Eagles beat Commanders, 26-18, for sixth straight win as Saquon Barkley scores 2 TDs and the defense stands tall

In the fourth quarter, the Eagles finally decided to start playing complementary football.

A slow start from the Eagles offense eventually matched the strong, sustained performance by its defense Thursday night against the Washington Commanders, scoring 20 points in the final frame on the way to a 26-18 victory. Saquon Barkley exploded for 146 rushing yards and two touchdowns, with both scoring plays coming with less than five minutes remaining in the game.

The star running back eclipsed 1,000 rushing yards on the season, making him the second player in franchise history to reach the 1,000-plus marker through the first 10 games (LeSean McCoy in 2011).

Here’s our instant analysis from the Eagles’ sixth straight win since the bye week:

The Eagles offense appeared arrhythmic throughout the first half, suffering from negative plays and missed opportunities on its way to scoring just three points. The most egregious failure came early in the second quarter on a botched trick play that ended with a Jalen Hurts sack for 13 yards that squandered strong field position at the Commanders’ 36-yard line.

To that point, the Eagles had struggled to sustain drives, ultimately reaching the red zone just once on six first-half possessions. Hurts appeared to miss open receivers on several critical plays, including DeVonta Smith on third-and-8 on a crossing route in the first quarter and A.J. Brown on third-and-3 on the left sideline early in the second quarter. By the end of the half, Hurts had completed just 52.6% of his passing attempts (10 of 19) for 101 yards, taking two sacks.

Barkley attempted to reignite the offense halfway through the third quarter. The star running back turned a checkdown over the middle of the field into a 43-yard gain to put the Eagles deep in Commanders territory. However, the Eagles sputtered in the red zone once more, as Hurts threw an incomplete pass to Brown in the end zone.

The momentum finally started to shift for the Eagles early in the fourth quarter after Hurts scrambled for a first down on third-and-7 from the Commanders’ 45. A string of Kenneth Gainwell and Barkley carries gave way to the first Tush Push touchdown of the night to put the Eagles up, 12-10. On the ensuing possession, after Grant Calcaterra recovered a Dallas Goedert fumble, Barkley ripped off a pair of explosive touchdown runs (a 23-yard carry and a 39-yarder) on consecutive drives to seal the Eagles victory.

“He put in some good work today, man,” Hurts said of Barkley. “I guess it does take time, but every game is different. When I say it takes time, it’s always one play away. It could be the first touch, the second touch, the 10th, or the 25th touch. Whatever it is, we’ve just got to keep pressing and keep playing the game.”

While the offense struggled at times, the Eagles defense managed to limit the Commanders’ offensive attack led by Jayden Daniels. The rookie quarterback was far from prolific in the passing game early on, as the combined rush and coverage held him to just eight completions for 83 yards in the first half.

Terry McLaurin, the team’s leading receiver, didn’t have a target in the first half, in large part thanks to the coverage of rookie cornerback Quinyon Mitchell. McLaurin finished the night with one reception for 10 yards on two targets, as Daniels completed just four passes total to wide receivers. Zach Ertz, the former longtime Eagles tight end, hauled in a touchdown reception and the two-point conversion with 28 seconds left. The pass rush got to Daniels, as Brandon Graham, Josh Sweat, and Nolan Smith each notched sacks in the game.

The Commanders found a decent amount of offensive success on the ground. Brian Robinson Jr. was the team’s most dominant player in the run game, finishing the night with 16 carries for 63 yards and a touchdown. However, Graham and Zack Baun stuffed Robinson on third-and-1 just outside of the red zone. On the ensuing play, Baun made the play of the night, tackling a scrambling Daniels who had bobbled the snap short of the sticks on fourth down.

“Through film study, you can get an idea of what they’re going to run in a situation like that,” Baun said. “But when you get out there, you don’t really know, and you don’t know that they’re going to bobble the snap. I just know Jayden’s a confident kid. He’s going to try to make the play.”

Two weeks after missing a field-goal attempt against the Jacksonville Jaguars, Jake Elliott’s bad fortune reappeared against the Commanders. His first opportunity came on the heels of the Eagles’ opening drive, as the group sputtered thanks to a holding call on Mekhi Becton on second-and-12 at the Commanders’ 25. Elliott’s 44-yard attempt went wide left, marking his first missed field goal inside of 50 yards this season.

The Eagles looked to Elliott once again on their fourth possession of the game early in the second quarter. The aforementioned trick play backed the Eagles up from the Commanders’ 36-yard line to the 49, with the drive ultimately ending on the 33. Elliott proceeded to miss the 51-yarder wide left again for his fourth miss beyond 50 yards this season. The 29-year-old kicker’s five field-goal misses on the season tie his misses in the last two seasons combined (three in 2022, two in 2023).

Elliott got back into a brief groove as the Eagles continued to rely on him thanks to the offense’s inconsistencies. He nailed a 21-yard field-goal attempt at the end of the first half and a 31-yarder late in the third quarter. However, he missed the extra point after the Tush Push touchdown early in the fourth quarter.

Landon Dickerson went down on the third play of the game while blocking for Barkley on a run. Tyler Steen finished the rest of the Eagles’ opening possession at left guard. Dickerson returned for the Eagles’ ensuing possession and did not miss a snap for the rest of the game.

Hurts paid a brief visit to the medical tent at the end of the first half. He was evaluated for a concussion and was cleared to return to the game.

Milton Williams exited the game following the third quarter with a foot injury. He was deemed questionable to return, but he did not take a snap in the fourth.