Three must-see games for 2025 Washington Commanders

Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels had 299 yards and two scores for Washington that day, with another 51 yards on the ground. Lions quarterback Jared Goff threw for 313 yards and a touchdown but also threw a season-high three interceptions.

Expect Lions players to have revenge (and playoff seeding) on their minds when they visit Washington for the first time since 2019. 

Week 11 at Miami Dolphins

The NFL’s first game in Madrid, Spain, will mark Washington’s first overseas matchup since 2016, when it tied the Cincinnati Bengals 27-27 in front of a sold-out crowd of 84,488 at Wembley Stadium. This year’s game will be played at Bernabeu Stadium, home of Real Madrid CF.

Washington owns a 6-10 record against Miami (including playoffs) and lost its last meeting 45-15 at home in 2023. That year, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa threw for a career-best 4,624 yards and 29 touchdowns. It was also the only time he appeared in more than 13 games.

Wide receiver Tyreek Hill also had a career year with a league-high 1,799 yards in 2023, but struggled last season as the NFL’s 30th-ranked receiver with 959 yards. Assuming he doesn’t talk his way out of town by mid-November, look for him to battle the NFL’s third-ranked passing defense in what should be one of the season’s more memorable games.

Week 16 vs. Philadelphia Eagles

Turns out Philadelphia was the only thing standing between Washington and a trip to Super Bowl LIX last season. The Eagles held wide receiver Terry McLaurin to one catch for 10 yards in Week 11 (the teams' first meeting) while running back Saquon Barkley rushed for 146 yards and two touchdowns in a 26-18 victory at Lincoln Financial Field.

Barkley did even better with 150 yards and two scores in the rematch, but five touchdowns from Daniels and the absence of quarterback Jalen Hurts proved too much for the Eagles in a 36-33 road loss to the Commanders in Week 16. 

The "rubber match" came in last year’s NFC Championship Game, a 55-23 loss that saw Philadelphia outscore Washington 28-8 in the second half. 

Surely, the Commanders can’t wait to avenge their defeat, but if they don’t, both teams meet again in Week 18 to end the 2025 regular season.