremy Tunsil, the team’s standout left tackle, also left the Giants game with an oblique injury in his side.
The defense has been rough, too, for most of the season, but we’ll get to that later.
The Eagles are well-acquainted with Mariota. Much like Daniels, the 32-year-old quarterback has the ability to extend plays with his legs, a quality that has given the Eagles defense fits at times this season.
Mariota was particularly effective on deep passes Sunday. In fact, he had almost all of his production come on downfield passes, as he went 7-for-11 for 181 yards and a touchdown on throws greater than 10 air yards, according to Next Gen Stats.
Still, the Commanders offense practically tried to lose to the worst team in the NFC East. At one point, they had a 15-point lead, then fumbled the ball away twice in the fourth quarter (once by Mariota and another time by running back Jeremy McNichols) to give the Giants a shot at a comeback. Saturday’s game shouldn’t be too difficult a test for Vic Fangio’s defense.
The previously unknown Jacory Croskey-Merritt has had a solid stretch for the Commanders.
Wild Bill
One of the lone bright spots of the Commanders’ season has been the emergence of Jacory Croskey-Merritt, the seventh-round rookie running back who goes by the nickname “Bill.”
Croskey-Merritt became the team’s featured back after Austin Ekeler went down in Week 2 with an Achilles injury. He has been efficient on the ground, averaging 4.5 yards per carry, which ranks third among rookie running backs with at least 100 attempts this season.
Sunday marked one of the best performances of Croskey-Merritt’s young career. He posted 96 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries, his second-best total output this year. But he’s also had three fumbles this season, including one that the Commanders ultimately recovered in the second quarter.
The Eagles defense had its best performance of the season against the run on Sunday, conceding just 46 yards. According to Next Gen Stats, the Eagles were the first team this year to not miss a tackle attempt in a game. The unit seems to be on the mend, even in the absence of Jalen Carter, after giving up 281 yards on the ground to the Chicago Bears in Week 13.
A.J. Brown and Dallas Goedert could be in for big days against the beleaguered Washington secondary.
Defensive dumpster fire
The Commanders defense has been the source of the majority of the team’s dysfunction this season. The rush and coverage have been poor, underscored by injuries to key pass rushers Dorance Armstrong and Deatrich Wise and the regression of cornerbacks Mike Sainristil and the injured Marshon Lattimore.
Five games into Washington’s eight-game losing streak (in which it lost by 21 points in four straight games), Quinn demoted defensive coordinator Joe Whitt and took on his responsibilities. Since the change, the Commanders are still giving up 352.5 yards per game, the ninth-highest total in the league since mid-November. Their 23.8 points allowed per game are tied for 12th-most.
But the Commanders defense bailed out the offense on Sunday. McNichols fumbled the ball away with just under three minutes remaining in the fourth quarter, the Giants down by eight points. The Commanders stopped the Giants on fourth down to force a turnover on downs to seal the win.
Antonio Hamilton, the 32-year-old journeyman cornerback, was targeted frequently on that last drive and rose to the occasion. Starting in place of the injured Jonathan Jones for the first time this season, Hamilton broke up a third-down pass intended for Giants receiver Darius Slayton. He finished the day with a team-high two pass breakups.
Still, the Eagles should be able to exploit the Commanders’ secondary. Washington particularly struggled to cover Giants tight ends Theo Johnson and Daniel Bellinger, who combined for 107 yards on six receptions. Bellinger also drew a defensive pass interference call in the red zone against Commanders safety Jeremy Reaves.
In total, the Commanders have given up 905 receiving yards (the fourth-highest total in the NFL) and nine touchdowns to tight ends this season. Dallas Goedert, who is coming off his third multi-touchdown game of the year, could feast again on Saturday.
With the holidays right around the corner, Eagles star Saquon Barkley continues to give back to the community — while playing a little Madden NFL 26 in the process.
Dozens of children gathered around one of the pods at the Chickie’s & Pete’s on Packer Avenue, as the running back joined in on a video game session. In between plays, as he signed autographs, his mother, Tonya Johnson, watched on with a bright smile.
“When you think of Christmas, you think of a time of joy, the time of putting smiles on people’s faces, and unfortunately that’s not the truth for everybody,” Barkley said. “That’s the God’s honest truth. So, we just want to make sure that we’re using our platform to try to make a change. We’re super excited for the event tonight. For everyone that donated toys, hopefully, we’re able to put smiles on kids’ faces.”
Children watched from the first floor with their cameras out and bright smiles on their faces as part of the Michael Ann & Saquon Barkley Hope Foundation toy drive, which aims to help underserved families from the Greater Philadelphia and Delaware Valley areas before the holidays.
The foundation partnered with City Council President Kenyatta Johnson’s office to host an unwrapped toy drive at Chickie’s & Pete’s during this year’s Jingle Ball pre-party. Pre-party guests donated toys that ranged from LEGO sets and Fisher-Price items to remote control cars and Lite-Brites. The table was flooded with gifts by the end of the night.
Saquon Barkley takes photo with Emmanuel Nyanue, left, holding 3-month-old Salim Davis at Barkley’s toy drive at Chickie’s & Pete’s in South Philadelphia on Monday.
“[My mother] always had dreams of me [giving back],” Barkley said. “I have a lot of siblings. So, I don’t want to sit here and make it seem like I’m the special one. But my mom always had dreams of stuff like this happening. I feel like everything happens for a reason. [My parents] instilled in me so much confidence that I can accomplish anything I want to. So, I told them since I was a little kid, this is what I wanted to do and now we’re just living the dream.”
“We all have a special place in our heart for kids,” Barkley said. “So, any time you can have an event and just try to give back and put smiles on kids’ faces, it makes it 10 times better to be completely honest. That’s what we focus on. We want to try to make an impact on our community but directly focused on children, especially the underprivileged children, underserved children, and try to make a change in their lives.”
