‘Hated’ Eagles star silences critics in win vs. Commanders; Starter makes case to be benched

PHILADELPHIA — The Eagles will celebrate on Sunday night after winning 24-22 over the Washington Commanders at Lincoln Financial Field.

Eagles head coach Nick Sirianni and his players will say during their post-game interviews that winning an NFL game is difficult. Several individuals will point out that the Commanders have outstanding coaches and players. A few people will claim it was a gusty win.

Those points are not wrong to a certain extent, but the Eagles cannot feel great about this win. The Eagles were sloppy on offense, and even more surprising, their defense struggled at times against Washington’s offense, which does not have a ton of talent.

Here are NJ.com’s three takeaways from the Eagles’ win:
Jalen Hurts was elite

Eagles offensive coordinator Sean Mannion’s debut went as expected: there was some good and some bad.

Quarterback Jalen Hurts was the good. He saved the Eagles’ offense when it struggled.

With 8:03 remaining in the fourth quarter, Hurts scrambled on third-and-18 for 22 yards to Washington’s 47-yard line. The play looked dead, but Hurts saw the opening in the middle of the field and took off with his legs.

Hurts was the driving force behind every touchdown, including on the fourth-quarter possession. He capped off that drive with a 43-yard touchdown pass to tight end Dallas Goedert.

Hurts was aggressive pushing the ball in tight spaces and downfield. He looked like a confident quarterback, which was not always the case last year.

Hurts found Dontayvion Wicks on a deep ball for 64 yards to Washington’s 6-yard line with 1:57 remaining in the first quarter. That pass set up his 17-yard touchdown pass to Dallas Goedert.

Hurts released the ball on time and fit it between Commanders safeties Quan Martin and Jeremy Reaves to hit Goedert in the back of the end zone.

With 8:10 left in the second quarter, Eagles running back Saquon Barkley broke tackles from Commanders defenders Leo Chenal and Nick Cross for a 42-yard gain to Washington’s 12-yard line. Two plays later, Hurts threw a 9-yard touchdown to Wicks in the left corner of the end zone, putting the Eagles up 14-3.

Hurts completed 14 of his 25 passes for 203 passing yards and three touchdowns, while rushing for 46 yards.

Entering the season, Hurts was considered one of the NFL’s most controversial players. According to a Reddit poll from this past spring, he is the most ‘hated’ NFL player among fans. For just one day, he shut up his critics.

The Eagles’ offense started well against the Commanders, putting together two touchdown drives in the first half.

But then a similar story, one that happened too much last year, played out: Philadelphia’s offensive line struggled during the second half.

The Eagles began the third quarter with three consecutive punts.

Hurts and Barkley were hit in the backfield too much. The Eagles’ interior offensive line was the biggest reason for that.

Left guard Landon Dickerson looked like a shell of himself and is the reason several plays failed.

On the Eagles’ first touchdown drive, Dickerson was beat by Commanders defensive tackle Javon Kinlaw, who brought down Barkley for a 2-yard loss. Kinlaw wasn’t even touched.

Dickerson’s lack of explosiveness made him a liability on that play and many others.

Dickerson was called for a 10-yard holding penalty on Philadelphia’s third scoring drive. He was beaten off the snap and yanked the jersey of a Commanders defender who rushed toward Hurts.

In the first half, Eagles center Cam Jurgens was called for two holding penalties. Right guard Tyler Steen also struggled at times. Washington also pressured Hurts with blitzes.

Heading into Week 2, Dickerson is a major concern for the Eagles’ offense. He’s borderline unplayable. One of the best left guards in the NFL during his prime, injuries have crushed Dickerson’s ability.

Dickerson gave up 4 pressures and 1 quarterback hit against the Commanders. The Eagles could consider benching him if he continues to play poorly. He struggled last season and was not impressive during training camp this summer.

Philadelphia rushed for 136 yards, but Hurts and Barkley made something out of nothing on most of those yards. According to Next Gen Stats, 78 of Barkley’s 83 yards came after contact.

Eagles cornerback Cooper DeJean rarely gets beat from the slot, but Washington surprisingly picked on the All-Pro.

Igniting Washington’s first touchdown drive late in the second quarter, Commanders wide receiver Stefon Diggs beat DeJean for 15 yards to the Eagles’ 41-yard line.

Diggs, a savvy route runner, beat DeJean repeatedly.

He beat DeJean for a 10-yard touchdown with 10:04 remaining in the fourth quarter. Luckily for the Eagles, Diggs jumped on the goal post during his celebration, which cost Washington a 2-point conversion attempt. The Commanders settled for an extra point and trailed the Eagles 17-16.

DeJean was called for illegal contact during the third quarter, which gave Washington an automatic first down and set them up in scoring range. Luckily for the Eagles, Commanders rookie kicker Drew Stevens missed a 54-yard field goal.

DeJean was also called for illegal contact on the first drive of the game, which ended with a Washington field goal.

In the second quarter, Commanders rookie wide receiver Antonio Williams beat DeJean to his inside shoulder for a 16-yard catch to the Eagles’ 1-yard line. On the next play, Commanders running back Jacory Croskey-Merritt rushed for a 1-yard touchdown.

DeJean is a talented player, which makes his performance against the Commanders not overly concerning. He will need to rebound next week against the Titans. Another bad performance would raise alarm.

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