The Eagles suffered their first loss since September today, falling for just the third time this season at the hands of the division-rival Commanders. While Washington finally earned a win over a team with a current winning record, many will likely put an asterisk on the result because Eagles starting quarterback Jalen Hurts only played for one and a half drives. 
Hurts exited the game early in the first quarter after Commanders linebacker Bobby Wagner brought him down following a 13-yard run. As Hurts was taken to the ground, his helmet made solid contact with the turf, triggering the officials to pull him off the field before the next play. This forced Philadelphia to send in backup passer Kenny Pickett, and shortly after, Hurts was ruled out for the remainder of the game with a concussion.
Concussions aren’t usually reported on too heavily. This is partially due to the fact that the range of recovery times for concussions is a wide span. We’ve seen plenty of players go through the NFL’s concussion protocol in days and not miss any time. This year, though, we’ve frequently seen examples of concussions landing player on injured reserve. If the severity of Hurts’ injury is anywhere near the latter situation, that could prove detrimental for the Eagles.
This is just speculation, as we won’t know the full situation until further tests are run. Should the injury affect Hurts’ availability in the coming weeks, it could cost Philadelphia a chance at a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the playoffs. And if he’s forced to miss more than two weeks, he could miss time in the playoffs, as well. The team is one win (or one Commanders loss) away from securing a home playoff game, so they may not be able to afford to rest Hurts, despite their remaining two games being against the banged-up Cowboys and the lowly Giants.
A little rest could do Hurts some good, though, as a recent report from John Clark of NBC Philadelphia discloses that a broken finger on Hurts’ left hand has been affecting his play, mostly his ball security. The division-winners that currently hold the 3- and 4-seeds in the NFC won’t be able to catch up to the Eagles’ 12 wins, so if Philadelphia is willing to accept the 2-seed behind Detroit (the Lions only need one win in their final two games to secure home-field advantage for the playoffs) they may be able to allow Hurts some time for rest and recovery.
This game was rigged from the start. What a joke.
Washington turned the ball over 5 times and had a ton of penalties. If you can’t win with those numbers, that’s not rigged, you just didn’t play well enough. HTTR!
Rigged? They got beat. Get over it. Might be a wake up call.
Minnesota gets the 1-seed if they win out.
An asterisk on the Commanders’ big win? Not when Jayden Daniels throws 5 TD passes, the last of them to Jamison Crowder to win the game with 6 seconds left.
Eagles missing out on a first-round bye? Philadelphia has a worse conference record than both Detroit and Minnesota, which would be the first applicable tie-breaker. And the Lions host the Vikings in Week 18.
One final thought: Washington’s come-from-behind win eliminated Dallas and San Francisco from contention before those 2 teams took the field.