The league’s hottest team, riding a seven-game winning streak and boasting the only two road wins of the NFL’s postseason, rolled into the hostile confines of Lincoln Financial Field with a chance to punch an improbable ticket to the Super Bowl. To get there though, they had to upset their division rivals, who arguably possess the deepest collection of talent on either side of the ball in the league.
With the entire football loving world tuned in, the Washington Commanders suffered from a series of self-inflicted errors that killed any hope of victory against a talented and aggressive opponent. Four turnovers and a porous run defense were too much to overcome, as Jayden Daniels and friends lost 55-23 to the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship Game.
The game started with some promise for the underdogs. An 18-play, 54-yard opening drive — Washington’s longest of the season — took more than seven minutes off the board … but only resulted in three points. The Eagles responded by scoring a touchdown on one play — a 60-yard run by Saquon Barkley that clearly signaled trouble for a Commanders defense incapable of stopping the run all season long.
When one team requires 18 plays to produce a field goal and the other scores a touchdown in a single play, that’s a pretty strong indication of which squad held an advantage in explosiveness. Earlier in the season, Washington had little trouble producing these sorts of high-impact moments, but down the stretch they occurred far less frequently.
During two regular season encounters, Barkley amassed 296 rushing yards and four touchdowns. On this day, the league’s best back amassed 118 yards and three touchdowns on just 15 carries. Compounding matters, quarterback Jalen Hurts also rushed for three touchdowns. And Philly’s third-string running back Will Shipley gained 77 yards and a touchdown on just four carries. In short, anyone remotely interested in scoring a rushing touchdown against Washington’s defense did so on this day.
Coming into the NFC Championship Game, Daniels led 11 scoring drives on 16 postseason possessions, excluding kneel downs. Punter Tress Way was called into action just once and the Commanders didn’t commit a turnover against either Tampa or Detroit. After successfully converting 20-of-23 fourth downs during the regular season, the Commanders went 10-of-15 during the playoffs. But none of that matters when your defense is unable to stop whoever carries the ball.
As the Commanders head into the offseason (significantly later than anyone reasonably expected), let’s take a moment to acknowledge this incredible ride. Washington’s offense scored touchdowns in the last 30 seconds or overtime of six different games this season. The franchise posted its first winning season since 2016, earned its first playoff win since the 2005 season and competed in its first NFC Championship Game since the 1991 campaign. All of this, of course, became possibly thanks to Daniels, who put together the best rookie season the NFL has ever witnessed.
The 24-year-old amassed the most total touchdowns by a rookie in NFL history, as well as the most total touchdowns in a season by any quarterback in franchise history. Daniels had 12 touchdown passes in the fourth quarter or overtime, which tied the NFL rookie record. He also became just the fourth rookie quarterback in league history to win multiple playoff games.
The Commanders’ dream season might be over, but it’s safe to say this is just the beginning of a new era for the burgundy and gold. After decades of despair, words like “poise” and “clutch” are now often associated with the burgundy and gold. After becoming all but irrelevant, they’re now capable of defeating anybody, anywhere, anytime. Who saw that coming a year ago?
