Eagles vs. Redskins Betting Preview: Philadelphia Looks to Keep Playoff Shot Alive

The Eagles need a road win at Washington plus Minnesota to lose at home to Chicago to keep their hopes of a Super Bowl repeat intact.

Philadelphia Eagles at Washington Redskins (+6.5)

Sun., December 30, 4:25 p.m. ET

Three things you need to know before betting on Eagles-Redskins:

1. The Eagles will try to continue their late-season surge in hopes of earning a playoff spot when they visit the slumping Redskins on Sunday. Philadelphia has come alive with four wins in its past five games and will get back into the postseason with a victory on Sunday combined with a Vikings loss to the Bears. Super Bowl LII hero Nick Foles has led the Eagles to a pair of impressive wins, knocking off the Rams as a 13.5-point underdog in Los Angeles before beating playoff-bound Houston this past Sunday. Washington, which won five of its first seven games this season, has reversed course with six losses in its eight games since. While the Washington offense has failed to reach 17 points in any of its four December games, veteran safety D.J. Swearinger questioned the team’s defensive game plan following a 25-16 loss in Tennessee on Saturday, stating, “I probably watch more film than the coaches.” Swearinger was released on Christmas Eve.

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2. With his franchise-record 471 passing yards and four touchdown passes in Sunday's win over the Texans, Nick Foles is now 8-2 in his 10 starts over the past two seasons. This record includes his impressive playoff run last year when he threw six touchdowns with just one interception in three postseason victories. One of his two defeats came when Foles was pulled along with most of the rest of Philadelphia’s starters one quarter into a meaningless Week 17 game versus Dallas last year after the Eagles had already locked up the NFC’s top playoff seed. Foles has led his team to 62 points over the past two weeks, which is encouraging for those looking to back Philadelphia here, as the Eagles are 8-1 against the spread since the start of 2016 when coming off back-to-back games that went over the total.

3. Philadelphia is 12-6 straight up and 10-8 against the spread over its past 18 games in Landover, Maryland. The Eagles won 30-17 while forcing four Washington turnovers the last time they visited the Redskins, which was in the 2017 regular-season opener. While Philadelphia’s biggest weakness is an injury-ravaged secondary that’s allowing an NFL-high average of 282.7 passing yards per game, Washington lacks the offensive personnel to capitalize. Journeyman Josh Johnson, the team’s fourth different starting quarterback since mid-November, has just one win in seven career NFL starts. And although Washington did have success running the football on Saturday with 161 yards at Tennessee, the Eagles have held their past two opponents to an average of 72.0 rushing yards per game on 3.9 yards per carry.

Pick: Eagles -6.5

Confidence Level: High (on a scale of Low/Moderate/High/Very High/Extremely High)