The New York Giants have another game that everyone will be watching. As one of the more popular teams in the league, the Giants tend to get more time on national TV. And this time, they’ll take on the Philadelphia Eagles on a short week on Thursday Night Football. Will they pull off the impressive win over the defending champions, or will they disappoint on a national stage during a night game?
The Eagles aren’t doing as well as you would expect for a team that just won the Super Bowl. They’re coming off of back to back losses, to the Titans and the Vikings. That’s both good and bad for the Giants. On one hand, team morale likely isn’t the best for the Eagles. On the other hand, this game should be circled on the schedule for the Eagles as one that needs to be won to mark a turning point in the season.
That’s true for both teams in a way. Win here, and a bit of the bad morale from previous games goes away, at least temporarily.
Philadelphia is 2-3 on the season and will be without running back Jay Ajayi, who has a torn ACL. Ajayi was their top rusher coming into this game, with 45 rushing attempts and 184 yards. They’ll now have to lean on Wendell Smallwood, their third year man who has 150 yards and one touchdown compared to Ajayi’s three. While the difference between their statistics isn’t huge, the Eagles’ lack of depth at the position will make things easier for the Giants defensive line.
Carson Wentz threw for 311 yards and two touchdowns against the Vikings, but couldn’t get a touchdown until the fourth quarter. Closing strong will be important for a Giants defense that couldn’t do it last time, allowing the Panthers to get down the field to kick one more field goal and win the game. Wentz, however, couldn’t help his team to pull off the same feat as the Panthers.
The Eagles fell 21-23, and with that, they picked up their third loss of the season. In a way, they aren’t much better than the Giants. They might have two wins, but their record last year means they have much higher expectations than the Giants, who only have one but also finished with an awful record in 2017.
Looking at the Giants, it’s encouraging to see that the offense woke up against Carolina. The Manning to Beckham connection is back, but they won’t enter this game fully healthy. Tight end Evan Engram has already been ruled out, after all. Saquon Barkley has produced every game, and if the Giants pull out a win, it will likely be because of his efforts. He had two touchdowns in the passing game against Carolina, and expect that to become a recurring theme. His versatility, after all, is one of the reasons the Giants drafted him.
Outside linebacker Olivier Vernon makes his much-anticipated season debut, but we have no idea how he’ll perform after missing the first five games of the season with a high ankle sprain. Still, he can justify his large contract by coming back with a big performance straight away, and helping the defense to get the sacks that they desperately need. Pressuring Carson Wentz could be the deciding factor in this game.
What will the final outcome be? It’s possibly too optimistic of a prediction, but it seems like the Giants can win here. Their offense is finally clicking after some terrible games early in the season, and they face an opponent that has also been down on their luck this year. With the return of Olivier Vernon to the defense, they might just be able to take home bragging rights in this rivalry and edge out the Eagles in front of a home crowd.