Commanders did exactly what they said they couldn't do against the Eagles yet still won the game

When talking about what had to be avoided against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 16, the Washington Commanders made it very clear that the offense had to avoid bad plays on first and second down and that the defense had to stop Saquon Barkley. 

"I would say, like I said, after the [first] game, I got to do a better job of getting the ball out, eliminating [negative plays on] first down and stuff like that to help out the o-line," Jayden Daniels told reporters on Wednesday.

"That's why I think the first and second down part of this game, I'm not going to say it's as important as third down, because that, you know, extends [the drive]. But winning on first and second down is a big piece of this," Dan Quinn said, as well.

"Avoid negative plays. I thought that was really our Achilles heel the first time," Kliff Kingsbury told reporters on Thursday. "[There were] some first and second down sacks. Obviously, we turned the ball over... "Against this team, if you're in second and long or third and long throughout the game, it's gonna be tough sledding because they got some guys up front that can rush the passer or they can play shell coverage and make it a long, long day for you."

Well, it's safe to say that they failed to do that during Sunday's game, yet they still managed to pull out a win. From the start, Jayden Daniels and the Commanders offense couldn't get anything going and Barkley ran through Dan Quinn's defense like Santa Claus runs through cookies on Christmas Eve.

Daniels and co. ran 22 plays on first and second down in the first half and the offense managed just 95-yards, committed three turnovers, and had six incompletions. 51 of those 95-yards came in the form of a pass to Dyami Brown, so things would've looked way worse if that didn't happen. Before the final game-winning drive, the Commanders had recorded just 192-yards on 38 1st and 2nd down plays. That included four turnovers, 10 incompletions, and a touchdown.

Things were just as bad on the other side of the ball, as Barkley ran for 109-yards and two touchdowns in the first quarter, alone.

But it didn't matter. Daniels and the Commanders defense took things into their own hands and made just enough plays to win the game. The rookie sensation threw four touchdowns and the defense shut Barkley down in the second half, allowing him to rush for just 31-yards on 15 carries.

And on the flip side, Daniels and co. recorded 52-yards and a touchdown (excluding Daniels' first down spike) on seven 1st and 2nd down plays during the game's final drive. The touchdown was the game-winner to Jamison Crowder, of course.

It's easily the Commanders' biggest win of the year and the race for the NFC East is still open for the taking. Somehow, some way, Washington found a way to win when it mattered most and now the last three weeks of the season will be very interesting if Jalen Hurts misses more time due to the concussion he suffered in this game.