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The Eagles were flying sky-high with a 10-game winning streak coming into Landover last Sunday. Washington shot them down with a 5-touchdown performance on a day when the Commanders kept trying to gift the ballgame to Philly with 5 turnovers.
This week, on Sunday Night Football, the Atlanta Falcons visit Landover. The 8-7 Falcons sit in first-place in the NFC South by virtue of holding the tie-breaker over the 8-7 Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Atlanta suffered a 4-game losing streak in November and December, and then benched starter Kirk Cousins after he was only able to help his offense put 15 points on the scoreboard against the Raiders in Week 15.
Last week, rookie Michael Penix Jr. looked good in his first-ever NFL start as the Falcons romped a listless Giants team 34-7. The Falcons defense scored two touchdowns on a pair of pick-sixes thrown by Drew Lock as the Giants’ losing streak extended to ten games.
The Falcons will be looking for a win to remain atop the NFC South, while the Commanders will be trying to clinch an NFC wildcard playoff spot. Both teams are up against the same opponent — the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Bucs are the only team that can surpass the Commanders for the 7th seed in the NFC playoffs, and they are also the only team that can unseat Atlanta for the NFC South crown.
Clinching a playoff berth
If Tampa Bay loses to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday, then Washington is in the playoffs regardless of the outcome vs the Falcons, and Atlanta would get some breathing room in the division race. Since the Buccaneers play at 1pm, while the Commanders and Falcons play on Sunday night, the outcome of the Panthers-Bucs game will already be known before kickoff of Sunday Night Football.
That doesn’t make a Commanders win meaningless, however.
The 6th seed
Firstly, if the Commanders can finish the season with two wins while the Packers finish 1-1, then Washington would get the 6th seed, which would mean they would probably open up the playoffs against the Rams in LA instead of a return trip to Philadelphia. The Packers visit the Vikings at 4:25pm, so the outcome of that important game will also be known before kickoff of SNF.
Breaking the 10-win ceiling
Secondly, Washington has the opportunity to achieve its first 11- or 12-win season since the Super Bowl season of 1991, which would be significant for the fan base and generate confidence and momentum heading into the playoffs.
The NFC East division title
Thirdly, if the Eagles lose to the Cowboys in their 1pm game, which is possible given the way Dallas has been playing and the absence of Jalen Hurts (concussion), then Washington would still be mathematically alive in the race for the NFC East title. Again, the outcome of the Eagles game will be known before kickoff.
In short, Washington is motivated to play well and beat the Falcons. With Penix starting and playing in his second-ever NFL game, the Commanders have the challenge of facing a relatively unknown player, but the opportunity that comes with facing a relatively inexperienced player.
Commanders fan confidence
In this week’s Reacts survey, we asked the readers of Hogs Haven to answer the question that we’ve asked every week of the season: Are you confident in the direction of the Commanders?
Confidence, as expressed in our Reacts survey, has been high all season, dipping below 92% only two times in 17 weeks. This week, following the victory over the Eagles in which Washington scored 36 points against the NFL’s top defense, confidence went up by one percent from last week’s level of 96%.
National Reacts survey
In addition to the surveys we post on this site, SB Nation sends weekly email surveys to registered participants who are fans of all 32 NFL teams. They ask a variety of questions during the season, but one regular feature is to ask fans to pick each week’s games against the spread.
The good news is that 84% of respondents not only picked the Commanders to win, but to cover a 4.5-point spread.
Here at Hogs Haven, we run a pair of weekly prediction contests, and entrants clearly have faith in Washington to take care of business in the prime-time Sunday Night game.
One hundred percent of our admittedly partisan entrants predict a Commanders victory. Let’s hope that the fans, both nationally and here on Hogs Haven, are calling this one right.
Other key games of interest to Commanders fans this week
What did fans in the national email survey have to say about the other three key games that will be played on Sunday afternoon?
These surveys offer mixed results compared to what most Commanders fans would likely be hoping for.
Bucs keep the pressure on
The survey results predict a win for Tampa Bay over the Carolina Panthers, a team that has been playing well lately. If the fans are correct, then this simply means that the Commanders need to win one of the final two games vs the Falcons or Cowboys to clinch a playoff berth. Since the plan is for the Commanders to win both, this result wouldn’t be a disaster; it would merely keep the stakes high for both Washington and Atlanta to win on Sunday night.
Vikings open a door
The prediction that the favored Vikings will beat the visiting Packers is very interesting. Once again, if this were to happen, then Washington would move into the 6th seed in the NFC with a victory over the Falcons on Sunday night.
Eagles slam a door shut
The least significant of these three predicted outcomes is the prediction that Philadelphia will win at home against the Cowboys. If they do, they clinch the NFC East title and the #2 seed in the playoffs. While a loss by the Eagles opens the door for the Commanders to steal the NFC title by beating the Cowboys in Week 18, for Washington to win the division, the Eagles would also have to lose to the Giants in Philly to close the regular season — an event that seems too remote to contemplate. Still, I’d love to see the Cowboys get the win here, hurting their 2025 draft position and making Eagles fans sweat right up to the end.
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