The Philadelphia Eagles (12-2) head to Northwest Stadium on Sunday (1 p.m. EST, FOX) to face the Washington Commanders (9-5), their first of three games against NFC East opponents to close out the regular season.
Sunday’s game will be a rematch of an entertaining Thursday Night Football game on Nov. 14, when the Eagles ran away with a 26-18 win at the Linc behind a 20-point fourth quarter.
With Jayden Daniels looking like a budding superstar under center, and new head coach Dan Quinn propping up the defense, the Commanders look like Philly’s biggest threat in division for the foreseeable future.
MORE: NFL picks, predictions for Week 16: Philadelphia Eagles vs. Washington Commanders
As for this Week 16 matchup, the Eagles are 3.5-point road favorites as they look to lock up the NFC East title for the second time in three years. NFL analyst Pete Prisco of CBS Sports surprisingly doesn’t see things playing out that way.
In a colossally bold take, Prisco picked the Eagles to go down in Washington on Sunday, putting their hat and t-shirt party on ice. Here was Prisco’s take on the matchup:
This is a big game in terms of the postseason. The Eagles are riding a 10-game winning steak, while the Commanders have won their last two. The Eagles are coming off a tough, physical game with the Steelers, which can wear a team down. Washington needs this game more, and it will play out that way.
For the record, Prisco is 141-83 (59%) with his straight-up picks on the season, and he tends to highlight a couple potential upsets each week. Going with a capable home underdog against a division opponent certainly qualifies for an upset pick. If the season ended today, the Commanders would be in the NFC playoffs, as the No. 7 seed.
But Prisco’s reasoning, that the Commanders need the game more? That’s where he loses us.
The Eagles clinch the division with a win. They’re also dead even with the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings for the No. 1 seed with three games to go. There’s a ton on the line for Philly in this game. A loss to an inferior Washington team in this spot would be brutal, especially with backup QB Cooper Rush and the Dallas Cowboys on deck, and the laughable New York Giants on the schedule after that.
The Commanders will certainly be a desperate team looking to improve their playoff chances, but they’ll have the Eagles’ full attention with a potential first-round bye hanging in the balance. That should be the difference, as the Eagles have the horses on defense to stifle Washington’s high-scoring offense. They haven’t allowed an opposing offense to score more than 20 points since Week 4.
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