Commanders lock in on Eagles’ Barkley ahead of NFC championship

ASHBURN, Va. — The Washington Commanders know what they have to do against the Philadelphia Eagles. It’s the same thing they wanted to do in their first two meetings: stop Saquon Barkley. It’s also what they and every other team has failed to do all season.

“He does it against everybody,” Washington defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. said Thursday.

But for the Commanders (14-5) to beat the favored Eagles (15-3) at 3 p.m. ET Sunday, controlling Barkley will be a must.

In two games versus Washington, Barkley ran for a combined 296 yards and four touchdowns. But there was a wide disparity in his runs: Of his 55 runs, 26 gained 2 yards or fewer. But he also added three carries for 130 yards and three touchdowns.

Barkley rushed for 2,005 yards during the regular season and was in MVP consideration all year. Then, in a 28-22 win over the Los Angeles Rams in the divisional round of the playoffs, Barkley rushed 26 times for 205 yards and two touchdowns.

“You just try to contain him,” Washington linebacker Bobby Wagner said. “That’s going to be our challenge, to be disciplined the whole game. He has the talent to break a run at any given point, and we need to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

Washington’s defense ranked 30th in rushing yards allowed per game and 28th in yards per carry. The Commanders allowed 206 yards in a 26-18 loss at Philadelphia on Nov. 10 and 211 in a 36-33 win over the Eagles on Dec. 22.

“It’s hard to stop,” Washington coach Dan Quinn said.

The Commanders made it clear, too, that the Eagles’ offense is dangerous because of more than just Barkley. Quarterback Jalen Hurts rushed 13 times for 80 yards in five quarters against Washington (he sustained a concussion in the first quarter of the second meeting and didn’t return).

If Hurts struggles because of his knee injury sustained against the Rams, it could help Washington focus more on Barkley. However, the Commanders are counting on facing an effective Hurts and receivers such as DeVonta Smith and A.J. Brown. All of this behind a line considered by many to be the NFL’s best.

“There’s issues all over there that we have to make sure we take care of,” Whitt said.

And Whitt made it clear with how the Commanders wanted to defend Hurts.

“We’re going to treat him like a running back and hit him that way, so that’s their decision if they want to get him hit the way he gets hit. If they don’t, they’ll keep him in the pocket,” he said.

Not that the Eagles were surprised to hear those comments. Eagles coach Nick Sirianni said it’s what every team has tried to do.

“We already are ultimately cautious with how we use him and how we think about each play because we know how important it is to have him out there,” Sirianni said. “But I wouldn’t expect anything else. Jalen knows how to take care of himself, and we know how to help him do that as well as far as the way the scheme goes.”

But the Commanders’ focus will start with Barkley.

“Every single time that I’ve coached against him, he’s been the emphasis,” said Quinn, who faced Barkley six times as the defensive coordinator with the Dallas Cowboys. As a member of the New York Giants, Barkley averaged 49.3 rushing yards per game versus the Cowboys — and did not top 81.

But Quinn got a taste of what Barkley can do in November. After Washington held him to 70 yards on 20 carries entering the fourth quarter, Barkley gained 90 yards on 11 carries in the fourth — two of which resulted in touchdowns. In the second meeting, Barkley rushed for 123 yards and two touchdowns in the first half, with one score from 68 yards. But the Commanders held him to 27 yards on 16 carries in the second half.

“It’s the explosive plays that he can create,” Quinn said. “He’s also got rare change of direction. He has this quickness of a smaller back and the size of a big back. It’s an unusual combination, but it’s not the size alone of this guy that is so powerful. It’s both.”

Late in Whitt’s news conference Thursday, he was asked whether Barkley looked rejuvenated playing with Philadelphia after being with the Giants for his first six seasons.

Whitt replied: “He’s always looked good to me.”