The Eagles won’t face Washington Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels on Saturday in Landover, Md.
Daniels is being shut down for the Commanders’ final three games of the season, coach Dan Quinn announced Monday. Daniels missed Washington’s game Sunday after reinjuring his left elbow last week during a 31-0 loss to Minnesota. It was the same elbow he injured on Nov. 2 vs. Seattle.
With Daniels out, the Commanders (4-10) will continue to start Marcus Mariota, who led Washington to a 29-21 victory over the Giants on Sunday. It was the Commanders’ first win since Oct. 5. Mariota went 10-for-19 for 211 yards and a touchdown. He also lost a fumble. The Commanders got one of their three touchdowns on a 63-yard punt return.
The Eagles and Commanders play twice in the final three weeks of the regular season.
Daniels’ second NFL season will end after he appeared in just seven games. The offensive rookie of the year in 2024 also missed time this season with knee and hamstring injuries.
Washington Commanders quarterback Marcus Mariota carries the ball during the win against the New York Giants on Sunday.
Injuries have been a big part of Washington’s decline in 2025 after the Commanders reached the NFC championship game last season. It’s easy to point to Daniels’ availability as a reason for the decline, but the Commanders were just 2-5 in games Daniels played.
The Commanders were a prime candidate for regression in 2024 for a few reasons. ESPN shared the snap-weighted average age of every NFL team on Monday, and the Commanders are the oldest team in the NFL overall and have the oldest defense in the league (28.9 years old). Age is one part of the poor performance this season, but the Commanders also were abnormally lucky in 2024. The luck also included a low number of injuries.
That has changed in a big way in 2025, and the age of the team may have caught up to the Commanders.
Daniels aside — the quarterback turns 25 this week — the Commanders’ season has been marred by injuries to older players by NFL standards.
Washington’s defense alone has three players age 28 or older on injured reserve: defensive end Dorance Armstrong (28), cornerback Marshon Lattimore (29), and defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. (31).
Additionally, 33-year-old defensive end Preston Smith has been limited to 10 games, 32-year-old corner Jonathan Jones has played in nine games, 28-year-old defensive end Jalyn Holmes has eight appearances, and 29-year-old safety Will Harris has played in six games.
Dan Quinn’s second season as head coach of the Commanders has been derailed by injuries.
Veterans Von Miller (36) and Bobby Wagner (35) have stayed healthy, but asking the two of them to anchor a defense at this stage of their careers is not ideal.
Only one team, Cincinnati, allows more yards per game than Washington (382.6).
Then there’s the offense. The latest major injury to the Commanders hit former Eagles tight end Zach Ertz, whose season ended last week after the 35-year-old suffered a torn ACL. But 30-year-old receiver Terry McLaurin, who held out in camp and was later signed to a three-year, $96 million extension, has been limited to seven games, and 29-year-old receiver Noah Brown has played in four. Running back Austin Ekeler, who is 30, was lost to a season-ending injury in Week 2.
A nightmare season is almost over for the Commanders, and they made the choice to not subject Daniels to any more meaningless football games.
Leave it to the lowly Las Vegas Raiders to help the Eagles snap a three-game losing streak in style. The Eagles’ 31-0 victory over the Raiders on Sunday afternoon at Lincoln Financial Field made history and had plenty of notable numbers come out of it.
Here’s a look:
At 2 hours, 31 minutes, Sunday’s game was the quickest Eagles game since at least 1999.
The Eagles posted their first shutout since Dec. 30, 2018. The 31-point margin was the Eagles’ largest margin of victory during a shutout since Dec. 16, 1990, a 31-0 victory over Green Bay.
The 75 yards the Eagles limited the Raiders to were the fewest allowed by the Eagles in the Super Bowl era, and fewest overall since they surrendered just 49 yards to the Chicago Cardinals on Dec. 4, 1955. It was also the fewest yards allowed by a team in the NFL since Cleveland allowed just 58 yards by Arizona on Nov. 5, 2023.
The 312-yard advantage in total yards was the Eagles’ largest margin since Sept. 7, 2008, when they outgained St. Louis by 356 yards.
Dallas Goedert scored twice, reaching nine touchdowns on the season. He has more touchdowns in 2025 than his previous three seasons combined. Goedert became the fifth player in Eagles history to reach 400 career receptions, joining Harold Carmichael (589), Zach Ertz (579), Pete Retzlaff (452), and Brian Westbrook (426).
Goedert is now one off the single-season record for touchdowns by an Eagles tight end. Retzlaff had 10 in 1965.
Brandon Graham, at 37 years, 255 days, became the oldest player in Eagles history to register a sack in a game. The record was previously held by Richard Dent, who registered a sack on Dec. 14, 1997, in Atlanta on the day after his 37th birthday. Graham also became the oldest NFL player to produce multiple sacks in the first half of a game since Bruce Smith on Nov. 28, 2002 (39 years, 163 days).
Zack Baun picked up his third interception of the season. He is the only NFL player with at least 100 tackles, three sacks, and three takeaways this year.
Jalen Hurts became the first quarterback in Eagles history to record multiple games with a 150-plus passer rating (154.9) and .800 completion percentage in the same season. He previously accomplished the feat in Week 7 at Minnesota (158.3 rating and .826 percentage).
The Eagles secured their fifth consecutive winning season with Nick Sirianni at the helm — the longest streak to start a career in franchise history. Sirianni is the 10th head coach since 1970 to start his career with five straight winning seasons, joining Bill Cowher, John Harbaugh, Mike Holmgren, Chuck Knox, Sean McVay, George Seifert, Mike Sherman, Mike Smith, and Mike Tomlin (according to Elias Sports Bureau).
