Commanders DC Makes It Clear Washington's Defense Is Going To Be Very Physical With Jalen Hurts

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Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts had a 44-yard rushing touchdown and 70 total yards on the ground while helping his team to a win over the Los Angeles Rams a week ago. It's no secret that Washington Commanders will need to keep Hurts under wraps if they're going to pull off the upset and punch their ticket to the Super Bowl.

With that in mind, it should come as no surprise that the Commanders are emphasizing this week that if Hurts gets out of the pocket, they're going to get physical, really physical, with the signal caller.

Washington defensive coordinator Joe Whitt Jr. made it clear during his Thursday press conference that if Hurts takes off like a running back, his defensive unit will be looking to tackle him like one.

Some Eagles fans, and maybe players on their offense, could take Whitt's comments as some sort of warning shot. The reality is, he's not saying anything surprising here.

READ: Why The Washington Commanders Are A Good Bet At Philadelphia Eagles In Sunday's NFC Title Game

If the Eagles throw in a bunch of designed quarterback runs, well then they had better be prepared to see their quarterback take a lick or two in the open field. The Eagles will be using the exact same gameplan against Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels, who has rushed the ball 29 times this postseason.

The Commanders were susceptible to the run throughout the regular season, and while Philadelphia will be feeding Saquon Barkley a heavy dose of the rock, if Washington takes him away, then Hurts could be tasked with carrying the football a bit more than the original gameplan might call for.

The Commanders and Eagles will kick off in Philadelphia at 3:00 PM ET on Sunday on FOX.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets, including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016, when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.