PHILADELPHIA -- With a win against the Washington Commanders on Saturday, the Philadelphia Eagles can become the first NFC East team since 2004 to win back-to-back division titles.
"Being in this division for the last eight years, we know how tough it is, so to do something that hasn't been done in 20 years is pretty cool," said running back Saquon Barkley. "But that can't be the focus. Obviously, that's the goal. The focus has to be on the little things. We put ourselves in position to do it, now we have to go take advantage of it."
The defending champs have had a bit of a turbulent season, particularly on the offensive side of the ball.
But they've managed to claw their way to a 9-5 record while facing one of the more difficult schedules in the league and are heavy favorites to win the NFC East over the 6-7-1 Dallas Cowboys.
The Eagles are coming off a dominant 31-0 win over the Las Vegas Raiders in which the defense yielded just 75 yards while the offense racked up 183 rushing yards and possessed the ball for nearly 40 minutes.
"I think we're super close [to starting to play our best football] and that's important. Everyone gets caught up in how well teams are playing in the first five games, the first half of the season. None of that matters," Barkley said. "Obviously it does matter because you have to give yourself a chance to compete for the playoffs and compete to win your division, but if you look at some of those teams that were the guys or the teams halfway through the year, they're falling off.
"It's a long season, it's hard. Everything that we want is still out in front of us and we can finish the season the way we want to."
Philadelphia is 2-2 versus NFC East opponents this season, with both losses coming on the road. The Eagles have not lost all their road division games since 2020. A win at Washington would keep that trend going, while securing their fifth playoff appearance in as many seasons under coach Nick Sirianni.
"It's just the next game and we know it's an opportunity to win the division, and as my dad used to always say, we'll cross that bridge when we get there," Sirianni said. "I'm excited to be able to go out and play football, to coach football and an opportunity for us to get better against a well-respected opponent."