This is the 21st winning season under Jeffrey Lurie’s ownership, making the Eagles one of only four teams with 21-plus winning seasons since Lurie took over — joining Green Bay (24), New England (24), and Pittsburgh (23).
(Statistics courtesy of the Eagles’ football communications staff.)
After three straight losses, the Eagles bounced back with a 31-0 blowout win over the Las Vegas Raiders at home. Now, the team faces a short week before a Saturday night matchup at Northwest Stadium, where they’ll take on the Washington Commanders in the first of two matchups over the next three weeks.
From the Birds’ chances this weekend to updates on year-end awards, here are some of the latest odds at two of the biggest sportsbooks …
Eagles vs. Commanders odds
The last time these teams met was in the NFC championship game in January. After the two teams split their regular-season matchup — the Eagles’ loss coming in a game in which Jalen Hurts went down early — the Birds dominated a Jayden Daniels-led Washington team on their way to a 55-23 win at Lincoln Financial Field.
While the Birds are coming off a win, after three straight losses, the Commanders earned their first win in eight games Sunday, a 29-21 victory over the New York Giants without Daniels under center after he reaggravated an elbow injury.
The Eagles initially opened as 5.5- and 6-point favorites at FanDuel and DraftKings, respectively, but that started to change when news came down that the Commanders would be shutting down Daniels for the season and sticking with Marcus Mariota as the starter. The line jumped by a point at FanDuel by Monday afternoon.
The 9-5 Eagles increased their division lead over the Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1), who despite two consecutive losses are still in the running for the NFC East — although that can end on Saturday night with an Eagles’ victory. Meanwhile, the New York Giants (2-12) and Washington Commanders (4-10) are out of contention.
The Eagles jumped ahead of the Packers in both sportsbooks’ Super Bowl odds.
NFC odds update
At both sportsbooks, the Eagles have improved their odds of winning the conference after the victory over the Raiders. They trail behind the Los Angeles Rams and the Seattle Seahawks for the third-best odds to win the NFC.
The defending champions remain outside of the top three favorites to win the Super Bowl. However, their odds have improved from last week, where they were ranked seventh at both sportsbooks. Now, the team has made their way back into the top five favorites to win the big game.
Don’t look now, but Josh Allen is making a late charge in the MVP race.
MVP odds
Jalen Hurts’ MVP odds have fallen drastically after the last stretch of games with the Eagles, and he’s essentially out of the running. Meanwhile, Matthew Stafford and Drake Maye continue to battle for the top spot with Josh Allen rapidly closing in behind them.
It feels good to play a week of football where the Eagles aren’t the number one topic of the national conversation, doesn’t it?
But some in the national media still had things to say about the Birds after they snapped a three-game losing streak with a 31-0 win over the Las Vegas Raiders …
Injuries catching up with rest of NFC
The Eagles aren’t out of the woods offensively, even after delivering against a weak Raiders team. But with the Cowboys’ loss to the Vikings, the Eagles are just one win or Cowboys loss away from clinching a playoff berth — and becoming the first team to repeat as NFC East champs in 20 years.
But what Week 15 showcased for former Eagle Chris Long is that the NFL is wide-open this season. The Eagles still have work to do, but they’re not the only contender with issues.
“If you’re the Eagles, you kind of feel like, if we can get our [expletive] together, the Rams … might have lost Davante Adams for a little bit … Green Bay’s lost Micah [Parsons], Christian Watson, Tucker Kraft, these are tough injuries to overcome for these other teams,” Long said.
Were the Eagles the biggest winners in Week 15? Damien Woody said on ESPN’s Get Up that he thinks so.
“Obviously, you win the game against the lowly Las Vegas Raiders, but the Dallas Cowboys lost, and you look at some of the other losses in the conference,” Woody said. “If you’re Philadelphia, you come out of this week thinking, if we get our offense back on track and these other teams lose, we’re still in a good spot right now.”
The Birds are one game back of the Bears for second in the NFC and two games back of the Rams, with the easiest remaining schedule of the three. It’s extremely unlikely that the Birds could secure the bye at this point, but second in the NFC is still very much in play.
Jalen Hurts was incredibly efficient against the Raiders, throwing as many touchdowns (3) as incompletions.
Hurts ‘had a statement to make’
After a career-worst performance against the Chargers, Jalen Hurts needed a game like Sunday’s against Las Vegas. Hurts went 12-for-15 for 175 yards and three touchdowns, and was out of the game by the fourth quarter.
Emmanuel Acho said on Speakeasy that he wasn’t ready to say Hurts was fully back, given the opponent, but was encouraged that the Eagles took care of business instead of falling into the trap.
“The Eagles played the second-fastest game in NFL history against the Raiders,” Acho said. “Here’s why that matters, you got in, you got out, you got on with your life. You did what you needed to do and you did it efficiently.”
Former Eagle LeSean McCoy was also impressed with Hurts’ performance.
“I don’t want to say he’s silenced all doubt because it is this Vegas team, but it’s the way he looked,” McCoy said. “He looked really, really good, he looked really confident, like he had a statement to make.”
Cooper DeJean committed two penalties on the same play in the first quarter Sunday. First, he held Tyler Lockett, then he pushed him, which drew an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. However, that was not the most important thing that happened on the play.
In the backfield, 37-year-old unretired defensive end Brandon Graham, playing his second career game at defensive tackle due to depth issues, sacked Raiders quarterback Kenny Pickett. It was about 25 degrees, it felt about 25-below, and the turf was as cold and as hard as Graham’s heart when it comes to quarterbacks.
The penalties dulled the impact of the sack, but that sack changed the game.
To that point, Pickett was 4-for-5 for 16 yards, plus an 8-yard scramble. The Raiders had gained 20 yards.
They gained just 55 more yards all game as the Eagles secured their first shutout since Dec. 30, 2018. Graham was the only current Eagles defender to play in that game; the next afternoon, Pickett, a sophomore at Pitt, lost to Stanford in the Sun Bowl.
