After defeating the Minnesota Vikings on the road, the Eagles return home to host the New York Giants on Sunday. The teams last met in Week 6, when the Eagles suffered their second loss of the season, falling 34-17 to their division rivals.
The Eagles enter Sunday’s game as 7.5-point favorites after the Giants’ loss to the Denver Broncos last week. Will the Birds get a win over the Giants? Or will the Giants spoil the Eagles’ return to the Linc?
Here’s what experts in the local and national media are saying …
The Eagles and Giants should be pretty familiar with each other, having just played two weeks ago at MetLife Stadium.
It’s likely that game film is not something the Eagles want to see ever again. They got beat up in a 34-17 defeat, and that stinging loss to a team that entered with one win led to a self-evaluation during the mini-bye.
The Eagles looked like they learned some things during their Week 7 victory at Minnesota. How will their rematch with the Giants go? Here’s how our writers see it:
Giants rookie running back Cam Skattebo gashed the Eagles for 98 yards rushing and three touchdowns in Week 6.
Jeff Neiburg
The lasting image from Week 6 was the sequence where Cam Skattebo lowered his shoulder and plowed over Zack Baun and then scored on the next play. While Jaxson Dart waited for an official to make a signal, he offered a playful high-five. A few moments later, after the touchdown was confirmed, Skattebo did a backflip.
The Eagles were tormented by two rookies at MetLife Stadium two games ago. How much will those memories impact Sunday? Maybe a little, or maybe not at all.
What we know is that the Giants have been a much different offense since they handed the reins to Dart and Skattebo. The Eagles struggle with scrambling quarterbacks, and few this season have had as much success as Dart has when he’s on the move. The Eagles are struggling to make tackles, and only Christian McCaffrey has caused more missed tackles since Week 3 than Skattebo.
Contain those players, which is easier said than done, and you’ll likely win the game.
The Broncos and Eagles tried to blitz Dart over the last two weeks, but he was a blitz-beater. What the Eagles could learn from the Denver tape is how often Dart was held under wraps when the Broncos sent four or fewer rushers.
They’d be wise to make the rookie win with his arm and not let him move the pocket and get things going with his feet. They have the athletes to spy on him and move around.
On the other side of the ball, there were plenty of moments from Week 6, especially in the first half, that showed the Eagles could move the ball at will against a defense that gives up the fourth-most yards per game (376). The Eagles showed some new looks Sunday in Minneapolis, and we’ll see if the offense continues to look more dynamic moving forward.
There are reasons to worry about the Eagles’ front line given the injury to Cam Jurgens, and A.J. Brown missed his second consecutive practice Thursday. Brown is expected to play, and the Eagles have enough talent to move to 6-2 before their bye.
Prediction: Eagles 30, Giants 18
Jalen Hurts and the Eagles will try to go into the bye on a two-game win streak.
Olivia Reiner
Who would’ve thought that the second meeting between the Eagles and the Giants would be so highly anticipated?
Certainly not me when the schedule came out back in May, when I predicted that the Eagles would easily roll their NFC East foes twice within a span of just more than two weeks. That wasn’t the case. The Giants upset the Eagles on Thursday night in Week 6, extending Philadelphia’s losing streak at the time to two games.
It seems unlikely that the Eagles will lose to the Giants twice. While their offensive issues are by no means fixed after one game, the Eagles showed some encouraging signs of evolution against the Vikings with their uptick in under-center runs and the play-action passes that were set up off them.
The Eagles will also be healthier in the rematch than they were two weeks ago. Jalen Carter and Landon Dickerson are back. Nakobe Dean took his first defensive snaps last week, which should help keep Dart and Skattebo from running all over them.
But the offensive line will likely be down Jurgens as he deals with a knee injury. Still, the Eagles are the team with the better talent and better coaches.
Start spreading the news: The Eagles will go into the bye week on a two-game win streak.
