Commanders’ season ends in blowout fashion against rival Eagles in NFC championship

PHILADELPHIA — The Washington Commanders’ magical season ended on Sunday night in Philadelphia with a 55-23 loss to the rival Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC championship game. But, even as the deficit grew and grew, Washington’s players held on to hope, just like they did all season.

Down by 11 in the fourth quarter, quarterback Jalen Hurts and the Eagles had the ball at Washington’s 1-yard line. Their plan was clear to everyone in the stadium — run a quarterback sneak and have Philadelphia’s players push Hurts into the end zone.

But Commanders linebacker Frankie Luvu had other plans. He leapt over the offensive line, flopping onto the Eagles’ offensive line like a shark that breached out of water. It didn’t work — Philadelphia hadn’t snapped the ball yet.

That didn’t stop him from trying it again, leading to a second consecutive encroachment call and a warning from the officials. Another “intentional” penalty could result in an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

Defensive tackle Jon Allen joined the party on the next play, giving Washington a third-consecutive foul as Hurts tried to draw the defense offside.

Referee Shawn Hochuli had seen enough.

“Washington has been advised that at some point, the referee can award a score if this type of behavior happens again,” he told a cheering crowd of Eagles fans.

Hurts scored on the next snap to give the Eagles an insurmountable 41-23 lead.

But Washington’s players wouldn’t apologize after the game — they still had a chance to win.

“That just shows a little bit of the fight. Like, we don’t care that we’re down in that moment. People might say, ’Let them in, it don’t matter,’” defensive end Clelin Ferrell said. “But we’re still going to play like our hair is on fire until the end.”

Luvu and the Commanders had successfully stopped the play, colloquially known as the “Tush Push,” on a two-point conversion earlier in the game. He said he was trying to time out the snap, gaining every advantage against Philadelphia’s dominant short-yardage design.

“I just took my shot. Empty the clip — that’s where my mindset was: lay it all out there,” Luvu said after the game. “If I make it, I make it. If not, we bounce back. But the third time they told me I’d get a penalty, I don’t know what that was about. I guess they wanted him to score.”

Linebacker Bobby Wagner isn’t one for excuses, though he told referees that he believed Philadelphia’s offensive linemen were offside on those crucial plays.

“It’s a great play, great concept – hard to stop,” he said. “I was them, I’d run it too.”

Throughout the season, rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels had led the Commanders on multiple last-second wins, starting with a two-minute drill in Week 2 against the New York Giants, then a Week 8 Hail Mary against the Chicago Bears and including the playoff win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers when a last-second field goal ricocheted through the uprights.

But Daniels couldn’t pull another rabbit out of his hat on Sunday.

Three fumbles and a handful of backbreaking red zone penalties by Washington’s defense doomed the Commanders, stopping their unexpected run a game short of their first Super Bowl appearance in 33 years.

The fumbles — by wide receiver Dyami Brown and running backs Austin Ekeler and Jeremy McNichols — proved to be the difference in the game, resulting in 21 points for the Eagles.

“We had preached ‘ball is life.’ We just didn’t take care of it today,” safety Jeremy Reaves said through tears after the game.

“They thrive off turnovers, that’s why they win,” wide receiver Terry McLaurin said. “It’s just tough because this is a really close locker room. Guys really care about one another.”

But Washington struggled on the other side of the ball, too.

Safety Jeremy Chinn and cornerbacks Mike Sainristil and Jeremy Chinn all committed crucial penalties near the goal line to give Philadelphia a handful of short-yardage rushing touchdowns.

“In a game like this, everything matters,” defensive tackle Allen said. “We just didn’t help ourselves.”

Hurts finished with three rushing touchdowns with 16 yards on 10 attempts. Running back Saquon Barkley, an MVP finalist, added 118 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries.

Daniels tried to carry his team, throwing for 255 yards and two total touchdowns with a team-high 48 rushing yards. It wasn’t enough.

In a season littered with miraculous last-second touchdowns, including a Hail Mary, the Commanders couldn’t keep their Super Bowl dreams alive.

Despite Sunday’s disappointment, the Commanders enter the offseason with a bright future ahead — one headlined by Daniels, alongside coach Dan Quinn and general manager Adam Peters.

For years, Washington’s football franchise was marred by constant controversy and on-field disappointments. Splashy free-agent signings didn’t pan out, promising rookies proved to be flashes in the pan and a revolving door of coaches failed to right the ship.

This season has been different. Daniels looked like the real deal with one of the most impressive rookie seasons in modern NFL history.

With trademark poise and a devastating dual-threat ability, he led Washington in passing and rushing while claiming victories in consecutive playoff games to take the Commanders to the NFC championship for the first time since 1991.

After setting a rookie record for rushing yards by a quarterback, Daniels became just the sixth rookie signal-caller in league history to start a conference championship game. He was the only rookie to accomplish that feat without a top-three scoring defense.

Daniels is a virtual lock to take home the Rookie of the Year award at next month’s NFL Honors.

Peters assembled a roster that only vaguely resembles the 2023 Washington squad that finished 4-13, landing the No. 2 pick in the draft that became Daniels. Since joining the franchise in January 2024, Peters overhauled the squad with a combination of free agents and draft picks with a league-leading amount of new additions.

Quinn was considered a consolation prize when he signed with the Commanders in February. Peters and Harris had plans to interview former Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson before he withdrew from consideration. Quinn joined the team less than a week later.

Despite initial skepticism from fans and analysts, Quinn earned buy-in from his players and Washington’s jaded fanbase. In conversations with media, Commanders regularly parrot their coach’s favorite phrases.

Late-game heroics are “winning time moments.” A hard worker is a “dog a— competitor.” Nobody looks ahead — they want to “be where [their] feet are.”

The busy offseason proved successful, despite skepticism from sportsbooks who guessed that Washington would net six or seven wins in the first year of a rebuild. The Commanders, powered by Daniels and a hyper-efficient offense, passed that mark in November.

With stable leadership in place, the future still looks bright for Commanders fans.

“With No. 5 around,” Allen said, referring to Daniels. “We’re feeling good.”

Veterans in Washington’s locker room expect an even hungrier group of Commanders to take the field next season. Linebacker Bobby Wagner shared some parting wisdom with them before they scattered for the offseason, noting that a playoff run in his rookie season ended in disappointing fashion. His Seattle Seahawks won the Super Bowl in the next season. 

“Just remember how you feel, remember these moments,” Wagner, 34,  told his younger teammates as confetti rained on the Eagles. “Put the work in the offseason. It’ll be very fruitful next year.”