Eagles at Commanders NFL DFS Value Picks for Sunday Night Football

The season started with so much promise for the Philadelphia Eagles, but even in a pair of victories, the offense could only muster 24 points in each contest while the defense allowed over 100 yards rushing in both games.

Then things spiraled out of control. Philadelphia has dropped five straight games and is now without Jalen Hurts. Last week, the team looked listless on both sides of the ball in a 38-21 loss to the Dallas Cowboys, who rushed for 204 yards.

The offensive line is ranked 22nd per PFF, and they haven’t protected Tanner McKee. DeVonta Smith is out with an injury, Saquon Barkley is banged up and backup running Dameon Pierce was just put on injured reserve. Elijah Mitchell could be getting meaningful snaps in this one. It’s getting thin in the Eagles running back room.

The defense has talented pieces, but the unit as a whole has been underwhelming. Philadelphia is ranked 28th in pressure rate and the eight sacks are second-fewest while the three turnovers forced are tied for the least in the NFL. On a positive note, opposing quarterbacks are only completing 59.8 percent of passes, but the Eagles have still surrendered 11 passing touchdowns. The rush defense has allowed 4.2 yards per carry, 131.4 yards per game and nine touchdowns this season.

On the other side, it’s been a disaster of a season for Washington with four losses and a tie. Strangely enough, the lone win was against the defending champion Seattle Seahawks with Marcus Mariota at quarterback.

Jayden Daniels has only played four games but he’s been solid under center the last two weeks, completing 70.8 percent of his passes for 499 yards and two touchdowns. His passer rating is 103.3 while his average yards per attempt is 8.3. Daniels has also rushed 13 times for 113 yards and two touchdowns.

Jacory Croskey-Merritt leads Washington with 67 carries for 239 yards and two touchdowns on the season, but he’s been on injured reserve since Week 6 and isn’t expected back for this one. That means Rachaad White should dominate the snaps after rushing seven times for 27 yards and catching four of five targets for 30 yards and a touchdown last week.

Wide receiver Terry McLaurin is on the injured reserve, so Stefon Diggs, Antonio Williams and Treylon Burks will be the triumvirate for Daniels. In Week 6, Diggs received seven targets, while Burks tallied six and Williams saw four. Tight end Chig Okonkwo got seven targets as well, so he could find his way into the game plan this week.

Defensively, Washington is 24th in pressure rate and the 11 sacks are tied for the fifth-fewest. The eight turnovers are middle-of-the-pack. Opposing quarterbacks are completing 66.2% of passes while the passer rating is 105. 15 passing touchdowns have been allowed, the third-most, and the 254 yards per game are the fifth-most. On the ground, the Commanders stop unit has allowed 4.0 yards per carry and 100.5 yards per game.

Looking at the odds for Sunday Night Football, the Commanders are 6-point home favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Eagles are +205 underdogs, with the game total set at 40.5 points. Let’s get into some of my favorite DFS plays for this NFC East matchup.

Set your DraftKings fantasy football lineups here: NFL Showdown $1M Sunday Night Showdown [$250K to 1st] (PHI @ WAS)

NFL DFS Value Picks for Eagles at Commanders Week 8

RB Austin Ekeler, Washington Commanders ($3,000)

Since joining the Commanders in Week 4, Ekeler has only played 27%, 10% and 10% of the snaps. He rushed a total of eight times while receiving five targets in the pass game. There’s a chance he gets more work, though, with Jacory Crosky-Merritt on injured reserve. Ekeler has chemistry with Daniels from the 2024 season when they played together. Dan Quinn recently expressed confidence in Ekeler as well, which bodes well for the veteran in this one.

WR Marquise Brown, Philadelphia Eagles ($4,800)

Brown played 55% of the snaps last week, garnering five targets. Granted, he only caught two for 30 yards, but with the Eagles wide receiver depth chart decimated by injury, Brown should be on the field plenty and get looks.

WR Dyami Brown, Washington Commanders ($3,400)

Speaking of decimated wide receiver depth charts, the Commanders lost Terry McLaurin and now Treylon Burks did not practice on Thursday. Brown has played around 50% of the snaps all season and caught nine of 16 targets on the season for 94 yards. He could see a few more targets in this one.