After a promising first half where Washington led 10-7 at the break, the Philadelphia Eagles completely stifled the Commanders' offense and barrelled through their defense to hand Washington a 29-18 loss.
After the first two quarters, it looked like it was the Commanders' game to lose, and that turned out to be right. Washington threw the game away in the second half and was not only outgained by Philadelphia but also outplayed. Granted, Washington was playing two backup quarterbacks against the now-NFC East Champions, but it felt like the play style changed in the third quarter. Washington shifted away from a ground game that slowly chipped away at Philadelphia's defensive line to a passing-centered offense that resulted in incompletions and a game-sealing interception from Josh Johnson. The momentum the Commanders had entering the half was washed away, and with that, any hopes of a victory against their divisional rivals.
AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementInstant analysis from the Commanders' loss.
Final score: Eagles 29, Commanders 18
Commanders vs. Eagles Week 16Numbers to know
26-15: The Eagles finished with a total of 25 first downs to the Commanders' 10. Philadelphia evenly split its first down plays between passing (11) and rushing (11), and Washington gave the Eagles three free first downs off penalties. The Commanders also split their first downs evenly - seven passing and seven rushing - and were awarded a first down on a defensive pass interference call that set up Chris Rodriguez Jr.'s 3-yard rushing touchdown in the fourth quarter. The Eagles earned 26 first downs, including multiple breakaway runs from Philadelphia running back Saquon Barkley, and excluding Tank Bigsby's 22-yard touchdown run.
90: After leaning on the rushing game in the first half, which helped Washington take a three-point lead, the Commanders finished Week 16 with just 54 rushing yards between Chris Rodriguez Jr, Jacory Croskey-Merritt, Jeremy McNichols, Josh Johnson and Marcus Mariota. At the half, Croskey-Merritt (25) and Rodriguez (24) combined for 49 rushing yards and a touchdown. However, Croskey-Merritt did not earn a carry in the second half, and Rodriguez gained 39 yards on nine carries and scored a touchdown; however, most of those yards and his score came in the final minutes of the game. This is Washington's least efficient rushing performance of the season. The Eagles finished with 198 yards on the ground.
2: The number of quarterbacks who saw the field against the Eagles is the same number that Washington had rostered entering Week 16. Mariota and Johnson both played roughly a half each, after Mariota was forced to exit the game with a hand injury in the third quarter and Johnson stepped in for relief. Jayden Daniels was inactive, and Washington's would-be third-string Sam Hartman was ineligible because he is on the Commanders' practice squad. On top of that, Washington's non-quarterback emergency QBs - tight end Colson Yankoff and wide receiver Luke McCaffrey - are both injured. Mariota completed 7 of 14 attempts for 95 yards, and Johnson completed 5 of 9 attempts for 43 yards and an interception.
It was over when...
While Washington was still in the game late in the third quarter, trailing 14-10 with Johnson in as quarterback, the game felt like it shifted after Johnson's interception to Cooper DeJean, which set up a seven-play, 37-yard touchdown drive for Philadelphia to break open an 11-point lead. Washington was never able to recover after that point, and Philadelphia held its 11-point lead until the final whistle.
Play of the game
Funny enough, Washington's best play of the game came on the opening kickoff, when cornerback and gunner Mike Sainristil forced DeJean and the Eagles to fumble on the opening kickoff. Kian Medrano recovered the ball on the Philadelphia 26-yard line, which led to Jake Moody kicking in a 20-yard field goal to put the Commanders on the board first.
3 stars of the game
RB Chris Rodriguez Jr: 15 carries, 63 yards, 1 TD
WR Terry McLaurin: 3 catches, 53 yards
CB Mike Sainristil: 4 tackles, 1 PD, 1 FF
What's next?
The Commanders get to stay in Washington, D.C. for the next week as they prepare to face the Dallas Cowboys in Week 17 on Christmas Day. They follow up their Week 17 matchup with a regular-season finale rematch with Philadelphia in Week 18.
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Washington Commanders: Instant analysis from 29-18 loss to Eagles
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