NFL Week 8 Game Recap: Philadelphia Eagles 38, Washington Commanders 31

The Philadelphia Eagles arrived in Washington for an NFC East showdown, where they were able to hold on for another win and move to 7-1 on the year.

Offensive spotlight: A.J. Brown hauled in eight receptions for 130 yards and two touchdowns on the day, including a remarkable one-handed catch on a back-shoulder with Benjamin St-Juste draped all over him.

Brown’s 130 receiving yards in this game made him the first wide receiver in NFL history to post 125 or more receiving yards in six straight games.

GOOD GOD A.J. BROWN ????????
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— PFF (@PFF) October 29, 2023

The Commanders got off to a hot start as Sam Howell connected with Terry McLaurin and Jahan Dotson for the first two touchdowns of the day. Howell had a strong day passing the ball — especially considering the matchup — finishing 39-of-52 for 397 yards against a very good Eagles defense, though he did throw a key fourth-quarter interception that led to an Eagles touchdown.

Howell, as the most-sacked quarterback in the league, had done a really good job of avoiding sacks in this one until late in the fourth quarter on fourth down when Haason Reddick was able to get home and essentially clinch this game for the Eagles.

Defensive spotlight: The Commanders run defense put on a really strong performance for most of this game, holding Philadelphia to 59 yards on the day. Washington even did the seemingly impossible by stopping the Eagles’ quarterback sneak by forcing a fumble on the play. Unfortunately, on the next Eagles sneak attempt late in the game, they ran a counter run, which led to a D’Andre Swift touchdown to seal the win.

THE COMMANDERS STOP THE EAGLES QB SNEAK ????️
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— PFF (@PFF) October 29, 2023

Montez Sweat, rumored to be on the trade block this week, showcased his talent by delivering a sack and five total tackles. 

Rookie spotlight: The Eagles deployed rookie third-round pick Sydney Brown as their primary nickel corner in this game, marking Brown’s second start of the year after filling in for the injured Reed Blankenship at safety last week. He recorded a very impressive five defensive stops in this game.

Box Score

Passing

Rushing

Receiving