The Eagles entered Sunday night as 4.5-point favorites against the Commanders in the NFC Championship. The line increased to 6 points in less than two days.
Does this mean anything to the impending showdown, a rubber match between division rivals? No, but it’s interesting to see how much of the early money landed on Philly, to the point where the line moved to almost a touchdown.
Meanwhile, the AFC Championship didn’t move at all, with the Chiefs giving up 1.5 points to the Bills.
For Eagle Commanders, the key will be the late move, when the sharps declare their position. And a lot of that will depend on the truth about Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts’ left knee injury.
The Eagles will say as little as possible. Someone will know the truth. And people with a strong financial incentive to know the truth will know it.
Think back to last year. Everyone knew Hurts had a left knee injury. Damn, he wore a corset on it. But the Eagles resisted acknowledging it on the injury report.
This year, Eagles coach Nick Sirianni ‘accidentally’ let slip that it hurts had an undisclosed ankle injurybecause Sirianni confused one of his most important players with someone else.
Think back to 2022. The line for a Cowboys-Eagles game has radically changed due to a then-unknown shoulder injury to Hurts, from Dallas minus-1 to Dallas minus-6. (The Cowboys ultimately won by six, 40-34, with Hurts not playing.)
Hurts knee is key. Early bets are most likely based on the idea that Hurts will be fine. Later in the week, as kickoff approaches, any movement from the line to the underdog will likely say a lot more than anything the Eagles put on their injury reports.
