The Washington Commanders understand that containing Saquon Barkley is of the utmost importance if they wanted to upset the rival Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC Championship. They failed to do so on the Eagles' first play from scrimmage en route to an ugly 55-23 loss.

This is Barkley's first season with the Eagles. He joined the franchise as a free agent on a three-year, $37.75 million contract this past offseason. The 27-year-old back became the ninth running back in NFL history to rush for 2,000 or more yards in a single season, finishing with 2,005 yards, eighth-most all-time.