Eagles’ rivalry with Commanders is about to get more intense: ‘We’ll have our hands full’

PHILADELPHIA — In the last 24 years, the Eagles have competed against the Dallas Cowboys and against the New York Giants for many NFC East titles.

Philadelphia's rivalry with Washington has not been as significant, but that's about to change on Thursday when the two teams battle each other for the top spot in the NFC East.

BUY EAGLES TICKETS: VIVID SEATS

The Cowboys and Giants are both struggling for different reasons and will have to rebuild. And with those two teams out of the picture for the foreseeable future, it gives the Eagles and the Commanders an opportunity to take control of the division for a long time.

Washington has only won the division three times since 2000. Former owner Daniel Snyder made awful decisions, eight different head coaches struggled to win games and their quarterbacks weren't good enough.

Things are now different.

New Commanders owner Josh Harris hired general manager Adam Peters and head coach Dan Quinn this offseason — both decisions have panned out so far. Then, the Commanders drafted their next franchise quarterback in rookie Jayden Daniels , who has led the team to a 7-3 record.

The Eagles have beaten Washington in 11 of their last 14 matchups. Now Philadelphia will need to beat them again to win the NFC East and potentially steal the No. 1 seed away from the Detroit Lions.

Here are three things to watch during the Eagles-Commanders game:

Can the Eagles stop Jayden Daniels? Since Week 6, the Eagles have ranked No. 1 in five defensive categories: Total defense (214.5 yards per game), scoring defense (11 points per game), sacks (11), rush defense (73.5 yards per game) and pass defense (141.1 yards per game).

The Eagles still have a lot to prove because during their five-game win streak they have played against four subpar offenses — Giants, Browns, Jaguars and Cowboys — who have bad/mediocre quarterbacks and poor rushing attacks.

But in a Week 8 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals , the Eagles' defense showed it can be elite. They held Joe Burrow — one of the NFL's best quarterbacks — to 234 passing yards and a touchdown and only gave up 17 points.

Three weeks later, the Eagles could shut down Daniels and the Commanders' offense in a statement victory.

But it won't be an easy task.

The Commanders have gone from being the second-worst team in the league last season to one of the best teams this year with Daniels at quarterback. He has the second-most rushing yards (464) and the 11th most passing yards (2,147) among NFL quarterbacks this season and has thrown nine touchdowns to two interceptions.

"He's playing really good football," Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said about Daniels. "It's very obvious. I think everybody can see that. A really good player who started off on fire, so we'll have a challenge here this week. Can't say enough good things about him.

"You know he's going to the right place with the football, being accurate, the things he can do when things do break down. I have got a lot of respect for him and we'll have our hands full."

Daniels plays with great poise and has developed into one of the league's best playmakers, but he can be stopped. He only rushed for five yards and passed for 202 yards in the Commanders' Week 10 loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio gave credit to Pittsburgh's outside linebackers and defensive linemen for containing Daniels and said his defense needs to play with discipline to beat Washington.

Yeah, we've got to be assignment sound, make sure we always have a guy available to play that quarterback if he pulls it," Fangio said. "He'll pull it sometimes with blockers. He'll pull it sometimes with just himself there if you overplay the run. You've got to be assignment sound."

Fangio might be able to confuse the 23-year-old quarterback and force him to make bad mistakes.

Terry McLaurin vs. Quinyon Mitchell Commanders wide receiver Terry McLaurin has been one of the NFL's most consistent wide receivers since getting drafted in 2019, finishing with four 1,000-yard seasons in five years. Currently, he ranks third in receiving yards (711) and has the fifth most receiving touchdowns (6).

The Eagles' secondary needs to stop McLaurin from taking over. In 10 career games against the Eagles, he has caught 58 receptions for 847 yards and four touchdowns.

Eagles rookie cornerback Quinyon Mitchell , who is among the favorites to win Defensive Rookie of the Year, will cover McLaurin.

Mitchell has not allowed more than 23 receiving yards in a game this season, according to Pro Football Focus. In the Eagles' last five games, he has done a good job covering some of the league's best wide receivers, including Bengals wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase and Giants wide receiver Malik Nabers . He could make Washington's offense struggle by holding McLaurin under 100 yards.

Eagles star wide receivers vs. Washington secondary without Marshon Lattimore The Commanders acquired ex-Saints cornerback Marshon Lattimore at the trade deadline to improve their secondary, but he won't play for the second straight week due to a hamstring injury.

Before Week 1, most expected Washington's secondary to be among the worst units in the league. Quinn — the former Cowboys' defensive coordinator — and Commanders defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. deserve a lot of credit for helping an inexperienced secondary become a top-five unit in the first 10 weeks.

However, the Commanders might not have enough talent to stop Eagles wide receivers A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith . Brown and Smith win most of their one-on-one opportunities and will have some easy matchups against the Commanders.

The Commanders will have to pressure Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts , force some turnovers and stop running back Saquon Barkley to win.

MORE EAGLES COVERAGE

Eagles injury report: Jordan Mailata's status ahead of game with Commanders

This rookie QB's draft comparison was Eagles' Jalen Hurts | Why the parallels don't end there

Why Eagles' vast improvement in secondary owes a nod to a benched veteran

Eagles injury report: Roster spot opened for OL's return; Four banged-up starters practiced