After the Graham sack, Pickett looked like he wished he was back in El Paso. Pickett went 11-for-20 for 48 yards, with an interception, minus-1 rushing yard, and three more sacks. Every drop back, he’d glance at the coverage and then look for Graham & Co.
“It was big, man,” Graham said. “Whenever we can hit the quarterback like that … you just abort the plan that you had.”
Moro Ojomo sacked Pickett on the very next play.
Graham later collected another sack on a day when he became the oldest Eagle in history to record a sack. They were his first and second since he returned to the field six games ago, when the Birds found themselves shorthanded at end. Now, in the absence of Jalen Carter, Graham, at 265 pounds, is playing tackle, to great effect.
He was good at the Chargers last week, but he was great Sunday. It was his first game with at least two sacks since Jan. 1, 2023, against the Saints, which was Game 16 of the 2022 season.
DeJean was grateful that, thanks to Graham laying wood while he was fouling Lockett, nothing much came of his penalty.
“It had this, like, carryover effect,” DeJean said. “It gets into the mind of a quarterback, and we were just able to come after him.”
Graham didn’t win every play. In fact, not only did Graham not see Zack Baun intercept Pickett’s pass early in the third quarter, he was rendered completely irrelevant.
“Oh, my goodness,” Graham said after the game, shaking his head and smiling. “Oh, my goodness.”
Graham had left the middle for one play and lined up on the left edge. There, he told tight end Michael Mayer, “You better not chip me!”
Mayer chipped him as right tackle DJ Glaze blocked him.
Graham wound up on his back.
He was still there when Mayer, who’d raced across the field, tackled Baun.
“I didn’t think he was going to chip me,” Graham said with a shrug. “He got me. But trust me, it looked worse than it felt.”
Shutout football with two sacks at the age of 37 can be a powerful anesthetic.
Injury earthquakes
Micah Parsons is the Packers’ best defensive player. He entered Sunday’s game with 12½ sacks and a league-high 60 QB pressures, a brilliant return on the Packers’ investment. He cost the Pack two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark in a blockbuster trade with Dallas, then signed a four-year, $188 million contract extension.
Then, Sunday. Parsons left the game with a knee injury in the third quarter just before the Broncos took the lead for good in their 34-26 win. Reports indicate that he has a torn ACL.
The Packers’ Micah Parsons reacts after suffering a knee injury Sunday against the Denver Broncos.
The loss dropped the Packers to 9-4-1, a half-game in the NFC North standings behind the 10-4 Bears — the team they visit Saturday night — but Green Bay leads the 9-5 Eagles, in case that matters. Parsons’ absence might matter more than anything. It would be like the Browns losing Myles Garrett, or maybe even like the Chiefs losing Patrick Mahomes.
On that point …
Mahomes left the Chiefs’ loss Sunday with a torn ACL. The Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention.
So, suddenly, the best player on an elite NFC team is gone, and, while the return from an ACL injury can be as short at eight months, Parsons, a dynamic athlete who relies on speed, probably won’t be the same until 2027.
Also, suddenly, the best player in the NFL over the last eight seasons on the best team in the NFL over the last eight seasons is gone, and, as perhaps the most effective mobile quarterback in history, Mahomes probably won’t be the same until 2027, either. Neither will the Chiefs.
Finally, star wideout Davante Adams left the Rams’ comeback win against the visiting Lions when he aggravated a hamstring injury. Adams has 14 touchdown receptions, which leads the league by six. He’s seventh on the all-time TD catches list with 117, and he’s the active leader by 11. The Rams sit atop the NFC at 11-3, which might be enough to secure the No. 1 seed, but the impact of a diminished Adams could resonate in the playoffs.
Philip Rivers gave the Colts a chance to win in Seattle but came up just short at age 44.
Extra points
The Cowboys’ home loss to the Vikings left them at 6-7-1 and essentially ended their hopes for a playoff berth. The Cowboys would have to win the NFC East, and to do that they’d have to go 3-0 and have the Eagles go 0-3. … Josh Allen led the Bills to five touchdowns and a third big comeback win, this time at New England, which kept the Patriots from clinching the AFC East. … Unretired grandfather Philip Rivers, signed by Indianapolis to replace injured Daniel Jones, threw a touchdown pass and an interception but the Colts (8-6) lost their fourth in a row when Seahawks kicker Jason Myers kicked his franchise-record sixth field goal, a 56-yarder in the final minute. Seattle, with quarterback Sam Darnold, is 11-3. … Trevor Lawrence led the Jaguars (10-4) to a fifth straight win with a career-high five TD passes, ran for another, and has his team on top of the AFC South.
The Eagles could break a 20-season streak on Saturday.
Their magic number to clinch the NFC East reached one late Sunday night after the Eagles blew out the Las Vegas Raiders, 31-0, earlier in the day, and the Dallas Cowboys lost a home game, 34-26, to the Minnesota Vikings in prime time.
The Eagles, at 9-5, have a 2½-game lead over the 6-7-1 Cowboys.
Any Eagles win or Cowboys loss over the final three weeks of the season would clinch the NFC East for the Eagles and make them the first repeat champions in the division since the 2001-04 Eagles.
The Eagles won the division in 2022 before Dallas won in 2023. The Eagles clinched their 2024 division title with a 41-7 home victory over the Cowboys last December. The 2025 title would give them three in four years.
The Cowboys made things interesting in the division after they stormed back from a 21-0 deficit to beat the Eagles in Week 12. They followed that with a Thanksgiving Day victory over Kansas City. But Dallas’ defense, which has continuously let down the league’s best offense by yards per game, couldn’t hold up in losses to Detroit and Minnesota, and the Eagles inched closer to the finish line.
