Eagles run away from Commanders to clinch NFC East title
By HOWARD FENDRICH AP National Writer
LANDOVER, Md. — As the percussive horns of Stevie Wonder’s “Sir Duke” filled the air, Philadelphia Eagles coach Nick Sirianni – wearing a black T-shirt bearing the words, “Been there, won that” – made the rounds in the locker room, offering hand clasps and back slaps to his players after they accomplished something that hadn’t happened in two decades: win a second consecutive NFC East title.
“Gets better and better,” running back Saquon Barkley said as he walked through the scene Saturday night, “each time.”
This was not a terrific performance by the reigning Super Bowl champions, from a fumble on the opening kickoff to a pair of penalties on the tush push to three wide-left field-goal tries to a halftime deficit. Still, Barkley, Jalen Hurts and the Eagles eventually got going in the right direction and clinched their division yet again by beating the Washington Commanders, 29-18.
The game included a late brawl when Barkley tacked on a 2-point conversion that extended the Eagles’ lead to 19 points before the Commanders scored a meaningless touchdown.
Starting plays under center far more frequently than he did earlier in the season, Hurts completed 22 of 30 throws – with 15 of those caught by A.J. Brown or DeVonta Smith – for 185 yards, two touchdowns and no turnovers. He connected with Smith from 5 yards out in the first half and with Dallas Goedert from 15 in the third quarter to cap a 17-play, 83-yard, 10½-minute drive.
“We’ve slowly been playing better and better on the offensive side of the ball,” said Goedert, whose 10th TD reception this season tied a record for Philadelphia tight ends that was first set in the 1960s.
Hurts also did plenty of damage on the ground, gaining 40 yards on seven carries for the Eagles (10-5), who have followed a three-game losing streak by winning two in a row. They are the first team to top the NFC East in back-to-back seasons since Philadelphia did it every year from 2001 to 2004; the gap since then was the longest drought without a repeat champ for any division in NFL history.
Barkley added a 12-yard TD run for the Eagles, part of his 21-carry, 132-yard performance that raised his season rushing total above 1,000 yards.
With the Commanders (4-11), now losers of nine of their past 10 contests, already eliminated from postseason contention, there was plenty of green in the stands. Chants of “E-A-G-L-E-S, Eagles!” frequently rang out and cries of “Cooooop!” greeted Cooper DeJean’s interception of Josh Johnson, Washington’s third-string quarterback, who came in when Marcus Mariota went out after the opening drive in the third quarter with an injured right hand while Washington led, 10-7.
Mariota started Saturday in place of Jayden Daniels, the reigning AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year who led the Commanders to the NFC title game last season – where they lost 55-23 to Philadelphia – but has been shut down in 2025 after dealing with a series of injuries and appearing in only seven games.
The chilly evening started inauspiciously for Philadelphia. Will Shipley coughed up the opening kickoff when he was hit by Mike Sainristil. But just as they have over the course of the season, the Eagles got through what wasn’t working and ended up in the right place.
“We’ve got a special team and we enjoyed it,” Goedert said, “but we know there’s more work to be done.”
THREE PLAYERS EJECTED
The heated rivalry boiled over in the fourth quarter, when three players were ejected after a fight broke out among several members of both teams in the aftermath of Barkley’s 2-point conversion that increased the lead to 19 points with about 4½ minutes left.
Two players on Washington’s defense – lineman Javon Kinlaw and safety Quan Martin – and one Eagles player – offensive lineman Tyler Steen – were disqualified after being flagged for unnecessary roughness during the brawl.
There was some punching, a ton of pushing and shoving, and a lot of jawing, too, as the scrum spread across the grass. Six flags were thrown by officials as the chaos ensued.
“I guess it was a theme. … The fans were fighting … and I guess it carried over to the game. It’s chippy out there, and we have a lot of history with this team, especially since I’ve been here,” said Barkley, who gained 132 yards on 21 carries and scored a touchdown. “This team don’t like us. It’s just the truth. And we don’t like them, either.”
Commanders coach Dan Quinn didn’t directly answer the question when he was asked at his postgame news conference whether it was disrespectful for the Eagles to go for two after the late TD in a lopsided game.
But Quinn did issue something that sounded akin to a warning, noting that these NFC East rivals meet on Jan. 4 in Philadelphia to close the season.
“If that’s how they want to get down, all good,” Quinn said. “We’ll play them again in two weeks.”
When Washington linebacker Bobby Wagner was asked a question about respect, too, this is what he had to say: “It is what it is, Bro. I don’t care. Is it disrespectful? Maybe. But we’ve still got to stop them. That’s how I look at it.”
Eventually, when order was restored, and Wagner, Barkley and Hurts spoke with each other on the field.
Barkley said later Wagner made a point that he understood: “Hopefully you don’t break your hand just to say you’re a tough guy. It’s not really worth it. And you lose a lot of money” because of fines.
“We’ve got to be better. We’ve got to be smarter,” Barkley said. “I’ve got to be smarter. I shouldn’t put myself in that situation. It’s really not worth it.”
Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin understood why Sirianni decided to go for two there. And like his teammate Wagner, McLaurin was not offended.
“Eagles vs. Commanders, man. That’s how it goes. … There’s a lot of history, obviously. They were beating us. They’re not going to throw in the towel. They’re not going to take it easy on us. They were going for two to bury us. As a team, it’s not like you’re going to tell them, ‘Don’t go for two.’ We have to stop them,” McLaurin said. “I don’t really take any bad blood from what they did, but you don’t want to see the game get out of hand and guys possibly getting hurt. It comes with this rivalry between us and them. I don’t think that will ever change, to be honest.”
JAKE ELLIOTT, LEANING LEFT
The Eagles’ Jake Elliott managed to send three field-goal attempts wide left in the first half. Elliott entered 17 for 22 on field goals this season and hadn’t missed more than one in a game. But he was off on a 43-yarder in the first quarter. Then, 13 seconds before halftime, Elliott couldn’t get a 57-yarder to go through the uprights – but that one didn’t count, because Washington’s Tyler Owens was flagged for being offsides. Given another chance, now from 52 yards, Elliott went wide left once more.
EAGLES NUMBERS
Philadelphia outgained Washington 385 yards to 220. … Goedert has 10 touchdown catches this season, tying the record for an Eagles tight end, set by Pete Retzlaff in 1965. … Defensive end Brandon Graham, 37, whose two sacks last week made him the oldest Eagles player to record one, added another Saturday.
INJURIES
Eagles: Linebacker Nakobe Dean (hamstring) exited in the first quarter.
Commanders: Mariota was evaluated for a concussion and cleared, but his hand sidelined him. … Wide receiver Jaylin Lane (ankle) left in the first quarter.
UP NEXT
The Eagles play at the Buffalo Bills on Sunday, Dec. 28.
The Commanders host the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night (Dec. 25).