Top photos from Eagles 55-23 win over Commanders in NFC Championship game

Top photos from Eagles 55-23 win over Commanders in NFC Championship game

The Eagles dominated every facet of the game and won the turnover battle while dominating the Commanders to advance to Super Bowl 59. Philadelphia rushed for seven touchdowns, including three scores each for Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley, blowing out their NFC East rival 55-23 at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday.

As preparations begin for the trip to New Orleans, we’re reviewing the top photos from the historic victory.

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Highlights from first half as Eagles hold a 27-15 lead over Commanders in NFC Championship game

Sights and sounds from first half as Eagles hold a 27-15 lead Commanders in NFC Championship game

The Washington Commanders have a young, ascending roster, and that youth showed in the first half. Costly penalties and crucial turnovers spurred the Eagles early on, giving them a 27-15 lead in the NFC Championship game.

Saquon Barkley’s two first-half touchdowns energized the Birds, and Jalen Hurts connected with A.J. Brown on a four-yard touchdown with 57 seconds left in the first half. We’re looking at the first-half highlights with the second half set to begin.

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Sights and sounds from first half as Eagles hold a 21-14 lead over the Commanders

Sights and sounds from first half as Eagles hold a 21-14 lead over the Commanders

A solid backup quarterback is the most important thing to an NFL team, and Kenny Pickett finally had his moment after Jalen Hurts was forced to exit with a concussion. The former Steelers first-round pick had one ugly interception but made some big throws as Philadelphia went into the half with a 2-14 lead.

An Eagles win would give Nick Sirianni, the head coach, his second NFC East title in four years.

Here are sights and sounds from the first half.

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Why Marshon Lattimore makes the Commanders defense much better

We look at how Marshon Lattimore makes Washington’s defense better. #RaiseHail

The Washington Commanders are the talk of the NFL. At 7-2 and residing atop the NFC East since Week 2, the Commanders feature one of the NFL’s top offenses, led by phenomenal rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels.

Here are Washington’s current offensive rankings:

  • Scoring: 3rd
  • Passing offense: 11th
  • Rushing offense: 3rd
  • Total offense: 3rd
  • FTN Offensive DVOA: 2nd

As you can see, the Commanders offense isn’t the problem. And while the defense has shown improvements in recent weeks, they’ve had issues stopping the run. Washington’s pass defense is currently ranked No. 5 in the NFL, but those numbers don’t tell the entire story.

When the Commanders face a team with an elite wide receiver, the pass defense struggles. Washington has had issues against Malik Nabers, Zay Flowers, Mike Evans, Chris Godwin and Ja’Marr Chase.

On Tuesday, the Commanders made a bold move, trading draft picks to the New Orleans Saints for four-time Pro Bowl cornerback Marshon Lattimore. The 28-year-old Lattimore immediately slots in as Washington’s No. 1 cornerback as the Commanders’ schedule ramps up with upcoming games against the Steelers, Eagles and Cowboys.

We know Lattimore’s history as one of the NFL’s best cornerbacks, but what’s he doing this season?

Lattimore is still playing at a high level, even though he’s dealt with a nagging hamstring injury this season.

Over the past four seasons, Lattimore’s numbers are even more impressive:

With Lattimore now in the burgundy and gold, the Commanders have six cornerbacks on the 53-man roster: Lattimore, Benjamin St-Juste, Emmanuel Forbes, Mike Sainristil, Noah Igbinoghene and Michael Davis.

In recent weeks, Washington has primarily used only St-Juste, Sainristil and Igbinoghene. Davis hasn’t played defense in weeks, while Forbes’ playing time continues to decrease.

It became increasingly clear that if the Commanders were going to be a contender, they’d need to improve at cornerback. Adding Lattimore allows Washington to move St-Juste into a No. 2 role while sliding the rookie Sainristil back inside at the slot position. Igbinoghene has also proven to be reliable and can play inside or outside. While Sainristil could be a Pro Bowl slot corner, he’s been impressive playing outside in recent weeks.