The Eagles play their first of two games in three weeks vs. Washington (4-10) on Saturday at 5 p.m. in Landover, Md. The Eagles opened as 5½-point favorites at most sportsbooks.
The Commanders started Marcus Mariota at quarterback Sunday and beat the lowly Giants, 29-21. It was Washington’s first win since Oct. 5. Three of Washington’s four wins are against the Giants and Raiders. The Commanders did, however, beat the Chargers in that Oct. 5 game. Washington’s No. 1 quarterback, Jayden Daniels (elbow), was shut down for the remainder of the season Monday.
The Eagles remain two games behind the top-seeded Rams, who are tied with the Seahawks in the NFC West at 11-3, and a game behind second-seeded Chicago in the NFC playoff race.
At this stage, the No. 1 seed seems like a stretch, but it’s unlikely the Eagles finish below the third seed.
Injuries around the league could shake up playoff races
Los Angeles Rams wide receiver Davante Adams left his team’s win over the Detroit Lions after aggravating a hamstring injury.
Micah Parsons is the Packers’ best defensive player. He entered Sunday’s game with 12½ sacks and a league-high 60 QB pressures, a brilliant return on the Packers’ investment. He cost the Pack two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark in a blockbuster trade with Dallas, then signed a four-year, $188 million contract extension.
Then, Sunday. Parsons left the game with a knee injury in the third quarter just before the Broncos took the lead for good in their 34-26 win. Reports indicate that he has a torn ACL.
The loss dropped the Packers to 9-4-1, a half-game in the NFC North standings behind the 10-4 Bears — the team they visit Saturday night — but Green Bay leads the 9-5 Eagles, in case that matters. Parsons’ absence might matter more than anything. It would be like the Browns losing Myles Garrett, or maybe even like the Chiefs losing Patrick Mahomes.
On that point …
Mahomes left the Chiefs’ loss Sunday with a torn ACL. The Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention.
So, suddenly, the best player on an elite NFC team is gone, and, while the return from an ACL injury can be as short at eight months, Parsons, a dynamic athlete who relies on speed, probably won’t be the same until 2027.
Also, suddenly, the best player in the NFL over the last eight seasons on the best team in the NFL over the last eight seasons is gone, and, as perhaps the most effective mobile quarterback in history, Mahomes probably won’t be the same until 2027, either. Neither will the Chiefs.
Finally, star wideout Davante Adams left the Rams’ comeback win against the visiting Lions when he aggravated a hamstring injury. Adams has 14 touchdown receptions, which leads the league by six. He’s seventh on the all-time TD catches list with 117, and he’s the active leader by 11. The Rams sit atop the NFC at 11-3, which might be enough to secure the No. 1 seed, but the impact of a diminished Adams could resonate in the playoffs.
In Mariota, Eagles will again face a former backup QB
Quarterback Marcus Mariota will start for the Commanders on Sunday.
For a second straight week, the Eagles are set to face off against one of their former backups. This time, it will be Marcus Mariota at the helm of the Commanders’ offense on Saturday.
Jayden Daniels, the NFL’s 2024 offensive rookie of the year, has missed seven games this year due to a litany of injuries, including a knee sprain, a hamstring strain, and now an elbow issue. He initially dislocated his elbow injury in their Week 9 loss to the Seattle Seahawks, and while he returned to action a month later, he aggravated the injury in his first game back against the Minnesota Vikings.
After the second-year quarterback missed the Week 15 win over the New York Giants, Commanders head coach Dan Quinn announced on Monday afternoon that he is being shut down for the rest of the season.
But the injuries to Daniels aren’t the only reason behind Washington’s decline from an offensive standpoint in 2025. The Commanders lack playmakers, and they’re now down two more with former Eagles tight end Zach Ertz tearing his ACL two weeks ago and wide receiver Noah Brown exiting Sunday’s game with a rib injury. Laremy Tunsil, the team’s standout left tackle, also left the Giants game with a shoulder injury.
The Eagles are well-acquainted with Mariota. Much like Daniels, the 32-year-old quarterback has the ability to extend plays with his legs, a quality that has given the Eagles defense fits at times this season.
Mariota was particularly effective on deep passes on Sunday. In fact, he had almost all of his production come on downfield passes, as he went 7-for-11 for 181 yards and a touchdown on throws greater than 10 air yards, according to Next Gen Stats.
Still, the Commanders’ offense practically tried to lose to the worst team in the NFC East. At one point, they had a 15-point lead, then fumbled the ball away twice in the fourth quarter (once from Mariota and another by running back Jeremy McNichols) to give the Giants a shot at a comeback. Saturday’s game shouldn’t be too difficult a test for Vic Fangio’s defense.
Commanders to sit Jayden Daniels for rest of season
Sources: The #Commanders have decided to shut down QB Jayden Daniels for the final 3 games, turning his focus to supporting Marcus Mariota.
Daniels was re-evaluated today & not yet cleared. With him expected to be medically ruled out vs. the #Eagles, then facing a short week vs.… pic.twitter.com/hTu3Sv5wpw
How age, injuries, and a little less luck hurt the Commanders
The Commanders are just 2-5 in games Jayden Daniels played in this season.
They say age is only a number. But for the Washington Commanders, it’s a number that helps explain how a trip to the NFC championship game last year can be followed up by a 4-10 record through 14 games.
The easiest thing to point to is that young quarterback Jayden Daniels has only been available for seven games. But the Commanders are just 2-5 in the games Daniels has played.
Back to the age issue. The Commanders were a prime candidate for regression — this writer had them missing the playoffs in 2025 — in part because of their age, but also because they were abnormally lucky in 2024. The luck also included a low number of injuries. But the age may have caught up in 2025.
Daniels aside — the quarterback turns 25 this week — the Commanders’ season has been marred by injuries to “older” players.
