The Washington Commanders got a useful bit of news before their season opener in Philadelphia: four key players were cleared for Sunday’s game at Lincoln Financial Field.
That matters because the matchup was already shaping up as a difficult one. The Eagles are the favorites, they reached the playoffs last season, and Washington won only five games a year ago. The Commanders are opening the season on the road in a divisional game, which leaves little room for easing into the schedule.
The clearer picture on Washington’s availability does not erase the problems that were already on the board. It does, however, change the conversation from “who is out?” to whether the Commanders’ available players can actually hold up against the specific mismatches Philadelphia presents.
One of those mismatches starts up front. The Eagles added Jalen Carter on a contract worth $152 million, and Washington’s own injury report has not made life any easier. The Commanders added two starting defensive linemen, Daron Payne and Javon Kinlaw, to their injury report on Thursday, while left tackle Laremy Tunsil and defensive lineman Johnny Newton are already expected to miss most, if not all, of the 2026 season.
That leaves Washington trying to piece together answers with what it has. The Commanders are expected to lean on edge rushers K’Lavon Chaisson and Odafe Oweh to help generate pressure on Jalen Hurts, and both were limited in practice. Washington is also listed as as healthy as it can be under the circumstances, which is a relative term when the injury report still includes Tunsil and Trey Amos.
Amos is another hit. The starting cornerback is on injured reserve and will miss the season opener after an ankle injury in training camp, following the fractured fibula that cost him the latter half of the 2025 season. That puts more strain on a secondary already facing a road opener against a Philadelphia offense that practiced in pads on Wednesday with its entire 53-man active roster taking part in some capacity.
There is at least one encouraging note for Washington beyond the four players who were cleared. Chris Paul is listed as active for Week 1, which gives the Commanders another available piece as they try to survive the first test of the season.
Still, the basic shape of the game has not changed much. Philadelphia is at home, healthy, and favored. Washington is traveling in with a thinner margin for error, even after getting the clearance news it needed.
The real question now is not whether the Commanders can avoid a full injury crisis. It is whether the players who did get cleared are enough to blunt the specific advantages Philadelphia was already expected to have.