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.
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 Los Angeles 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.”
It’s no coincidence that the Eagles’ preceding three-game slide came with Hurts dropping to throw more than he ever has, with a 70-30 ratio away from the run. That’s additional pressure for any quarterback, but Hurts has repeatedly shown that he’s most effective when he doesn’t have to shoulder the offense in the drop-back game.
Can he do it at times? Absolutely. But analytics favor more balanced play-calling for the Eagles. That’s not an endorsement for the “just run it” crowd. Modern NFL offenses have to be adaptable. There have to be pre-snap checks at the line and options at the snap to counter defenses.
But the Eagles didn’t operate that way on Sunday, even though the Raiders continued their tendencies of staying in base personnel and stacking the box. Las Vegas coach Pete Carroll often dared Sirianni and offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo to pass. And they did at times.
Hurts had key first-half throws against single coverage on the outside, one resulting in a 44-yard pass to receiver DeVonta Smith and two others that attracted defensive pass interference penalties against receivers A.J. Brown and Darius Cooper.
But most of the first 45 minutes featured Barkley, Bigsby — and occasionally Hurts — running, no matter what.
“I think the most important thing was we did a better job on earlier downs of being more consistent in the run game,” Barkley said. “And got to get credit to [Patullo] and those guys for sticking with it … even though we [had] some negative runs.”
Jalen Hurts and running back Saquon Barkley embrace before the Eagles game against the Las Vegas Raiders at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday.
The Eagles also had the luxury of knowing their defense would stifle one of worst offenses in the league. The Raiders crossed the 50 only once in the first half and averaged just 2 yards per play.
Barkley wasn’t much better on the ground with 2.3 yards per carry on 15 first-half rushes. Bigsby was a little better at 4.7 on three carries. But there were positive moments from under center and even in the shotgun, where they’ve struggled the most.
Hurts was more productive with four runs for 25 yards. There was a draw that converted a third down, but three zone-read keeps — while not picking up significant yards — were important because they seemingly created space in the second half.
“I think he did a really good job,” Barkley said. “Some of them [were] read, some of them [were] a feel, but it helps open stuff up.”
In the second half, Barkley had seven carries for 44 yards, even though the trailing Raiders knew the Eagles were already in salt-the-game-away mode. They added wrinkles, like having left guard Landon Dickerson pull from the back side on a Barkley 17-yard scamper.
They even used three-tight end sets from under center and ran counter and duo runs with success. And going no-huddle helped keep the Raiders defense from switching personnel and getting set. The pains of the first half paid off in the second.
“With the changes that we made last week, I think we’re just more comfortable in it,” Eagles tackle Jordan Mailata said about the Eagles’ run blocking schemes. “We were able to execute, able to get to fundamentals, the basics that we do well, especially with that on-the-ball [tempo] stuff.”
Hurts, meanwhile, ran seven times total for 39 yards. One was a scramble. Another was on a successful Tush Push. But five carries on designed runs were a season high and significantly higher than his average of 1.6 per game in the first 13 games.
“Just think the flow of how it went every week is the same in terms of going out there and trying to execute what’s called,” Hurts said. “That’s just how the cookie crumbled today.”
He ran with obvious conviction, though. Much has been made of Hurts’ reluctance to take off as much this season. His last two injuries that led to missed games came on designed runs in December. It briefly seemed like there might be a third when his leg bent awkwardly on a late third-quarter keep.
Jalen Hurts ran the football with conviction in Sunday’s win over the Raiders.
But Hurts stayed in when the Eagles switched sides to open the fourth quarter. And on the next play, he tossed a 27-yard touchdown pass to Brown. All told, Hurts completed 12 of 15 passes for 175 yards and three touchdowns. He was sacked only once.
And most significantly, he didn’t turn the ball over after his five giveaways at Los Angeles. Last week was an uncharacteristically sloppy outing for Hurts. But games in which he’s asked to throw more have produced sloppy games at times.
The Hurts who manages the offense, the one who protects the ball, and the one who runs with authority is the one who has shown he’s championship-caliber.
“Aw, man, that was amazing, wasn’t it?” Mailata said about Hurts running more. “I thought it was great. It was a great reminder that we have a dual-threat quarterback back there that can pull the ball and run the ball. And if you don’t respect that, we took advantage of that today.
“Speedy Gonzalez out there.”
The Eagles haven’t solved all their issues on offense. There will come a time when Hurts and the drop-back passing game will need to deliver. There will be a defense that, for instance, takes away run-pass option plays, or an opposing offense that can actually score.
It’s difficult to place much weight in beating one of the lesser teams in the NFL, and the subdued responses from several offensive players suggested they knew as much. Brown and Smith weren’t even in the locker room to answer questions from reporters.