As ESPN’s Bill Barnwell pointed out Monday, Washington has the league’s oldest team weighted by snaps. It has the league’s oldest defense at 28.9 years old and the fourth-oldest offense at 28.0 years old. That defense alone currently has three players aged 28 or older on injured reserve: defensive end Dorance Armstrong (28), cornerback Marshon Lattimore (29), and defensive end Deatrich Wise Jr. (31).
Additionally, 33-year-old defensive end Preston Smith has been limited to 10 games, 32-year-old corner Jonathan Jones has played in nine games, 28-year-old defensive end Jalyn Holmes has eight appearances, and 29-year-old safety Will Harris has played in six games.
Veterans Von Miller (36) and Bobby Wagner (35) have stayed healthy, but that’s a lot of stress asking the two of them to anchor a defense at this stage.
Only one team allows more yards per game than Washington (382.6).
Then there’s the offense. The latest major injury to the Commanders hit former Eagles tight end Zach Ertz, whose season ended last week after suffering a torn ACL. But 30-year-old receiver Terry McLaurin, who held out in camp and was later signed to a three-year, $96 million extension, has been limited to seven games, and 29-year-old receiver Noah Brown has played in four.
A nightmare season is almost over for the Commanders, and it remains to be seen if they will let Daniels take the field again to play in meaningless football games.
Micah Parsons out for the rest of season with torn ACL
Micah Parsons will miss the rest of the season with a torn ACL.
Micah Parsons suffered a torn ACL during the Green Bay Packers’ loss to the Denver Broncos Sunday and will miss the rest of the season, according to multiple reports. Parsons confirmed the injury on social media.
“I may be sidelined, but I am not defeated,” Parsons wrote, calling the injury his “greatest test.”
The injury happened near the end of the third quarter. Parsons was chasing Broncos quarterback Bo Nix when he suddenly stopped running and grabbed his knee.
“It’s obviously tough,” Packers coach Matt LaFleur told reporters following the game. “We all know what type of player he is and the impact he’s had on our football team. To lose somebody like that, it’s tough. … We’ve got to find a way. Guys have to rally around one another.”
Saquon Barkley and the Eagles will likely end the season with the NFC’s No. 3 seed.
While it remains mathematically possible for the Eagles (9-5) to still end the season as the NFC’s No. 1 playoff seed, it remans a very, very improbable outcome for the season.
But what about the No. 2 seed? That’s how the Eagles entered the playoffs last season, and their postseason run ended with a Super Bowl victory.
The Eagles will enter Week 16 in the NFC’s No. 3 spot, which means if the season were over they’d be hosting the San Francisco 49ers (10-4) at the Linc in a wild card game.
The current No. 2 seed is the Chicago Bears (10-4), who are essentially two games up on the Eagles because of the Birds’ loss to Chicago last month on Black Friday. So there are two scenarios where the Eagles can overtake the Bears:
Eagles end the season 12-5 (winning their final three games), Bears end the season 11-6 (losing two of their final three).
Eagles end the season 11-6 (winning two of their final three games), Bears end the season 10-7 (losing their final three).
The Bears’ final three games are against the Green Bay Packers (9-4-1), 49ers, and Detroit Lions (8-6). So losses to the Packers and/or Lions could impact the standings in the NFC North, where the Bears hold a slim half-game lead over the Packers.
NFC North standings
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If the Packers end up winning the NFC North, the Eagles would need to end the season a half-game up to secure the No. 2 seed, thanks to Green Bay’s tie against the Dallas Cowboys earlier this season.
In the unlikely event the Lions overtake both and win the division (the New York Times gives them a 5% chance), the Eagles hold the tiebreaker thanks to their Week 11 win at the Linc.
The good news is the only way the Eagles would drop to the No. 4 seed is if they lost their final three games and either the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7) or the Carolina Panthers (7-7) won out, since they face each other twice in the final three weeks of the season.
There is a highly improbably scenario where the Eagles and Panthers both end the season 10-7, have the same conference record, and Carolina could win a tiebreaker with a better record among common foes (if they sweep the Buccaneers). In that highly unlikely case, the Panthers would move up to the No. 3 slot and the Birds would drop down to No. 4.
Micah Parsons is believed to have torn his ACL and could miss the rest of the season.
Micah Parsons is the Packers’ best defensive player. He entered Sunday’s game with 12½ sacks and a league-high 60 QB pressures, a brilliant return on the Packers’ investment. He cost the Pack two first-round picks and defensive tackle Kenny Clark in a blockbuster trade with Dallas, then signed a four-year, $188 million contract extension.
Then, Sunday. Parsons left the game with a knee injury in the third quarter just before the Broncos took the lead for good in their 34-26 win. Reports indicate that he has a torn ACL.
The loss dropped the Packers to 9-4-1, a half-game in the NFC North standings behind the 10-4 Bears — the team they visit Saturday night — but Green Bay leads the 9-5 Eagles, in case that matters. Parsons’ absence might matter more than anything. It would be like the Browns losing Myles Garrett, or maybe even like the Chiefs losing Patrick Mahomes.
On that point …
Mahomes left the Chiefs’ loss Sunday with a torn ACL. The Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention.
So, suddenly, the best player on an elite NFC team is gone, and, while the return from an ACL injury can be as short at eight months, Parsons, a dynamic athlete who relies on speed, probably won’t be the same until 2027.
Also, suddenly, the best player in the NFL over the last eight seasons on the best team in the NFL over the last eight seasons is gone, and, as perhaps the most effective mobile quarterback in history, Mahomes probably won’t be the same until 2027, either. Neither will the Chiefs.
Finally, star wideout Davante Adams left the Rams’ comeback win against the visiting Lions when he aggravated a hamstring injury. Adams has 14 touchdown receptions, which leads the league by six. He’s seventh on the all-time TD catches list with 117, and he’s the active leader by 11. The Rams sit atop the NFC at 11-3, which might be enough to secure the No. 1 seed, but the impact of a diminished Adams could resonate in the playoffs.
