The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Washington Commanders at home 55-23 to win the 2025 NFC Championship and move on to Super Bowl LIX. The Eagles’ 55 points are the most in AFC/NFC Championship Game history.
This is Philly’s fifth NFC Championship victory all time and the team’s third Super Bowl appearance since the start of the 2018 season.
Costly mental mistakes caused Washington’s downfall. The Commanders recorded four giveaways today after committing zero turnovers in their first two games of the postseason. Washington was also flagged nine times for 47 yards.
The Commanders can’t get all the credit, though. Philly’s ground attack looked unstoppable. The Eagles scored seven rushing touchdowns, tied for the most ever in a postseason game.
Washington got things going on the opening possession with a field goal to take a 3-0 lead about halfway through the first quarter. On that 18-play drive – Washington’s longest of the season – the Commanders converted two fourth-downs and two third-downs. Coming into this game, Washington was the NFL’s best fourth-down team offensively.
Potential MVP candidate and Eagles running back Saquon Barkley answered by taking his first carry of the day 60 yards for a touchdown to give Philly a 7-3 lead on the Eagles’ first offensive play. Barkley now has seven 60+-yard touchdowns this season and three since the divisional round began.
SAQUON 60 YARDS IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE
📺: #WASvsPHI on FOX
📱: Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/dAREUcfSAd— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2025
Philadelphia linebacker and Defensive Player of the Year candidate Zack Baun was critical to the Eagles’ early success. He not only had four tackles on Washington’s first two drives, but he also forced a fumble on the Commanders’ second series. Philly recovered the live ball, leading to Saquon Barkley’s second touchdown of the day for a 14-3 advantage. With that TD, Barkley became the first player in NFL history to have three games with 2+ rushing touchdowns against one opponent in a single season.
Despite missing on third down from their own 31 yard line, the Commanders attempted and converted a 24-yard fake punt to keep their drive alive and end the first quarter. That series stalled out, resulting in a field goal to make it 14-6 in the second.
After Philly missed a field goal, Washington wide receiver Terry McLaurin took a slant pass 36 yards to the end zone for his third touchdown of the playoffs. However, the Commanders failed to convert the two-point try, keeping the score 14-12. Prior to the NFC Championship, McLaurin had the fourth-most receiving yards in the postseason.
Facing a 4th and 5 in Washington’s territory, Eagles wideout A.J. Brown made a 31-yard catch along the sideline, putting Philadelphia on the Commanders’ 14. This led to a “Tush Push” touchdown by quarterback Jalen Hurts after a defensive pass interference penalty in the end zone. The Commanders stopped the second “Tush Push” on the two-point attempt, making it a 20-12 game with under two minutes left in the second quarter.
Philly recovered a fumble on the ensuing kickoff. Unfortunately for Washington, a third-down stop was wiped off the board by a penalty. Three plays later, A.J. Brown caught his fourth career postseason touchdown to give the Eagles a 27-12 lead with 39 seconds remaining in the half. Brown was terrific in this one, catching six passes for 96 yards.
OUTWARD EXCELLENCE!@1kalwaysopen_ | #FlyEaglesFly pic.twitter.com/88TCF1luvm
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) January 26, 2025
Washington scored three points just before halftime to make it 27-15 at the break. Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels was a vital part of that quick drive, accounting for all of the Commanders’ 41 yards.
Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert made seven receptions for 85 yards in this game. His 33 yards on Philly’s second possession of the third quarter resulted in a rushing touchdown by Jalen Hurts and a 34-15 score. Hurts hadn’t scored multiple rushing touchdowns in a game since Week 10.
Jayden Daniels had 255 passing yards, a passing TD, an interception, a team-leading 48 rushing yards, and a touchdown on the ground. His third-quarter TD scramble cut Philly’s lead to 34-23 after a successful two-point conversion catch by wide receiver Olamide Zaccheaus.
Following a Philly forced fumble, Jalen Hurts made it into the end zone on another “Tush Push” for his third rushing touchdown of the afternoon to put the Eagles ahead 41-23 in the fourth. This was Hurts’ second game of the season with three rushing TDs.
Full sequence of how the latest Jalen Hurts rushing TD went down. pic.twitter.com/VR6ABLgKmh
— NFL (@NFL) January 26, 2025
Washington did its best to respond with a scoring drive, but the Eagles forced a turnover on downs with 10:24 to go in the game. Before that stop, the Commanders were four for four on fourth down. That led to Saquon Barkley’s third touchdown as well as a 47-23 lead. Saquon had 122 total yards to go with those three TDs.
Though the Commanders’ season ends a game short of glory, their future is very bright. Jayden Daniels will likely win the NFL’s Rookie of the Year award after becoming just the sixth quarterback to ever reach a conference championship in his first year. Sadly, the large loss to a divisional rival in such an important game surely stings.
The Eagles will now be looking to win their second Super Bowl in franchise history. They will play the winner of the Buffalo Bills-Kansas City Chiefs AFC Championship game taking place later today.
