NFC Championship Game 2025: Previewing Commanders vs. Eagles matchup

The Washington Commanders are in the midst of a truly charmed season. With previous noxious owner Dan Snyder in the club's rearview mirror, and rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels in the fold, Washington have gone from "team that was mentioned in the same breath as the Bears and Jets when discussing organizational incompetence" to "maybe the most fun and exciting team in the NFL" in just two seasons.

The key to all of it is Daniels, the dynamic quarterback who, through his first season, looks like the most promising player under center since Robert Griffin III before the injuries took him from us.

Just last week Washington knocked off the de facto best team in the NFL, the Detroit Lions, in a 45-31 shootout that was incredibly fun and not at all stressful for Commanders fans.

Now, another stern test stands in their way, in the form of the Philadelphia Eagles. Philly has their own dynamic quarterback in Jalen Hurts, and a dominant running game and defense. Can Washington's miracle season continue with their first NFC title since 1991? Or will Philly hold serve as the best team left standing in the NFC? Let's break it down.

Tale of the Tape: As division rivals, these teams played twice in the regular season and split the series home and home. In Week 11, the Eagles won 26-18, and ran for 228 yards in the process. In Week 16, the Commanders took home a narrow 36-33 victory at home, with Daniels throwing five touchdowns and two picks, while also accounting for 81 of the team's 113 rushing yards, in a game where Jalen Hurts got hurt.

Eagles' Offense: The story hasn't really changed much here in the last three weeks. Philly is obscenely good at rushing the ball, thanks in large part to running back Saquon Barkley. Barkley has been dominant, and seems to have turned up the juice in the playoffs, gashing the Rams for 205 yards and 2 touchdowns last week after torching Green Bay for 119 yards the week before. Pairing him with Jalen Hurts out of the backfield makes this one of the scariest rushing attacks in the NFL.

But, it's not all sunshines and rainbows for the Eagles offensively. Hurts has been subpar throwing the ball this season, and has been even worse than that in the postseason. He threw for just 121 yards against the Packers, and 65 yards against the Rams. Making matters worse, Hurts suffered a knee injury against Los Angeles, and while it seems like he's going to play this week, it's unclear how much the injury is going to impact his performance. If he's limited, the offense is going to get very one-dimensional very quickly.

Eagles' Defense: Everything about this unit is impressive. They are second in the NFL in points allowed, and lead the league in total yards allowed and yards per play. They allow the fewest passing yards per play, and have allowed just 22 passing touchdowns on the year.

While they rank just 10th in rushing yards allowed, they've allowed the second-fewest rushing touchdowns of any team this season, with just nine, and offenses average just 4.3 yards per carry against them. They rank just 15th in sacks, but have accomplished that feat with the sixth-lowest blitz rate in the NFL. They're not going to pressure the quarterback a ton, or send numbers, but they count on their defenders to execute and get stops and limit explosive plays.

Path to Victory: Given the state of the offense right now, and Hurts' potentially limited status, you need to turn this into a rock fight. Control tempo, keep Washington's high-octane offense off the field. Make your drives count, and let your defense win this game with stops. If this turns into a shootout, you could be in real trouble, given Hurts' injury and the inconsistencies in the passing game.

Commanders' Offense: As Daniels goes, so goes the Commanders' offensive plan. They have a top five scoring offense, and rank in the top 10 in yards and yards per play, and it's almost entirely because of Daniels' singular brilliance this season. He's been sensational, an unstoppable force at times, and is the team's leading rusher as well as being an incredible passer.

Washington doesn't have a ton of depth in pass catching; outside of wide receiver Terry McLaurin and the ageless Zach Ertz, there's not a ton to get excited about (who's all that scared of Olamide Zaccheus, after all?). The run game is likewise less than stellar outside of Daniels; Brian Robinson is fine, and Austin Ekeler has been solid enough in spot duty, but neither one particularly strikes fear into the hearts of defenses.

This is the Jayden Daniels show, and he's one hell of a performer.

Commanders' Defense: Washington's defense ranks among the strangest units in the NFL, particularly against the pass. They rank third in passing yards allowed, but 15th in passing touchdowns. Where the Eagles don't blitz often, the Commanders do it nearly a third of the time, posting the fifth-highest blitz rate in the league at 31.5 percent of snaps. Despite that high percentage of blitzes, they rank in the middle of the pack in terms of sacks (12th), and pressure percentage (14th, at 22.6 percent). They don't pick off a lot of passes, but they allow 11.4 yards per attempt, which ranks 24th. So they don't give up a lot of yards, but when they do it tends to be in big chunks rather than small bites.

Things get much clearer when it comes to run defense. Unfortunately for Washington, clearer doesn't mean better. This is just a bad, bad team when it comes to run plays. They have the third-worst run defense in terms of yards allowed, and sit 22nd in touchdowns allowed. They allow the third worst yards per play of any team in the league. They just give up almost five yards per carry every time someone touches the ball, and have let the Eagles crack 200 yards rushing in both of their matchups this season.

Path to Victory: Jayden Daniels is going to need to be absolutely magical in this one. The defense has shown they can't stop Barkley, which is a recipe for trouble against this Philly team. Make plays, score points, and don't fall too far behind early. Push the pace and force the Eagles to keep up with you and throw the ball. Play to your strengths and turn this into a shootout.

The Verdict: If Hurts were fully healthy, this would be a much easier call to make; Washington can't stop Philly's run game, and that's a postseason recipe for disaster. But with Hurts banged up, things get murkier. I still think Philly's defense is good enough to slow Daniels down enough to get out with a win, but after the Commanders' utter domination of the Lions, I don't feel comfortable saying they'll win by more than three or four. Look for the Eagles to win a close one.