Nov. 15 (UPI) — Saquon Barkley danced in the hybrid turf of Lincoln Financial Field, wiggling past defenders en route to nearly 200 yards from scrimmage and two touchdowns to lead the Philadelphia Eagles past the Washington Commanders.
Barkley ran for 146 of the Eagles’ 228 rushing yards and totaled 52 receiving yards in the 26-18 triumph Thursday in Philadelphia. His two rushing touchdowns — from 23 and 39 yards out — each came in the fourth quarter.
“The offensive line, we just kept leaning on them and trusting them and we popped it off at the end,” Barkley told reporters.
The Eagles, who trailed 10-3 early in the third quarter, used a run of 23-consecutive points to burry their NFC East rivals and increased their division lead.
They out-gained the Commanders 434-264 in total yards and converted 9 of their 16 third-down attempts, compared to just 3 of 12 for their foes.
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts completed 18 of 28 passes for 221 yards. He also ran for 39 yards and a score. Commanders quarterback Jayden Daniels completed 22 of 32 passes for 191 yards, one score and an interception.
“We just kept going,” Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said. “That was the talk at halftime. Hey, it’s a street fight. It’s not about who is tougher, it’s about who is tougher longer. … Just great resilience for our guys.”
Eagles kicker Jake Elliott went wide left on a field goal on the game’s opening drive. The Commanders went on to take the lead with a four-play, 58-yard drive. Running back Brian Robinson Jr. ended the possession with a 1-yard touchdown run.
The Eagles finally got on the scoreboard with a 15-play, 87-yard drive late in the second quarter. Elliott ended the possession with a 21-yard field goal to make the score 7-3 at the break.
This is a scheduled Saquon Barkley TD tweet actually @saquon | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/zDRIu7hXsv— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) November 15, 2024
Commanders kicker Zane Gonzalez split the uprights from 45-yards on out on the first drive of the third quarter for a 10-3 lead. Elliott responded with a 31-yard kick to cut the deficit to 10-6 with 5:32 remaining in the third quarter.
The Eagles went on to soar with their 23-0 surge to take control of the contest.
Hurts ended an 11-play, 76-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run. The Eagles then stopped the Commanders on fourth down on the next drive.
Hurts hit tight end Dallas Goedert with a 32-yard pass on the second play of the resulting possession. Goedert fumbled on the play, but fellow Eagles tight end Grant Calcaterra recovered the loose ball. Barkley ripped off his 23-yard scoring run three plays later to give the Eagles a two-possession advantage.
Eagles safety Reed Blankenship intercepted Daniels on the first play fo the next drive. Barkley sprinted for his 39-yard score about five seconds later.
Daniels led the Commanders on a 15-play, 70-yard drive over the next 4:10. He threw a 5-yard touchdown toss to tight end Zach Ertz to end the possession. Daniels followed the score with a successful two-point conversion pass to Ertz, cutting the deficit to eight.
The Commanders then failed to convert an onside kick, effectively ended the game.
ABOARD THE BLANKENSHIP @reedus99_reed | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/Q1L5mSvcCm— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) November 15, 2024
Blankenship logged 10 tackles, in addition to his interception. Eagles linebacker Zack Baun registered a game-high 14 combined tackles.
The Commanders (7-4) will host the Dallas Cowboys (3-6) at 1 p.m. EST Sunday in Landover, Md. The Eagles (8-2) will face the Los Angeles Rams (4-5) at 8:20 p.m. Sunday in Inglewood, Calif.
