The Eagles have had franchise cornerstone players come and go in the entire team’s history. A very few of said departures have come back as foes on the Eagles’ schedule from time to time with a myriad of results.
Whether it was Brian Dawkins falling in his emotional return with Denver, Donovan McNabb, and Andy Reid getting their revenge just a year after, or even the Eagles getting revenge on Terrell Owens, there’s a long history of revenge games in Philadelphia sports.
One of the most complicated players in team history is Carson Wentz. While Wentz was drafted and played like a future league MVP early on, a combination of injuries and questionable leadership allegations ended up closing the door on one of the most disappointing chapters in team history.
Now Wentz is back with division foe Washington. The Eagles’ first divisional game of the 2022 season comes in an emotional revenge game of sorts for Wentz and an underrated offense of the Commanders.
We have everything you need to know about the Eagles contest in Washington here.
Philadelphia Eagles vs. Washington Commanders
When: Sunday, September 25th, 1:00 pm – ET
Where: FedEx Field
How to Watch: FOX Sports
Injury Report
Washington
Out: Casey Toohill, Daniel Wise
Questionable: James Smith-Williams, David Mayo
Philadelphia
Questionable: Landon Dickerson
Keys to the Game
Slow Down Washington Passing Attack
While it can be a surprise to many, the Washington Commanders have one of the best passing offenses in football. Carson Wentz’s arsenal of weapons of Terry McLaurin, Curtis Samuel, Jahan Dotson, and Logan Thomas have posed major matchup issues through the first two games of the season. Will that continue on Sunday? The Eagles’ secondary is certainly strong enough to win one-on-one matchups: they proved that on Monday. But on a short week, the secondary will need to be even better in order to get Wentz and the offense off the field.
Own the Trenches
The Commanders are a team, like the Eagles, that is historically excellent in the trenches. However, due to age, and injuries, the offensive and defensive lines are been very poor through two games to start 2022. With injuries to the Commander offensive line heading into Sunday, the Eagles defensive line will need to be far more successful than they have been at getting sacks and pressure on the quarterback. On the other end, the Eagles’ offensive line should have success against a Commanders defensive front that still does not have Chase Young, and already multiple players are hurt. This is a matchup the Eagles should win. If they don’t, it could breed disaster in Washington.
Win the Field Position Battle
The Eagles may be 2-0 but there is one part of their game that has been seriously lacking through two games. The average drive starts for Philadelphia is the 2nd lowest in football with a pedestrian start at the 22-yard line. In divisional games where the weirdest things can happen, field position is of major importance. That means Quez Watkins and Britain Covey must produce more as returners. It also would help if the Eagles make quick three-and-outs instead of getting stops at midfield and hurting their chances of good field position.
X-Factor: Haason Reddick
Reddick has been relatively quiet through the start of his Eagles career. In his previous years, Reddick isn’t a player who usually gets consistent sacks throughout the year, but gets them in bunches. If the Eagles are to win on Sunday, they’ll need to make sure they get consistent pressure on Carson Wentz and Reddick needs to be one of the key pieces. Charles Leno Jr. and Sam Cosmi are the Commander tackles. They’re nothing to worry majorly about. Reddick needs to have a big game.
AP Photo/Alex Brandon
