The Philadelphia Eagles are in pursuit of a 9-0 record, and the only thing standing in the way of that is their Week 10 game.
On Monday, November 14, the Eagles will host the Washington Commanders for their second divisional match-up this season. The NFC East rivalry will be slightly less exciting now given the absence of quarterback Carson Wentz.
EAGLES VS. COMMANDERS
Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles, overall, are made up of some of the best players the franchise has seen in recent years.
Quarterback Jalen Hurts has led the team to a perfect record, as he continues to play for MVP recognition. The offense, namely A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Dallas Goedert have worked so well together that the team currently has the highest offensive EPA in the league. Similarly, the defense has the lowest EPA, decreasing their opponent’s opportunity to score each week.
The team’s most recent weakness has been their inability to quickly stop the run. Last week, Philadelphia allowed the Houston Texans to gain 5.3 yards per carry. Averaging 5.2 yards per rush, the Eagles rank 29th in the league, serving as a huge problem for a team looking to make it to the Super Bowl.
Philadelphia’s advantage is that they have far less injured players than they have had in previous seasons, with only Jordan Davis listed on IR. The team will also have ten days of recovery in between their Week 9 and 10 games.
Washington Commanders
For better or worse, Carson Wentz won’t be taking the field in his former city come Monday night. After injuring his throwing hand, Taylor Heinicke has taken over. Though Heinicke has added a spark to Washington’s offense, head coach Ron Rivera stated that “It’s feast or famine at time with him”.
NFL.com stated, “But his fatal flaw [Heinicke] might be the turnover. He’s averaged one interception per start since the beginning of last season…”
To decrease the chances of a turnover occurring Monday, the Commanders will likely take advantage of the run game, as it has picked up in recent weeks. Over the last three games, they ran the ball on almost 50% of their plays — the sixth-highest rate in the league over that time.
WEEK 10 PREDICTION
Can the Philadelphia Eagles go 9-0 for the first time in franchise history?
Yes they can, and I think they do.
The 4-5 Commanders, currently ranked last in the NFC East, just won’t have the tools to pull off a win against the Eagles. I do think that they do well in the run game, but the Eagles’ defense will force a turnover, making it easy to rack up points to leave the Linc with a win.
ESPN gives the Eagles a 83.2% chance to win the game against the Commanders. My prediction, Eagles 34-17.