#Jets coach Aaron Glenn has fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilks. Glenn made the announcement at his news conference, a day after another frustrating performance. pic.twitter.com/j6N4qYuZ4S
Playoff picture taking shape means Jalen Carter can continue to rest
Jalen Carter has been out since undergoing a procedure on both his shoulders after the Eagles’ loss to Chicago.
What’s in it for the Eagles to rush Jalen Carter back to the field? Not much. Their magic number dropped to one Sunday with their 31-0 victory over the Raiders being coupled with a Cowboys loss.
The Eagles are in the driver’s seat, and, according to ESPN analytics, are at 99% to become NFC East champions for the second consecutive season — a win that would break a 20-season streak of no repeat champions.
Further, their likely playoff seeding is taking shape. The Eagles remain two games back of the Rams and Seahawks (who are vying for the No. 1 seed at 11-3) and a game behind second-seeded Chicago (10-4). The Eagles are sitting comfortably in the third seed in the NFC, two games ahead of the NFC South-leading Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
The Eagles, according to ESPN analytics, are at 83% to enter the playoffs as the third seed. It’s possible their seeding could be decided by the end of Week 17, which would make their Week 18 home game vs. Washington a meaningless game played by backups.
Surely, the Eagles won’t mind. All of this clarity just means more rest for Jalen Carter’s ailing shoulders. The star defensive tackle had a procedure on both of his shoulders after the Eagles’ loss to Chicago.
The Eagles did not put Carter on injured reserve, leaving open the possibility that he could return within four games. Sunday was Carter’s second consecutive absence, and the Eagles really won’t have much incentive to rush him back to the field. The Eagles are getting fine production from their interior defensive linemen after moving Brandon Graham inside and running a rotation of Jordan Davis, Moro Ojomo, Byron Young, and Graham (who had two sacks Sunday).
Carter should be able to work his shoulders back to as close to full strength as possible as the Eagles prepare for their playoff run.
Lane Johnson, meanwhile, who missed his fourth consecutive game with a Lisfranc injury in his foot, could return to the field as soon as Saturday, according to a report from the NFL Network.
Eagles numbers: Dallas Goedert joins an exclusive Birds club
Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert laughs on the sidelines Sunday.
Leave it to the lowly Las Vegas Raiders to help the Eagles snap a three-game losing streak in style. The Eagles’ 31-0 victory over the Raiders on Sunday afternoon at Lincoln Financial Field made history and had plenty of notable numbers come out of it.
Here’s a look:
At 2 hours, 31 minutes, Sunday’s game was the quickest Eagles game since at least 1999.
The Eagles posted their first shutout since Dec. 30, 2018. The 31-point margin was the Eagles’ largest margin of victory during a shutout since Dec. 16, 1990, a 31-0 victory over Green Bay.
The 75 yards the Eagles limited the Raiders to were the fewest allowed by the Eagles in the Super Bowl era, and fewest overall since they surrendered just 49 yards to the Chicago Cardinals in Dec. 4, 1955. It was also the fewest yards allowed by a team in the NFL since Cleveland allowed just 58 yards by Arizona on Nov. 5, 2023.
The 312-yard advantage in total yards was the Eagles’ largest margin since Sept. 7, 2008, when they out-gained St. Louis by 356 yards.
Dallas Goedert scored twice, reaching nine touchdowns on the season. He has more touchdowns in 2025 than his previous three seasons combined. Goedert became the fifth player in Eagles history to reach 400 career receptions, joining Harold Carmichael (589), Zach Ertz (579), Pete Retzlaff (452) and Brian Westbrook (426).
Goedert is now one off the single-season record for touchdowns by an Eagles tight end. Retzlaff had 10 in 1965.
Brandon Graham, at 37 years, 255 days, became the oldest player in Eagles history to register a sack in a game. The record was previously held by Richard Dent, who registered a sack on Dec. 14, 1997 in Atlanta on the day after his 31st birthday. Graham also became the oldest NFL player to produce multiple sacks in the first half of a game since Bruce Smith on Nov. 28, 2002 (39 years, 163 days).
Zack Baun picked up his third interception of the season. He is the only NFL player with at least 100 tackles, three sacks, and three takeaways this year.
Jalen Hurts became the first quarterback in Eagles history to record multiple games with a 150-plus passer rating (154.9) and 80% completion percentage in the same season. He previously accomplished the feat in Week 7 at Minnesota (158.3 rating and 82.6% percentage).
The Eagles secured their fifth consecutive winning season with Nick Sirianni at the helm — the longest streak to start a career in franchise history. Sirianni is the 10th head coach since 1970 to start their career with five straight winning seasons, joining Bill Cowher, John Harbaugh, Mike Holmgren, Chuck Knox, Sean McVay, George Seifert, Mike Sherman, Mike Smith, and Mike Tomlin (according to Elias).
This is the 21st winning season under Jeffrey Lurie’s ownership, making the Eagles one of only four teams with 21-plus winning seasons since Lurie took over — joining Green Bay (24), New England (24) and Pittsburgh (23).
(Stats courtesy of Philadelphia Eagles’ public relations.)
Jalen Hurts and a return to the Eagles’ winning formula
Jalen Hurts’ ability to run the football kept the Raiders defense on their heels throughout the 31-0 blowout in Week 15.
When Jalen Hurts and the first-unit offense took their well-earned rest early in the fourth quarter of an eventual 31-0 blowout over the Las Vegas Raiders, the Eagles had a run-pass ratio of 32 to 17.
There were myriad reasons for a ground-heavy attack on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field: from wintry weather conditions and schematic improvements to situational play-calling with a lead and rebuilding Hurts after a disastrous performance vs. the Chargers.