Hurts’ terse answers were probably in response to outside criticism he’s recently faced. He showed more emotion than usual after his touchdown toss to Brown.
“It was just a natural reaction,” he said afterward.
The quarterback showed his resiliency once again. He benefited from a run-heavy offense, a dominant defense, and an inferior opponent. But that’s not to diminish his performance.
Hurts earned his sentiment and more than that. The same could be said for the entire offense.
“We just haven’t been playing good ball, just call it how it is,” Mailata said. “We just haven’t been, so you’ve got to celebrate the moments that we do, that we do execute, that we do, third-down touchdowns, especially big ones like that. Like, we’ve got to celebrate that.
“I’m glad that he’s showing emotion.”
Teams often take on the personality of their quarterback. The position has that much importance. But the Eagles are often their most joyous when they win running the ball.
Have they turned a corner or was Sunday just a blip?
The Birds remained in the NFC’s No. 3 spot, and if the season ended today they’d be hosting the No. 6 seed San Francisco 49ers (10-4) at the Linc during wild card weekend.
Here’s a look at the current playoff picture for the Eagles and the rest of the NFL:
When can the Eagles clinch the NFC East?
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In the NFC East, the Eagles’ magic number — combined wins and Cowboys losses — is now just one. That means the Birds could clinch both the division and a playoff berth with a win in Week 16 against the Washington Commanders (4-10).
The Birds would also clinch the NFC East with just one more Cowboys loss.
Even if Dallas manages to win their final three games — at home against the Chargers and on the road against the Commanders and New York Giants (2-12) — they would still need the Eagles to lose out overtake the Birds in the standings.
Considering the Birds 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.
Both the Commanders and Giants have already been eliminated from playoff contention, but both could play the role of spoiler in the coming weeks.
Can the Eagles still end up with the NFC’s No. 1 seed?
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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.
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.
NFC playoff scenarios this week
Matthew Stafford and the Rams are in the driver’s seat for the NFC’s No. 1 playoff spot.
Entering Week 15, not a single team in the league had clinched a playoff spot. That changed Sunday, with the Rams officially becoming the NFC’s first playoff team thanks to a 41-34 win against the Detroit Lions (8-6).
The No. 1 seed will take a few weeks to sort out, thanks to a tight race in the NFC West featuring the Seattle Seahawks (11-3) and 49ers.
What’s wild is there’s a possibility a team like the Lions, Bears, 49ers, Seahawks, or even Rams could end the season with 12 wins and miss the playoffs due to tiebreakers for the final wild card. That’s never happened in NFL history, though two teams have missed the playoffs with 11 wins — the 1985 Denver Broncos and the 2008 New England Patriots.
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7) moved back into the No. 4 seed and lead the NFC South thanks to the Carolina Panthers (7-7) loss to the New Orleans Saints. The Buccaneers and Panthers will face off next week in a game that will likely decide the division.
Just one NFC team faced elimination in Week 15. The Vikings will officially be booted out of the postseason race with a loss to the Cowboys Monday night.
AFC playoff picture and scenarios
The Chiefs were eliminated from the playoffs for the first time during Patrick Mahomes’ career.
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The No. 1 seed Denver Broncos (12-2) clinched the AFC’s first playoff spot and their second-straight postseason appearance under head coach Sean Payton with a win against the Packers.
The No. 2 seed New England Patriots (11-2) could have clinched the AFC East, but blew a 21-point lead to Josh Allen and the Bills Sunday.
The Kansas City Chiefs (6-8) were eliminated from the playoffs Sunday for the first time in the Patrick Mahomes era thanks to their loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
The Miami Dolphins (6-7) enter Week 15 on a four-game winning streak, but could be booted from the playoffs with a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6) Monday night.
When do the NFL playoffs start?
The Eagles have made four-straight playoff appearances under Nick Sirianni.
We’re a little less than a month away from the first playoff game, which will take place on wild-card weekend beginning Jan. 10.
Six games will take place in the first round of the playoffs, airing across Fox, CBS, NBC, and ESPN/ABC. Amazon will also exclusively stream a wild-card game on Prime Video for the second straight season.
Full 2025 NFL playoff schedule:
Wild-card round: Saturday, Jan. 10 to Monday, Jan. 12
Divisional round: Saturday, Jan. 17 to Sunday, Jan. 18
Super Bowl LX (or 60, for those who don’t like Roman numerals) is being held at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, Calif., home of the San Francisco 49ers. NBC will broadcast this year’s Super Bowl.
Here are the sites announced for future Super Bowls:
