The Eagles won the NFC East again last season, but it never felt easy. The offense sputtered, the questions kept piling up, and everything finally caught up with them in a 19-point Wild Card loss to the San Francisco 49ers.

Now, Philadelphia’s trying to fix it. The team changed offensive coordinators again and traded A.J. Brown to the New England Patriots. Now Sean Mannion has the job of installing a more motion-heavy, under-center offense. DeVonta Smith's now the clear No. 1 receiver, and even offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland's gone after 13 seasons.

That’s a lot of change for a team that still expects to compete for the conference title. But the Eagles couldn’t ask for a much better first test. Their opener against Washington should tell us pretty quickly whether this new offense has actually fixed anything — or if Philadelphia’s still trying to solve the same old problems.

The Eagles Don’t Need To Get Cute

The Eagles finished 24th in total offense and 19th in scoring last season. Saquon Barkley still ran for 1,140 yards, which would be a great season for most running backs, but it was also 865 fewer yards than he had in his first year with Philadelphia.

Washington’s defense looks like the perfect matchup for getting Barkley back on track. The Commanders gave up an NFL-worst 2,411 rushing yards last season and watched Barkley run for 132 yards in Philadelphia’s Week 16 win.

To be fair, Washington didn’t just shrug at the problem. New defensive coordinator Daronte Jones is bringing a disguise-heavy system that he got from his time with Brian Flores in Minnesota, and the Commanders added some much-needed speed. First-round linebacker Sonny Styles can get after the quarterback or drop into coverage, and then Frankie Luvu, Odafe Oweh, and K’Lavon Chaisson give Jones plenty of options to move around.

That could make things a little messy early for an Eagles offense running Mannion’s system for the first time. It shouldn’t change the basic plan, though. Philadelphia still has Jordan Mailata, Landon Dickerson, Cam Jurgens, Tyler Steen, and Lane Johnson up front. If Washington wants to play with lighter boxes and move defenders around before the snap, the Eagles should run right at them until the Commanders prove they can stop it.

The passing game has more to prove. Brown topped 1,000 yards in all four of his seasons in Philadelphia, and there isn’t one player who’s going to replace everything he brought to the offense. Smith moves into the No. 1 role and Dontayvion Wicks gets the first shot opposite him. So it's not like they're out of options. They've also got Hollywood Brown and rookie Makai Lemon too.

A solid afternoon from Barkley would make life easier for all of those guys.

Jayden Daniels Is Why This Won’t Feel Comfortable

Washington’s 5-12 record from last season doesn’t tell the whole story. Daniels played only seven games because of knee, hamstring, and elbow injuries. He finished with 1,262 passing yards, eight touchdowns, and three interceptions before the Commanders shut him down in December after he aggravated a dislocated left elbow.

This will be Daniels’ first action since then, and his first against Philadelphia since the NFC Championship Game after the 2024 season. Eagles fans probably don’t need much of a reminder about what he looks like when he’s healthy. He threw five touchdown passes in that comeback win over Philadelphia, then led the Commanders to within one game of the Super Bowl before the Eagles forced four turnovers and won 55-23.

Daniels also finally has a real second option next to Terry McLaurin. Washington signed Stefon Diggs after another 1,000-yard season, then added tight end Chig Okonkwo and running back Rachaad White to an offense now run by first-time coordinator David Blough. The Commanders want to use more motion and under-center snaps, which should give Daniels more easy answers instead of making him create something out of nothing every time.

The bigger question is whether he’ll have enough time to use any of those answers. Laremy Tunsil tore his triceps during camp, and starting center Nick Allegretti missed most of August with a calf strain.

And then there’s the Philadelphia front that they'll have to deal with. Jalen Carter and Jordan Davis were already a problem before the Eagles added Jonathan Greenard and A.J. Epenesa. Daniels can make a clean rush disappear with one scramble, because that’s just what he does. But if Washington keeps putting him in third-and-long, he’ll have to play superhero all afternoon. That’s usually when a close game starts getting away from you.

This Could Be An Ugly Start

There’s probably going to be some Week 1 weirdness here. Both offenses have new coordinators and neither team played their starters much in August. The first quarter might look less like two division rivals settling a score and more like two teams trying to remember where they’re supposed to line up.

Philadelphia should be better equipped to deal with that. The Eagles have the better offensive line, the more established defense, and home-field advantage. Hurts doesn’t need to have every part of Mannion’s offense figured out right away if Barkley keeps the chains moving and Vic Fangio’s front makes Daniels work from a crowded pocket.

Washington’s best chance is to force an early mistake, let Daniels extend a few drives, and make Philadelphia chase points before the passing game really gets comfortable. That’s not a crazy scenario. Daniels is good enough to make any confident Eagles prediction feel a little reckless.

I just don’t think Washington will hold up at the line of scrimmage for four quarters. Philadelphia’s new offense might take some time to show what they can become, but the Eagles’ old strengths should be enough to get them through Week 1.

Prediction: Eagles 27, Commanders 20.

Washington and Philadelphia will kick off Sunday, September 13th, at 4:25 p.m. ET on FOX and FOX One.

All stats courtesy of NFL Pro.

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