Game Recap: Washington pulls off amazing comeback victory over Philadelphia
December 23, 2024
by Steve Thomas
Washington defeated their division rival Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday by a score of 36 – 33 in a thrilling, last-second victory, overcoming a 14 point deficit in what was likely the most important win of the 2024 regular season.
This game start in an inauspicious fashion, with Washington failing to gain a first down on a Brian Robinson dive to the right side on 4th and 1 in the first drive of the game. The Eagles then responded by driving 49 yards down the field for the first of Saquon Barkley’s two touchdowns. Robinson then ruined a great Luke McCaffrey kickoff return by immediately coughing up the football on the first play of Washington’s second drive. The fumble was recovered the Philadelphia’s Jalen Carter at the Eagle’s 43 yard line, and the Eagles wasted no time in driving straight down the field for another touchdown to go up 14 – 0.
However, Philadelphia suffered a major setback on this drive when star quarterback Jalen Hurts was forced to leave the game with a concussion with 9:06 left in the first quarter and did not return to action. He was replaced by backup Kenny Pickett. It was at this point that the vibe of the game changed in Washington’s favor. Pickett doesn’t have Hurts’ athletic ability, so Washington’s defense was able to divert its attention from the threat of Hurts’ scrambling, and it had a noticeable effect on the success of the defense.
Washington linebacker Frankie Luvu intercepted Pickett on the Eagles’ 25 yard line in Pickett’s first full drive of the game. Washington quickly put the ball in the end zone on the subsequent drive, with quarterback Jayden Daniels hitting Jamison Crowder in the back of the end zone to make the score 14 – 7. However, the Eagles quickly responded late in the first quarter when Barkley broke free for a 68 yard touchdown run, increasing the Eagles’ lead to 21 – 7.
Washington was able to drive down the field to the Eagles’ 16 yard line on their next drive; however, Robinson then fumbled for the second time in the game to give the ball back to Philadelphia.
Washington was able to score its second touchdown of the game two drives later when Daniels hit star receiver Terry McLaurin for a 32 yard scoring strike, decreasing the score deficit to 21 – 14. The teams then traded punts before Daniels threw an interception to Eagles’ safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson with 1:52 left in the half. However, the Eagles missed a 56 yard field goal attempt on the final play of the first half and the teams went to the locker room with the Eagles up 21 – 14.
The Eagles got a field goal to start the second half. Then, Washington’s Dyami Brown fumbled on a 2 yard pass from Daniels at the 37 yard line on the second play of Washington first drive in the third quarter. The Eagles took advantage of the turnover and drove down the field for another field goal on a 14 play drive to increase their lead to 27 – 14. Washington quickly responded, however, with a 61 yard touchdown drive that culminated with a 4 yard pass by Daniels to Olamide Zaccheaus to make the score 27 – 21.
Washington soon took their first lead of the game soon thereafter thanks to a 49 yard pass by Daniels to Zaccheaus two drives later with 9:06 left in the game. The Eagles quickly responded with another field goal on a 12 play, 34 yard drive to make the score 30 – 28.
On the subsequent drive, Daniels threw his second interception of the game to safety Reed Blankenship at the Washington 40 yard line. The Eagles only gained 5 yards in response on their next drive, but were able to kick another field goal to increase their lead to 33 – 28 with 1:58 left to play in the game.
Daniels then led Washington on his second game-winning drive of the season, going 57 yards. The game came to 2nd and goal from the 9 yard line with 6 seconds left to play, when Daniels hit Crowder for the game-winning touchdown, followed by a successful two-point conversion. After the Eagles were unable to return the kickoff for a touchdown.
In total, Jayden Daniels completed 24 of 39 pass attempts, for a 61.5% completion percentage, for 258 yards, with 5 touchdown passes and 2 interceptions, for a 99.1 quarterback rating. He was also Washington’s leading rusher, by far, with 9 carries for 81 yards, for an average of 9.0 yards per carry.
Washington’s running backs completely failed the team in this game. Brian Robinson led the running backs with 10 carries for just 24 yards, plus his two fumbles. This sort of offense is probably unsustainable in the long term, so Washington needs to figure out how to give its star quarterback some sort of running game support.
Olamide Zaccheaus was the team’s leading receiver, with 5 receptions for 70 yards and two touchdowns, followed by Terry McLaurin with 5 receptions for 60 yards and 1 touchdown. Jamison Crowder had the final two receiving touchdowns for Washington.
On defense, linebacker Bobby Wagner led the way with 9 tackles, including 8 solo, followed by Mike Sainristil with 7 tackles, including 4 solo, and Frankie Luvu also with 7, including 3 solo. As a team, Washington had 4 sacks, with 1 each from Jer’Zhan Newton, Clelin Ferrell, Dante Fowler Jr., and Jayln Holmes.
For the Eagles, Jalen Hurts was 1 for 4 for 11 yards passing, plus 3 carries for 41 yards, when he left the game. Kenny Pickett went 14 for 24, for a 58.3% completion percentage, for 143 yards, plus 1 touchdown and 1 interception.
League MVP candidate Saquon Barkley had 29 carries for 150 yards and 2 touchdowns; however, the vast bulk of those yards came in the first half before Washington was able to focus more heavily on him.
Star Washington corner Marshon Lattimore was called for pass interference on two straight plays, then later went out of the game with another hamstring injury. Dyami Brown also suffered a hamstring injury.
Washington has Jayden Daniels to thank for this win. He didn’t necessarily have his best game from a statistical perspective, despite the 5 touchdowns, but he was the driving force behind an amazing victory over a possible Super Bowl contender. Washington would be far from 10 – 5 without him. The Offensive Rookie of the Year award is surely all but locked up at this point, but he seems worthy of possible league MVP consideration as well.
With this victory, Washington keeps itself alive in the NFC East race, albeit barely, and at a minimum is firmly entrenched in either the second or third Wild Card position, depending on the results of Green Bay’s Monday Night Football matchup against the Saints.
Washington faces the Atlanta Falcons next week at home in Raljon.