Washington plays Philadelphia in just over one week. The Eagles have two outstanding wideouts, A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith, but also a fantastic running game. If he’s healthy, Lattimore can be assigned to Brown. He’s known for traveling with No. 1 receivers, which allows Sainristil to match up with Smith. Sainristil is a better matchup for Smith than St-Juste, but that could vary from week to week. Having cornerbacks who can line up one on one allows defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. to commit extra resources to the run game.

The good news for Washington is that it now has four playable cornerbacks—five, depending on how you look at Forbes.

Tuesday’s NFL trade deadline was a massive victory for the Commanders.

Which Commanders player will wear No. 1 in 2024?

Who is wearing Jahan Dotson’s former No. 1 jersey in 2024?

When the NFL changed its rules regarding jersey numbers in 2021, some players were allowed to wear their college numbers in the pros. For instance, if a star receiver wore No. 1 in college, he no longer had to wear a number in the 10-19 or 80-89 range.

In 2022, the Washington Commanders selected Penn State wide receiver Jahan Dotson in the first round. Dotson quickly took the No. 1 jersey for Washington. In his rookie season, Dotson led the Commanders with seven touchdown receptions.

Dotson was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles last month after a disappointing second season and training camp. That immediately led to the question: Who would now wear No. 1 for Washington?

It’s a popular jersey number, and if the right player wears it, it could be a popular item for fans to buy.

We now have the answer.

Cornerback Noah Igbinoghene, who joined the Commanders in March, will wear No. 1 this season.

The 5-foot-11 Igbinoghene was a first-round pick of the Dolphins in 2020 and spent three seasons there before he was traded to the Cowboys. During his time in Dallas, Washington head coach Dan Quinn became acquainted with Igbinoghene. Igbinoghene had a solid training camp for the Commanders and can help the team on defense and special teams.

Many fans were disappointed with Igbinoghene wearing the No. 1. Some wanted to see rookie cornerback Mike Sainristil take the number, but Sainristil recently acquired his old college number (No. 0).

Former Cowboys CB Noah Igbinoghene signs with Commanders

From @ToddBrock24f7: The former 1st-round pick played sparingly for Dallas, mostly on special teams. He’s the 4th Cowboy to join the commanders this offseason.

The Cowboys’ two games with Washington in 2024 could look a lot like intrasquad scrimmages to Dallas fans.

The rival Commanders have signed free agent cornerback Noah Igbinoghene, as first reported Sunday by ESPN’s John Keim. The 24-year-old is the fourth former Cowboy this offseason to leave for Washington, joining Dorance Armstrong, Tyler Biadasz, and Dante Fowler Jr.

Igbinoghene is a former first-round draft pick, taken 30th overall by Miami in 2020 out of Auburn. After three mostly disappointing seasons with the Dolphins, he came to Dallas in a cornerback swap that sent Kelvin Joseph packing for South Beach.

The son of two Nigerian track and field Olympians, Igbinoghene scored the first points of the Cowboys’ 2023 season when he returned a blocked field goal attempt 58 yards in the season opener against the Giants.

But he was inactive for Week 2, as well as 11 more of the team’s 17-game regular-season schedule. He did see action in Dallas’s playoff loss to Green Bay, but Igbinoghene played just 118 total snaps with the Cowboys, the vast majority of them on special teams.

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Cowboys Wire will continue to update our free agency tracker with all the additions, departures, and re-signings leading up to the draft.

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Former Dolphins first-round pick lands with NFC East team

Former Dolphin lands in the NFC East.

While the attention of most Miami Dolphins fans are on the players that the team is bringing in for the 2024 season and beyond, it’s always good to check on where former Dolphins are heading to continue their careers.

On Sunday, according to ESPN’s John Keim, former Dolphins cornerback Noah Igbinoghene signed with the Washington Commanders.

