Former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Taylor Heinicke helped the Washington Commanders hand the Philadelphia Eagles their first loss of the season on Monday.
Two weeks ago, Taylor Heinicke almost led the Washington Commanders to an upset win over the Minnesota Vikings, his former team. The Vikings were eventually able to come out on top, but on Monday, Heinicke and the Commanders made up for the loss when they became the first team this season to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles.
With the Eagles’ loss on Monday night, Minnesota and Philadelphia are now tied for the best record in the NFL at 8-1. However, the Eagles still hold the tiebreaker for the top seed in the NFC playoff bracket since they were able to beat the Vikings back in Week 2.
At the same time, Minnesota greatly appreciates the efforts of their former quarterback and Washington on Monday. The Vikings‘ path to earning the No. 1 seed in the NFC just got easier thanks to Heinicke and the Commanders pulling off the upset in Philadelphia.
Former Minnesota Vikings QB Taylor Heinicke deserves to remain the starter for the Washington Commanders
For the last four weeks, Heinicke has gotten the start under center for Washington as Carson Wentz continues to recover from a finger injury.
During this four-game stretch, the Commanders have gone 3-1, and they’re now back in the hunt for a spot in the playoffs this season, especially after their win over the Eagles on Monday night.
It’s not like Heinicke has been putting up monster numbers during the last four weeks, but he’s added a certain confidence to the locker room that didn’t exist when Wentz was the starter.
In addition to Washington winning three of their four games this season with Heinicke starting under center, the Commanders have an 8-4 record in their last 12 matchups with the former Minnesota quarterback as their starter.
Wentz might be healthy enough to return to the field for Washington’s upcoming Week 11 contest against the Houston Texans, but with the way the team has been playing during the last four weeks, keeping Heinicke as the starter seems like a very easy decision for Commanders head coach Ron Rivera to make.