Despite having the worst possible start to tonight’s game, the Philadelphia Eagles took down the Washington Football Team, 27-17. The Eagles consistently shot themselves in the foot to start but cleaned things up to close the first half and broke away by the fourth quarter. It was much closer than expected, however, the Eagles move to .500 on the season and now are nearly in control of a wildcard spot.

Too many mistakes from the Eagles: 

It’s best to get the negative takeaway out of the way early on and move on with the more positive notes. The Eagles were downright atrocious in the first quarter of a half and almost let this game get out of reach through their errors. 

The most notable mistakes were Dallas Goedert letting a ball slip out of his hands for a wonky interception and Jalen Hurts not having two hands on the football, leading to a strip sack. Alongside those two, Jordan Mailata unnecessarily bearhugged a Washington defender downfield, sending back a fourth-down conversion.

All these errors scream is an overall lack of caring. The Eagles came into tonight lackadaisical and looking down on their opponents and let stupid slip-ups cost them multiple touchdowns. If Philadelphia did what they were supposed to do, this game could’ve been over by the first quarter. 

If this team wants to make noise in the playoffs, these mistakes cannot happen. They were lucky that Washington could barely capitalize because a team like Green Bay could have quickly made it 21-0.

Best rushing offense in the league:

Although they tout a top-five rushing defense, Washington was obliterated by Miles Sanders and company this evening. The Eagles ran for 238 yards, nearly four times as much as the WFT did. Miles Sanders led the way with 131 yards with an outstanding 7.3 yards per carry. Jalen Hurts also took over the Eagles rushing touchdown record for a quarterback with two QB sneaks.

This performance was also with the Eagles’ third-string guard in for Landon Dickerson, and it didn’t seem like they skipped a beat. Nick Sirianni has curated the most dominant rushing attack in football that has so many facets it’s almost unstoppable. Between Jalen Hurts’ RPOs and zone reads, there is no single solution to shut down this offense. 

Dallas Goedert is taking the next step:

The newly extended tight end had a very high and low game against Washington. Things started brutally with the extremely unlucky interception off Goedert’s foot, but he stepped things up almost immediately. Goedert had nearly 100 yards receiving by halftime and finished the night with seven receptions for 135 yards, a career-high. It was brutal to see him drop the wide-open screen, which looked to almost be a touchdown, but Goedert did more than enough.

Playoff push incoming:

After today’s win, the Eagles sit just outside the 7th and final playoff spot in the NFC, moving to 7-7. If they win out, the playoff spot is theirs, and it’s very feasible. Philadelphia now hosts the Giants this Sunday, who are starting Jake Fromm or Mike Glennon at quarterback. Following that, they go to Washington to face The Football Team once again and play the Dallas Cowboys in Philly to end the season.

Washington and New York should be easy wins, and the Eagles could get some help from other NFC teams and not need to win out their schedule. A few weeks still remain in the regular season, but it’s hard not to imagine a playoff game in the Eagles’ future.

Mandatory Credit: AP Photo