Commanders vs. Eagles (Game Two) – Studs and Duds

What a game!

This game was full of ups and downs, and I can only imagine the emotional toll it took on the fans – but in the end, Jayden Daniels made another of his signature drives down the field for the game-winning touchdown. Yes, he is HE!

Washington is now 10-5 on the season and controlling its own playoff fate. If you had told me over the summer that this football team would be 10-5 with two games left, I would have asked how a lot you would have to drink… but I’ll take it!

Below are my studs and duds of the game, followed by some notes.

Stollen:

Jayden Daniels – Jayden had a fantastic game, throwing for 258 yards and a career-high five touchdowns on 24-39 passing. He was also Washington’s leading rusher with 81 yards on nine carries. The game-winning performance he produced to give Washington the victory was something wonderful.

Olamide Zacchaeus – Zaccheaus led all Commander receivers with 70 yards on five catches and saw the end zone twice.

Jamison Crowder – Crowder’s two touchdowns were great, and without his skilled route running and solid hands, Washington would not have won this game.

Frankie Luvu – Luvu racked up seven total tackles, two for a loss, one pass defended and a huge interception. He has been the best player on this defense all season and deserves more national recognition.

Jer’Zhan Newton – Newton had an impressive game in the afternoon with six tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack and three pressures.

Luke McCaffrey – McCaffrey had a great day returning kicks. He had six returns for 184 yards with a long of 47 yards. He also caught one pass for 13 yards. Maybe, just maybe, it’s time to give him the ball on offense.

Duds:

Brian Robinson – BRob averaged just 2.4 yards per carry and fumbled twice in the game. For the veteran running back, it was certainly an experience to forget. I would like to see more from Chris Rodriguez in the future.

Tyler Biadasz/Nick Allegretti – The interior duo had a pretty poor game against the Eagles’ vaunted front. Both missed multiple blocks, resulting in tackles for loss, and handled the power rush poorly.

Notes:

• Marshon Lattimore had a rough afternoon, but not all of it was his fault. Two of the three pass interference calls against him were questionable. One was ticky-tac on a ball that probably wasn’t catchable, and the other had AJ Brown with his hand in Marshon’s jersey, pulling him down. He did allow an easy touchdown against Brown, but he also defended some nice passes – which is why he’s not on the duds list.

• Terry had another touchdown after a beautifully thrown pass from Daniels. He had solid stats with five balls for 60 yards and a touchdown and probably could have made my studs list.

• St-Juste was there late in the game when Lattimore left with a hamstring strain and was immediately targeted by the underarmed Kenny Pickett. He failed a tackle that would have stopped the Eagles on fourth-and-7.

• Dyami Brown caught a nice 51-yard ball, but also had a costly fumble on a quick screen.

• Bobby Wagner led the team with nine tackles (eight solo) with two pressures and a nice pass down the right sideline defended against Barkley.

• Both Ferrell and Fowler had a sack (Ferrell’s was a strip sack) and each recorded a tackle for a loss and multiple pressures.

• On a cold afternoon, Tress Way did a good job on both of his punts, averaging 46 yards per kick and 49 long.