Commanders derail sloppy Eagles' perfect season

PHILADELPHIA -- The Eagles had their undefeated streak snapped successful a chaotic "Monday Night Football" crippled against the Commanders, successful which a captious missed telephone by the referees helped Washington to a 32-21 win.

On a third-and-1 aboriginal successful the 4th quarter, with the Eagles trailing by two, Jalen Hurts completed a walk to choky extremity Dallas Goedert for a would-be archetypal down. Linebacker Jamin Davis intelligibly grabbed and pulled Goedert's facemask arsenic helium attempted to tackle him, and a simultaneous deed by antiaircraft tackle John Ridgeway knocked the shot loose.

Washington recovered, and tacked connected a 55-yard Joey Slye tract extremity to up the pb to six. The Eagles had 2 much opportunities to reply but their champion accidental was ruined by different turnover, this 1 connected a Quez Watkins fumble pursuing a 51-yard completion. Watkins deed the ground, popped up and took disconnected running, lone to fumble the shot and springiness Washington possession.

After signaling lone 3 turnovers successful the archetypal 8 games, the Eagles had 4 Monday night. And the costly miscues didn't extremity there.

Eagles antiaircraft extremity Brandon Graham was flagged for a precocious unnecessary roughness telephone connected Commanders QB Taylor Heinicke that extended Washington's thrust and led to the last score.

"I was conscionable trying to interaction him down, due to the fact that it conscionable looked similar helium was going to get up. You conscionable ne'er know. But that's connected me. I ain that one. That's connected me," Graham said.

NFL referee Alex Kemp told a excavation newsman Graham was penalized due to the fact that Heinicke "had intelligibly fixed himself up.''

"Therefore, helium is down and a defenseless player. The interaction by Philadelphia No. 55 was not lone late, but besides to the caput and cervix area,'' Kemp said.

Said Heinicke: "We called for a slant for Terry [McLaurin] and if helium was open, get it to him. I was not going to propulsion it unless helium was wide-open. I didn't privation thing brainsick to happen. When I took that genu and I saw them inactive coming astatine me, I was hoping they'd deed maine and definite capable they did truthful it was a mistake connected their end."

Eagles manager Nick Sirianni said calls, missed oregon otherwise, weren't what outgo his squad the game.

"I deliberation whether the calls were atrocious oregon good, oregon immoderate it was, erstwhile you play the mode we did contiguous connected each 3 phases ... it does look similar everything's going against you. And we played similar crap. We didn't bash a bully capable occupation ... We made our ain luck today, and it was bad."

Asked wherefore determination was nary facemask telephone connected the Goedert fumble, Kemp replied, "We didn't spot a look disguise connected the field."

Philadelphia became the archetypal squad successful franchise past to scope the 8-0 people with a triumph implicit the Houston Texans connected Thursday but was incapable to widen the streak.

"I cognize guys got agelong faces, but maine personally -- of people I privation to triumph -- but present each this 17-0 s--- is implicit with. Now we're going to aftermath up -- however are you going to respond?" said Eagles receiver A.J. Brown, who had a drawback sound disconnected his hands and crook into an interception. "This is simply a crippled that we each emotion to play and sometimes you get deed successful the mouth. How bash you respond? ... I anticipation we get up and commencement warring backmost and I consciousness similar we will."

Hurts offered akin sentiments.

"I deliberation successful the extremity it's astir however you respond, careless of what's successful beforehand of you," Hurts said. "How bash you respond to this scenario, however bash you respond to that scenario. How bash you respond to the feeling of joy, however bash you respond to the feeling of pain?"

In summation to the turnovers, the Eagles besides got a subpar effort from their unreserved defense, peculiarly aboriginal successful the game. Operating without rookie antiaircraft tackle Jordan Davis, who is connected injured reserve with a precocious ankle sprain, Philadelphia yielded 100 unreserved yards connected 29 carries successful the archetypal fractional alone, with Washington gobbling up 23:49 successful clip of possession successful the process. Philadelphia's 6:11 connected possession was its shortest since Week 6 of 2001 against the New York Giants and the lowest by immoderate squad successful the archetypal fractional of a crippled successful the past 5 seasons, according to ESPN Stats & Information research.

The Eagles trailed 20-14 aft 2 quarters, marking the archetypal clip they trailed astatine the fractional each season.

For Washington, it capped different antithetic week, 1 that saw it sued by the lawyer wide successful Washington, D.C., and criticized for a statement it made a nighttime earlier that referenced the shooting of moving backmost Brian Robinson Jr. erstwhile trying to antagonistic an announcement by the AG's office.

"Our guys understand," Washington manager Ron Rivera said Thursday. "There's definite elements that we tin control. That's what happens connected the shot tract much truthful than thing else. So let's conscionable effort to enactment focused connected that much truthful than thing else."

The absorption was determination Monday night.

Washington controlled the shot for much than 38 minutes due to the fact that of its rushing attack. Both moving backs, Robinson and Antonio Gibson, rushed for touchdowns. And the Commanders besides received a large crippled from McLaurin, who had 128 yards receiving.

The triumph capped an affectional week for Rivera. His parent died 2 weeks ago, and helium flew to California connected Tuesday for her funeral, returning Wednesday night. After Monday's game, helium tried to code his team, but couldn't get the words out. He held a shot aloft arsenic the players shouted.

Finally, arsenic helium pumped the ball, Rivera said, "My parent would person been proud." He hardly got the past connection retired arsenic helium turned and walked away, tears forming successful his eyes that were inactive reddened arsenic helium addressed the media.

Washington besides was coming disconnected a last-second nonaccomplishment to Minnesota past week. It's wherefore the locker country was truthful raucous aft the game, with singing and dancing not often witnessed successful a Commanders postgame scene.

"It meant a batch due to the fact that the guys were capable to enactment focused," Rivera said. "It resonates with these guys, the hard enactment is opening to wage off."

"Coming into this crippled we felt we had an opportunity," Rivera said. "We told the guys don't interest what's going connected retired there, conscionable enactment focused connected what's important; I'll grip each the absorbing stuff. They did that. We went into it with the attitude, 'Don't beryllium surprised.'"

Information from The Associated Press was included successful this report.