Eagles vs. Commanders instant observations: Birds' depth at critical spots needs attention in offseason

The performances of some Eagles backups Sunday vs. the Commanders show that depth is good in some areas but needs to be addressed in others.

By Geoff Mosher
PhillyVoice Staff

Bill Streicher/Imagn Images

Eagles EDGE Jalyx Hunt (58) celebrates an interception during the second quarter against the Washington Commanders at Lincoln Financial Field.

Locked into the No. 2 or 3 seed going into Sunday, the Eagles closed out their regular season by playing mostly backups and some starters against the Commanders to give many of their most significant players some rest headed into the playoffs.

They felt the rest outweighed the potential of gaining the second seed, which also required a Bears loss to the Lions.

As it turned out, the Bears did lose, but the Eagles' backups couldn't hold an early lead. The Commanders scored two fourth-quarter touchowns at the Linc to leave with the 24-17 win.

The Commanders ended their dismal season on a high note, finishing 5-12 just one year after losing to the Eagles in the NFC Championship. The Eagles ended 11-6 and will face the No. 6 seed San Francisco 49ers in an NFC Wild Card game.

At first, it appeared the Eagles would still figure out a way to beat Washington despite going with just one starter on offense and a few up front on defense.

Second-year EDGE Jalyx Hunt, one of the typical starter who needed to play, was responsible for both of the Eagles' two takeaways. His fumble recovery from Commanders quarterback Josh Johnson's botched snap in Washington territory flipped the field and set up Tank Bigsby's 2-yard rushing touchdown for a 14-10 lead. Jake Elliott nailed a 39-yard field goal to make it 17-10.

But some bad penalties, mostly by the secondary, put Washington at the goal line twice in the fourth, and they scored touchdowns each time to go ahead.

Given the amount of backups that played in this game, a typical observations piece didn't seem to capture the moment, so these observations are mainly centered on Eagles depth and how it might impact 2026:  

Offense

• Interesting that the Eagles risked playing wide receiver DeVonta Smith for him to get 1,000 yards but didn't let Saquon Barkley go for the single-season rushing record last year, sitting him for a meaningless game. Smith got his needed 44 yards, the last of them coming on a 27-yarder in the second quarter that came with contact from two defenders.  

• Tanner McKee, who gets a ton of attention for a backup quarterback, did OK behind a patchwork offensive line that didn't really protect well. What did anyone expect? He threw the first interception of his career on an unquestionably bad pass but McKee will still be sought after in the offseason and the Eagles will have an opportunity to get a good draft pick for him. Third-stringer Sam Howell will be a free agent. The Eagles' QB room behind Jalen Hurts is bound to undergo major change.

• I thought it made sense to start Tyler Steen at right guard and Matt Pryor at right tackle. Trying to get an entire game from rookie OT Cameron Williams, who only started practicing three weeks ago for the first time all season, would've been very risky. Williams had some iffy moments the minute he came in at right tackle for the second half. Steen had to re-enter in the second half when LG Brett Toth suffered an injury. 

• In general, the backup o-line played ... like a backup o-line. Drew Kendall made his first NFL start, taking over at center. The Eagles tried to run inside, but Bigsby bounced many of his carries to the outside. In general, there wasn't great push on the inside. The Eagles need to address o-line depth this offseason, especially if they're concerned that the wear and tear on LG Landon Dickerson and C Cam Jurgens that's shown all season will linger into the future, and if they're concerned that the days of RT Lane Johnson playing 17 games and at an All-Pro level are behind him. It's impossible to tell if Kendall, Williams or their other Day 3 tackle, Myles Hinton (injured reserve), will be adequate backups by September.

• The wide receiver room could also undergo overhaul in the offseason. Jahan Dotson's contract is up and it's doubtful the Eagles will even try retain him. It's not all his fault, but Dotson caught 37 passes in his two years with the Eagles – which was fewer than any of his two seasons with the Commanders – and the Eagles have Darius Cooper ready for a larger role, and looks ready for it. Also, Johnny Wilson should be back, and the Eagles love the 6-foot-7 wideout's potential as a blocker who was starting to make strides in camp as a pass-catch before undergoing knee and ankle surgery.

