The NFL season is at the business end and this weekend will see the climax of the NFC Division as the Washington Commanders take on the Philadelphia Eagles in the divisional championship game for a place in the Super Bowl.
The Commanders are on a historic run after reaching the playoffs for the first time since 2020 and have been the surprise team in the league, while the Eagles are one of the strongest outfits this season and will be strong favorites.
We’ll take a look at the clash between the two sides and provide you with our best free NFL betting picks to see if we can earn you some extra cash while you enjoy the action on the field.
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Washington were not expected to be among the contenders for a spot in the Super Bowl in 2025, but their performances over the course of the season mean they are more than deserving of their spot in the NFC Championship game.
Despite losing their opening game of the season against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Washington went 12-5 in the regular season and came second to the Eagles in the NFC East – earning them a Wild Card entry to the playoffs.
And they have been a real force in the post-season, showing that they have the tools to upset anyone on any given day.
Their first-round game saw them face off with the Buccs once more and claim a fantastic 23-20 win and progression to the next round. There they went toe-to-toe with the number one seed Detroit Lions and turned in arguably their best performance of the season as they won 45-31, in a game where they scored 28 points in the second quarter alone.
The Eagles are widely considered as one of the best and most complete teams in the entire NFL, and they haven’t disappointed with their performances this season.
A slow start saw them open the campaign 2-2 before a bye week, and after that they clicked into gear with ten straight wins and 12 wins from their next 13 games to win the NFC East. That was still only enough for a place in the Wild Card round though.
There they came up against the Green Bay Packers, where a top defensive performance saw them not concede a single point in the first half en route to earning a 22-10 victory.
That set up a clash with the Los Angeles Rams and despite what looks like a comfortable 28-22 victory on the scorecards, it was far from it. The Rams had the chance to score a touchdown in the final minute of the game only for a massive Jalen Carter sack to give them back the momentum, before an incomplete pass sealed their route to this stage of the season.
It’s an all-NFC East conference title game, with the Washington Commanders and Philadelphia Eagles playing for the third time this season and their previous fixtures being tied at one win each.
The Eagles won the first meeting of the season back in Week 11 with a 26-18 scoreline, while the Commanders snapped Philly’s ten-game winning streak with a stunning 36-33 win in Week 16.
But in this game, Philadelphia are in familiar territory after reaching the Super Bowl just two years ago. That could come in handy against a fledgling quarterback like Jayden Daniels.
Jalen Hurts got hurt in the win over the Rams and while he says he is fine there is some concern over his knee, while Saquon Barkley also battled through injury in the snow. However, if both can go at near full tilt then the expectation will be that the Eagles should have too much for Washington.
Philadelphia is a huge step up in defensive competition for the Commanders, who have defeated suspect stop units from Tampa Bay and Detroit. The Eagles have been among the better defenses in the league in the second half of the season and the Washington win earlier in the season came with Hurts off the field due to concussion.
As it stands, there is great value in Philadelphia making a second Super Bowl in three years and the price could go out later in the week as Hurts and Barkley’s status becomes clearer. Take the moneyline on the favorites.
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This is a bet based solely on value and the expectation that the market is going to move heavily later in the week.
As mentioned, Hurts’ knee injury against the Rams has got people concerned and the betting line of Over 47.5 is affected by that. Without him, Philadelphia simply aren’t as good and won’t score as many points.
However, there is hope he will be fine after managing to play through the pain barrier and if that is confirmed later in the week then this line is likely to move closer to the 50-point mark.
Washington have shown that they are capable of scoring points this season. They have scored 30+ points in a game on eight separate occasions, and 40+ on four occasions. Defensively they have been decent, but they’re also susceptible to lapses. They have conceded 20+ points on 11 occasions this season, including both of their playoff games so far.
The Eagles on the other hand have scored 30+ points six times this season and have conceded 20+ seven times, so there is scope even if the line moves that the over lands. But at 47.5 there is a far greater chance and the value is great. Take the Over now rather than waiting.
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About the Author
Daniel is a football writer who has a great thirst for the Premier League and other major European leagues. A lover of the beautiful game and a firm believer that the eye test is better than statistics. Also an avid MMA fan.
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