The Commanders led the Eagles 17-10 at halftime on Sunday and had a 24-17 lead early in the fourth quarter.
But then Philadelphia rolled off 210 straight points, aided by an interception and a turnover on downs. The Eagles moved to 7-1 with a 38-31 victory.
After the game, second-year receiver Jahan Dotson lamented how the Commanders fared in the biggest moments of the game.
“It’s crazy because we keep having these one-score games come down to the wire and we look back on it and there’s a moment in the game where we just flinch,” Dotson said, via Nicki Jhabvala of the Washington Post. “The whole team, we flinch. And in this league, you can’t do that. If you want to be a great team, you can’t blink, you can’t flinch. You got to play four quarters every snap, every down, like it’s your last.
“That’s what separates the good teams and the great teams. You don’t flinch and you make plays when you need them. We, literally, seemed like we were one play away two games in a row [against the Eagles]. So, we got to just capitalize on those opportunities and when our best is needed, we got to be at our best.”
Dotson had his best game as a pro, catching eight passes for 108 yards with a touchdown. Quarterback Sam Howell also performed well, completing 39-of-52 passes for 397 yards with four touchdowns and an interception. But the offense couldn’t make the plays in the fourth quarter to defeat a division rival, making for a second close defeat to the Eagles in October.