Defense/Special Teams

• The Eagles played several starters on the defensive front, including EDGEs Hunt and Nolan Smith, along with iDLs Jordan Davis and Moro Ojomo against a Commanders offensive line missing three starters. They didn't have enough backups to play the entire game.

• Rookie iDL Ty Robinson, a fourth-round pick who's played sparingly, will have to refine his pass rush in the offseason. The Eagles will come back next year with Jalen Carter, Davis and Ojomo, so they're fairly set, but they'll need Robinson to add strength and work on technique to have a legit four-man rotation on the interior. It also wouldn't be unlike the Eagles to draft another interior lineman sometime Day 2 or 3.

• Brandon Johnson started at safety, with trade deadline acquisition Michael Carter II playing nickelback. Johnson, an undrafted rookie who spent most of the year on the practice squad, played a hybrid DB role at Oregon that was mostly a nickel role. Nickelback will be an interesting decision for the Eagles in 2026. They could keep Cooper DeJean there and find an upgrade in draft of free agency at outside corner, or they could move DeJean outside and try to find another expert nickel. They drafted Mac McWilliams in the fourth round but the Central Florida product played sparingly this season. He replaced Carter at nickelback when Carter moved to safety after Johnson's injury and had a costly pass interference.   

• Jakorian Bennett and Kelee Ringo are outside cornerback option, but right now, both look like a No. 3 or 4 corner at best. Bennett was flagged three times, the third helping set up a Commanders touchdown, and Ringo was flagged twice, including in the fourth quarter on a deep shot, as the Commanders then scored and took the touchdown lead. Bennett needs an offseason in Vic Fangio's defense to truly vie for a starting job. Ringo was given many chances but hasn't helped himself.

• Jake Elliott made his only field goal attempt and both of his point-after kicks. After a rocky stretch, the Eagles' longtime kicker has made all of his attempts over the last two games and the Eagles will just have to hope he's this solid in the postseason.

https://www.phillyvoice.com/eagles-vs-commanders-backups-nfc-season-finale-analysis-nick-sirianni-vic-fangio/

Firstly… I’ve seen a few comments on social media about this Saquon record thing and them letting Smitty play. Smitty needed 40 yards (44 to be precise). Last year Saquon needed what 150? That’s a big performance especially for a RB with a back up OL (because presumably they’d have to play them too?). That would have needed a full game pretty much whereas Smitty did it in like 3 catches and one quarter. It isn’t the same.

On the depth thing… I mean yeah we learned a lot. We know Bennett wasn’t a good trade and Ringo needs to go. We knew we were light at Safety and we knew OL depth and in fact competition was going to be a need going in to the offseason.

but McKee will still be sought after in the offseason and the Eagles will have an opportunity to get a good draft pick for him

Eh...if they couldn't last offseason, can't see how they will this offseason after his performance yesterday. Maybe if other evaluators take into consideration the players he was playing with along with an inept offensive coaching staff...maybe he fetches something like a 3rd/4th or one of those conditional-type picks based on how he performs in 2026.

The article is generous. Eagles have some guys who can't play and have to go. And some others who need work to contribute. Bunch of holes to fill since last offseason was eh.

Yeah I can't remember the depth being this thin/bad.

That's why they need to make another run in the next 2 years. Could get kinda ugly after that.

They are paying gobs of $ for the Offense. Soon that might have to change and the $ will need to go to the Defense.

With the amount of guys they lost to free agency last year, it's no surprise that their depth has suffered. But nothing that a good draft won't fix. They have the 3rd youngest team in the league and that usually means some guys need 2-3 years development time to be more productive and dependable.

How Roseman handles the wheeling and dealing during free agency and the draft could get the eagles to restock the shelves. And Howie has been good at reclamation projects like Zach Baun, Mehki Becton, Fred Johnson to name a few.

The way the eagles approach things, I think the draft priorities are:

Offensive line

Corner

Tight End

Wide Receiver-Kick returner

Edge-Assuming they extend Phillips