But mostly the Eagles ran the ball because it’s what they need to establish if they want to repeat as Super Bowl champions. Coach Nick Sirianni would never cop to looking that far ahead, nor should he, but the hapless Raiders offered the opportunity to give his directionless offense a compass for the future.
The run game wasn’t exactly efficient or close to explosive, especially on traditional handoffs to running back Saquon Barkley. The 2025 offense is unlikely to become the 2024 version of itself.
But a formula closer to that of a year ago — and, really, for most of the five years of the Hurts-Sirianni partnership — is the Eagles’ best hope. That meant, obviously, more carries for Barkley and backup Tank Bigsby, but also more diversity in the calls, more runs from under center, more up-tempo, and perhaps most importantly, more of Hurts on designed keeps.
“These are things that have been staples in our offense for a long time, and we’re just continuing to use things that we think fit for that week,” Sirianni said. “I haven’t watched anything on Washington, but next week we could come out and it could be a completely different game.
“We have core philosophies and visions of our identity, but we’ll see.”
NFL Playoff picture: Eagles will clinch NFC East with a win
Eagles fans have a reason to be happy.
Thanks, Minnesota!
With the Vikings defeating the Cowboys 34-26 on Sunday Night Football, the Eagles will clinch the NFC East and a playoff berth with a win Saturday against the Washington Commanders.
The Birds will also clinch the NFC East with just one more Cowboys loss.
NFC East standings
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That would make the Eagles the first repeat champions in the division since the 2004 Eagles.
The Eagles won the division in 2022 before Dallas won in 2023. The Eagles clinched their 2024 division title after a 41-7 home victory over the Cowboys last December. The 2025 title would give them three in four years.
The only way for the Cowboys to win the division at this point would be for the Eagles to lose out while Dallas wins their final three games — at home against the Chargers and on the road against the Commanders and New York Giants (2-12).
Considering the Birds will likely face the Marcus Mariota-led Commanders twice in the final three weeks, oddsmakers see that as impossibly unlikely. As in less than a 1% chance, according to the New York Times.
Can the Eagles still end up with the NFC’s No. 1 seed?
You’re saying there’s still a chance?
Despite Sunday’s win, the Eagles still face an all-but-impossible chance to end the season in the NFC’s No. 1 playoff spot.
NFC playoff picture
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What would have to happen? For starters, the Birds need to win their final three games ― against the Buffalo Bills (10-4) and twice against the Commanders ― to even have a shot at the top playoff seed.
Now comes the tricky part. In all likelihood, the Eagles would need four of the NFC’s top teams to lose two of their final three games, according to Wharton professor and Eagles analytics nerd Deniz Selman — the Los Angeles Rams (11-3), Seattle Seahawks (11-3), San Francisco 49ers (10-4), and Bears.
All four teams won Sunday, so the Eagles already-slim odds got worst, despite the Birds’ win.
There are some even less-likely scenarios where the Eagles could win on tiebreakers, but it all points to the road to a Super Bowl repeat not going through the Linc.
Odds are the Eagles will win the NFC East and enter the playoffs at the NFC’s No. 3 seed, but the Birds could also end up as the No. 2 seed if things fall their way. Having tiebreakers against most of the top NFC teams helps, though not with the Packers because of that pesky tie.
The Birds entered the playoffs as the No. 2 seed last year, and that seemed to work out well.
Merrill Reese called out Hurts critics at WIP and elsewhere
Eagles radio announcers Mike Quick (left) and Merrill Reese.
While there were no pundits that directly called for Jalen Hurts to be benched, a lot of talking heads on 94.1 WIP and elsewhere got close following the Eagles’ three-game losing streak.
“I do think he’s earned the right to start Sunday,” WIP host Joe Giglio said of Hurts leading up to the game. “But that’s the end of where I go with earned, deserve, and all those kind of words. … I would pull the plug if he keeps playing the way he has the last month.”
Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes also echoed those remarks, writing the Eagles would’ve been right to bench Hurts if he struggled against the Raiders Sunday, which thankfully he didn’t.
“It might sound heretical to say of the Super Bowl MVP, but if Hurts continues to struggle, he damn well should be benched,” Hayes wrote prior to Sunday’s win. “He is not sacred.”
That brings us to Sunday, where we saw a return to the Hurts who protects the ball and runs effectively, as Jeff McLane put it. That led beloved Eagles announcer Merrill Reese, who obviously heard the chatter from his WIP colleague and elsewhere, to take a shot at all the critics during the game.
“You don’t hear any cries for them to bench him, do you?” Reese asked during the broadcast after Hurts converted a long first down with his legs.
“Not from anyone with good sense,” a laughing Mike Quick responded.
7. Hurts converts a 3rd and 12 with his legs!
Merrill: You don't hear any cries for them to bench him, do you?
The Eagles will take on the Washington Commanders in Week 16 in a Saturday night matchup at Northwest Stadium in Landover, Md. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m, and the Eagles opened as 5½-point favorites at most sportsbooks.
It’s a rematch of last-year’s NFC Championship game, but a lot has happened between then and now.
The Commanders have already been eliminated from the playoffs, and under center will possibly be another former Eagles backup quarterback – Marcus Mariota, who is filling in for an injured Jayden Daniels (elbow).
Washington just ended a eight-game losing streak, defeating the lowly New York Giants 29-21. It was Washington’s first win since Oct. 5.
Three of Washington’s four wins are against the Giants and Raiders. The Commanders did, however, beat the Los Angeles Chargers back in October.
The Eagles will also face the Commanders in two weeks at the Linc in their final game of the season, which has yet to be scheduled. But unless it has some impact on the playoffs or the Eagles are in the hunt for the No. 1 seed, expect the Birds’ Week 18 game to take place at 1 p.m. on Jan. 4.
