Commanders vs. Eagles Week 8: Jayden Daniels and Drew Stevens' Four Field Goals Bury Philly 27-10 on Sunday Night

Fifteen minutes into Sunday night, the Philadelphia Eagles had a 10-0 lead, a forced fumble and a Saquon Barkley touchdown. They did not score again. The Washington Commanders spent the next three quarters doing the unglamorous stuff, running the ball, hitting the quarterback and kicking field goals, and turned a sloppy start into a 27-10 rout at Northwest Stadium.

The 27 unanswered points lifted Washington to 2-4-1 and out of the NFC East basement. Jayden Daniels completed 16 of 29 passes for 217 yards and a touchdown without a turnover, and Drew Stevens kicked four field goals, from 56, 39, 25 and 42 yards. Per Pro Football Talk, it was Daniels' first win since October 2025. Philadelphia falls to 2-6 and has now lost six straight, its longest skid since 2012 and its worst start through eight games since 1999.

Flags, Fumbles and a 10-0 Hole

Washington's opening act was a mess. Back-to-back false starts, one of them on Daniels, stalled the first drive, and Stevens pushed a 55-yard try wide right. The Commanders were flagged seven times for 50 yards in the first quarter alone, per The Baltimore Banner. Philadelphia took advantage. Jake Elliott hit a 40-yard field goal, and on Washington's next series, safety Andrew Mukuba knocked the ball loose from tight end Chig Okonkwo after a catch, with Zack Baun recovering at the Washington 26. About a minute later, Barkley took a direct snap and ran it in from 3 yards out to make it 10-0.

That was the high-water mark. Stevens drilled a 56-yarder before the quarter ended, and the game started to tilt.

Washington Leans on the Run, and Daniels Finds Diggs

Down a touchdown, Washington stopped forcing it and committed to the ground game, averaging nearly five yards a carry the rest of the way, per The Banner. Its tying drive featured Austin Ekeler ripping off an 18-yard run and Daniels scrambling for 14 before he hit Stefon Diggs for an 8-yard touchdown midway through the second quarter. Stevens added a 39-yarder with 19 seconds left in the half, and Washington took a 13-10 lead into the locker room.

Daniels had a scare late in the half. Nolan Smith hit him hard on an incomplete pass, and he was slow to get up and was surrounded by medical staff on the sideline, per Pro Football Talk. He stayed in the game. At halftime, Washington led in first downs (10 to 7) and total yards (185 to 113), and Philadelphia was 1 of 6 on third down.

The Turning Point: Burks Goes Deep, and McKee Gets Hunted

The Eagles got the ball to open the second half and could not do anything with it. Washington's front lived in Tanner McKee's lap all night, with nine official quarterback hits, per Pro Football Talk. In the third quarter, Dorance Armstrong strip-sacked McKee and Charles Omenihu fell on the loose ball. The defining offensive play came through the air: Daniels launched a 53-yard strike to Treylon Burks that set up Stevens' 25-yard field goal for a 16-10 lead.

Philadelphia had one real chance to answer. In the fourth quarter, an illegal formation penalty on Jordan Mailata pushed an Elliott field goal try back five yards, and the kick missed. Stevens then made it 19-10 with a 42-yarder with 3:43 left. Facing fourth-and-25 from the Eagles' 28, McKee threw an interception to Rasul Douglas, and Rachaad White, who had earlier broken a 33-yard run, punched in a 1-yard touchdown with 1:52 to go. Ekeler converted the two-point run to finish it.

Daniels, Stevens and a Defense That Never Let Up

Daniels' numbers were tidy rather than gaudy, but he made the throws that mattered and never turned the ball over. Burks finished with three catches for 81 yards, rookie Antonio Williams had five for 54 and Diggs caught three for 38 and the touchdown. Washington spread its carries among four running backs and ran for 100 yards, per The Banner.

Stevens was the steadiest scorer on the field after the opening miss. His leg accounted for 12 of Washington's 27 points, and his 56-yarder was the moment the night started to turn.

The Washington defense deserves top billing, though. After Barkley's touchdown, Philadelphia's offense never reached the end zone again, and The Banner charted a 51 percent pressure rate on McKee. Trey Amos also had an interception erased by a roughing the passer penalty, and Mukuba had a leaping pick of his own wiped out by an offsides flag in the first quarter, so the turnover column could have been even more lopsided.

For Philadelphia, McKee completed 22 of 34 passes for 212 yards with the interception in his third start for Jalen Hurts. Makai Lemon caught six passes for 57 yards and Eli Stowers caught three passes for 53 yards, the first catches of his NFL career, but Barkley, playing through hamstring and back injuries, managed 30 yards on 13 carries. Elijah Mitchell added 34 on 11.

The Numbers Behind It

• 27 unanswered points for Washington after falling behind 10-0.
• 4 field goals for Stevens, including the 56-yarder.
• 0 turnovers for Daniels, who threw for 217 yards.
• 9 quarterback hits on McKee, per Pro Football Talk.
• 5 of 16 on third down for Philadelphia, per The Banner.
• 6 straight losses for the Eagles, their longest streak since 2012.

What It Means

For Washington, this was a release valve. The Commanders came in winless since September, and a team that lost all five of its late kickoffs last season finally won under the lights. Our preview picked Washington 23-16 behind a rested defense and Daniels' legs. The margin was bigger, and the pass rush did more of the work than we expected. The Commanders host the Rams on Nov. 8.

For Philadelphia, the bottom keeps dropping. A week after Dallas ran through them in a 38-21 loss, the Eagles sit last in the division with the trade deadline days away, and the offense has no answers without Hurts and DeVonta Smith, who missed this game with a hamstring injury. The Eagles host the Giants next.

Last Place Changes Hands

The night was billed as a fight to stay out of the cellar, and Washington won it by playing the less dramatic version of football. Philadelphia now owns last place alone, and with a home date against the first-place Giants up next, the Eagles need more than a hot first quarter to climb out.

Stats from the box score as published by Bleacher Report. Additional reporting from Pro Football Talk, The Baltimore Banner, the Delaware News Journal, OutKick and PhiladelphiaEagles.com.