Igbinoghene, 24, was selected by Miami with the 30th overall pick in the 2020 NFL draft and struggled mightily to find a role on defense during his three seasons with the team. In aqua and orange, he recorded 29 tackles, five passes defensed, two fumble recoveries and an interception.

During roster cuts last year, Igbinoghene was traded to the Dallas Cowboys for Kelvin Joseph, who appeared in just four games for Miami before being cut.

In Dallas, Igbinoghene appeared in five games, playing just 25 defensive snaps and 77 on special teams.

He’s still very young, so Washington is taking a flier on a player who did enough in college to get drafted in the first round with the hope that he can be a contributor on at least one of their units.

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5 free agents Saints fans should watch in Cowboys vs. Packers

5 pending free agents New Orleans Saints fans should watch in Sunday’s Dallas Cowboys vs. Green Bay Packers playoff game:

The New Orleans Saints are stuck watching the playoffs from home, but it’s a good opportunity for fans to scout some of the top players headed for free agency — and both the Dallas Cowboys and Green Bay Packers have some playmakers who could interest the Saints if they hit the open market.

Here are five pending free agents we’ll be looking for on Sunday afternoon:

Bowl predictions: Is a New Year’s Day bowl on the horizon?

ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura pictures Auburn facing a familiar bowl foe on New Year’s Day in his latest projection.

Auburn’s chance of making a bowl game has increased drastically over the last two weeks, and the experts at ESPN are confident that the Tigers will end the season with a respectable bowl bid.

ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach updated their bowl projections following week 10’s action, and both have given Auburn a favorable bowl outlook.

Bonagura’s prediction is the best one that Auburn has received to date. According to Bonagura’s calculations, the Tigers are poised to meet Wisconsin in the Reliaquest Bowl on New Year’s Day in Tampa, Florida. Heading into week 11, Wisconsin is 5-4 under first-year head coach Luke Fickell.

Auburn has an immense history with the Badgers in bowl games. Auburn and Wisconsin have played three times in bowl season, with the Badgers winning the last two games in 2006 and 2015. Auburn’s lone win over the Badgers came in 2003 when [autotag]Cadillac Williams[/autotag] and [autotag]Ronnie Brown[/autotag] each rushed for two scores in the Tigers’ 28-14 win over Wisconsin in the Music City Bowl.

Schlabach predicts that Auburn will play two days earlier in the TransPerfect Music City Bowl in Nashville against another Big Ten squad in Minnesota. The Tigers and Golden Gophers have met just once on the gridiron, which was the 2020 Outback Bowl. Auburn’s [autotag]Bo Nix[/autotag] threw for 176 yards and [autotag]Noah Igbinoghene[/autotag] had a 96-yard kickoff return, but the Tigers ultimately fell to Minnesota, 31-24. The game would ultimately be the final game for head coach [autotag]Gus Malzahn[/autotag].

Auburn is currently 5-4 and needs just one more win to qualify for a bowl game. The Tigers have three chances to earn at least one more win, starting this Saturday at Arkansas.

Contact/Follow us @TheAuburnWire on  X (Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Auburn news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Taylor on Twitter @TaylorJones__

LOOK: Cowboys open season with blocked field goal TD

The Cowboys’ special teams opens up the scoring on the season with a special play in Gotham.

Mike McCarthy made it a point early in the offseason to mention the second-year jump UDFA safety Juanyeh Thomas had made. Therefore it was no surprise for those paying attention when the Georgia Tech product made the 53-man roster.

Active for the first time in his career, it took exactly one drive for Thomas to make an impact. After the Giants drove into the red zone, Thomas came up and stopped Saquon Barkley for a no-gain rush. A few plays later the Giants were kicking a field goal when Thomas came through with the block. Noah Igbinoghene, traded for right before the season began, scooped the ball and raced 58 yards for the season’s opening score.

Dallas missed the extra point when rookie Brandon Aubrey pushed it wide left and Dallas has an early 6-0 lead.