Eagles-Commanders matchups: Two Eagles game-changers have an edge. Will they be the difference?

Three playoff games, three repeat opponents. This one, however, is a rubber match.

The Eagles host their NFC East rivals, the Washington Commanders, at 3 p.m. on Sunday in the NFC championship game after the teams split their regular-season series, the home team winning each contest.

It is the fourth time in the 2000s that divisional opponents will meet in the NFC title game, and the first all-NFC East matchup since the New York Giants faced Washington with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line in January 1987.

The Eagles separated themselves from the upstart Commanders with their 26-18 win over Washington in Week 11, although the Commanders got revenge on Dec. 22, when rookie sensation Jayden Daniels authored a late comeback win, 36-33, over an Eagles team that lost Jalen Hurts to a concussion early in the first quarter.

Who wins when it matters most? Here are five matchups that could make the difference.

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The Eagles’ best defensive player, who helped them get here with multiple sacks and a key forced fumble Sunday vs. the Los Angeles Rams, should be licking his lips.

Jalen Carter will likely be spending Sunday going up against a tackle, Trent Scott, who is playing out of position after the Commanders lost right guard Sam Cosmi to a torn ACL during their divisional-round win in Detroit on Saturday night.

Washington doesn’t have much depth in the interior part of its offensive line to begin with, and now it may be asking Scott, who turns 31 on Saturday and has mostly been a backup, to be the primary blocker against one of the game’s best defensive tackles.

Carter already made life tough for Cosmi when the teams met twice this season. Expect the Commanders to give Scott — or whoever gets the call at right guard — help, which could have the domino effect of other Eagles pass rushers getting home.

If Carter is the biggest game-changer on the defensive side of the ball, it’s Saquon Barkley and the Eagles’ offensive line on the other.

Barkley used touchdown runs of 62 and 78 yards to help the Eagles reach the NFC championship game with a team postseason-record 205 rushing yards Sunday in the 28-22 victory over the Rams.

Next up: Washington’s 30th-ranked run defense.

Barkley has gone over 100 yards in all but five of the 18 games he has played in his first season with the Eagles, and neither of the previous matchups against the Commanders was one of the five.

Barkley and the offensive line wore the Commanders down in the second half during the Nov. 14 game, when he had 146 yards and two scores on 26 carries. In Week 16, Barkley went for 150 yards on 29 carries and another two touchdowns. But there’s a big asterisk on that second stat line. Take out Barkley’s 68-yard touchdown run and it was just 82 yards on 28 carries, an average of 2.9 yards per rush.

Once Hurts left that second game, the Commanders were successful at slowing down the running game. It’s clear that Hurts’ ability to run, or at least the threat of him running, is a critical component of the Eagles offense. More will be known about Hurts’ potential limitations after he injured his left knee Sunday vs. the Rams, but if he’s not able to move around like he normally can, Washington could be able to at least try to replicate its success against the run from last month.

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If the Commanders win, it will be because their special rookie quarterback did special things. Just like he did on Dec. 22, when he threw three touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, including a 9-yard pass to Jamison Crowder in the end zone in the final seconds.

Daniels is going to be named the top offensive rookie this season for good reason. Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said Daniels was probably one of the best rookie quarterbacks he has ever seen.

“He’s a rookie by birth certificate, but not by tape,” Fangio said.

Daniels threw for 25 touchdowns against nine interceptions during the regular season while running for 891 yards and another six scores. The Eagles did well against him in their home win, limiting Daniels to 191 yards passing — and one of those nine interceptions — and just 18 yards on the ground. But the second time around was much different as Daniels threw a season-high five touchdown passes and added 81 yards with his feet.

The Eagles have their hands full, and they’re without off-ball linebacker Nakobe Dean. Oren Burks played a lot better Sunday than he did after Dean went down a week earlier with a knee injury vs. Green Bay. Burks will need to be even better Sunday given the importance of the linebacker against a dual-threat player like Daniels.

» READ MORE: Eagles-Rams takeaways: The Birds are Super Bowl favorites going into championship Sunday. Should they be?

The status of Quinyon Mitchell is sort of up in the air. Nick Sirianni understandably gave no update Monday when asked how the rookie cornerback was feeling after leaving Sunday’s game with a shoulder injury. Sirianni as usual will let Wednesday’s practice report tell the story.

Mitchell had arguably his best game during the first Eagles-Commanders contest. He was on Pro Bowl receiver Terry McLaurin for 20 routes, according to Next Gen Stats, and Daniels didn’t throw McLaurin’s way once.

But McLaurin got the rookie back in December, burning him with a 32-yard touchdown up the left sideline. The Eagles did relatively well vs. McLaurin that day, holding him to five catches and 60 yards.

They’ll need to play McLaurin well to win, regardless of Mitchell’s status, although Daniels has had success spreading the ball around.

The Eagles turned one of their biggest weaknesses from 2023 into a relative strength during the 2024 season. They have played much better against the blitz.

That sort of flipped Sunday, when the Rams were able to apply pressure to Hurts. The pass rush in general found a way to get to the Eagles quarterback, sacking him seven times.

There were a few factors at play there, including Hurts’ mobility after the knee injury, the weather, and the way offensive coordinator Kellen Moore called the game. Regardless, the Eagles weren’t as effective blocking blitzers.

Washington’s Frankie Luvu, most known for being in on the tackle that knocked Hurts out of the Week 16 game with a concussion, has been impactful when blitzing. Dante Fowler led the Commanders with 10½ sacks from a more traditional edge rusher spot, but Luvu racked up eight sacks, including two during the Nov. 14 game vs. the Eagles.

Hurts’ mobility is a factor here, too. Will the Commanders send more rushers his way to try to make him uncomfortable? If they do, Barkley & Co. will need to give Hurts some help.

» READ MORE: Five Commanders players Eagles fans should know ahead of the NFC title game