Prediction: Eagles 31, Giants 24
Matt Breen
Jalen Hurts was excellent last week, but it’s hard to feel good about the Eagles when they continue to have trouble running the football. Saquon Barkley said he’ll take the blame for the Birds’ run troubles, but he’s getting hardly any room to run.
Barkley’s average of 1.8 yards before contact ranks 31st in the NFL and 2 yards less than last season’s mark of 3.8 Yes, Barkley was electric in 2024, but he was also powered by an offensive line regarded as the NFL’s top unit. That’s not the case in 2025.
The line has been banged up but needs to tighten up if the Eagles are going to move the way they did in the second half of last season. Maybe that starts Sunday at home against a defense that allows the fourth-highest rushing yards per attempt.
The Giants limited Barkley two weeks ago to 58 rushing yards, but it’s hard to see them doing it again. The Eagles finally figured out their passing attack last week. This week is a chance to get their running-game right. A big-game for Barkley would be the perfect way to enter the bye week.
Vic Fangio labeled his evaluation of Jakorian Bennett as “incomplete” earlier this week.
The Eagles have not had a stable counterpart to Quinyon Mitchell because of injury and poor play. But Bennett, the player they acquired in early August in exchange for rotational defensive tackle Thomas Booker, hasn’t really had his chance.
He was eased into Fangio’s defensive scheme after getting a late start in training camp and found himself behind Adoree’ Jackson on the depth chart when the season began. Bennett, 25, spelled Jackson in all three of the Eagles’ first three games, a total of 24 defensive snaps. But a torn pectoral muscle landed him on injured reserve after the team’s Week 3 win over the Los Angeles Rams.
Incomplete? Bennett said he agreed with Fangio.
“I really haven’t showed everything I can do,” Bennett said. “It’s time for me to just go out there and put on for a whole game and show him, show the players, the rest of the coaches, everybody who I am. Show them that they didn’t bring me here for no reason.”
Eagles cornerback Jakorian Bennett played in three games this season before being injured.
The Eagles opened Bennett’s practice window this week. He was listed as a limited participant in practice Wednesday and was upgraded to a full participant Thursday. He likely will be activated for Sunday’s game vs. the New York Giants. His role remains to be seen. Jackson remained sidelined from practice Thursday because of a concussion and is trending toward being unavailable for the game.
The Eagles have had a bit of a revolving door over the last few weeks at the position. Jackson missed Week 4 with a groin injury, allowing Kelee Ringo to start for the first time. Ringo then stayed in the starting spot for Week 5 even after Jackson returned. He again got the call for Week 6, but was yanked in favor of Jackson early in the game, only to return after Mitchell was hurt. Jackson started Sunday vs. Minnesota, but Ringo came in for him after the concussion.
Meanwhile, Bennett could only watch while a potential opportunity to make a difference passed.
“That was probably the toughest part,” Bennett said. “I got traded here for a reason, to try to help the team win and be part of that. For me to just kind of watch that was tough. You’re watching the game, and you just kind of visualize yourself making plays and doing whatever to help the team win. I’m a competitor. I’m a team player. I’m just trying to go out there and help the guys.”
Eagles cornerback Jakorian Bennett has only played 24 defensive snaps this season and hasn’t been available since Week 3.
Bennett said he wasn’t sure what his role would be for Sunday. Fangio said he thinks Ringo “can eventually be better than he’s been. His opportunities will keep coming, probably, and hopefully he’ll turn the corner.”
Regarding his “incomplete” evaluation of Bennett, Fangio said, “I just never felt like I had a good handle on what he is and what he isn’t. I just don’t think he played enough to answer that with definitive conviction.”
Bennett said he feels like he has the defense down and is ready to contribute. He sees opportunity, too, given what has transpired at the position over the past several weeks.
“I’m a competitor and I know the type of player I am,” he said.
Bennett’s most recent play with the Eagles was exciting. Jordan Davis may have never scored after his game-sealing field goal block in Week 3 if not for Bennett, who leveled Rams punter and holder Ethan Evans as he tried to recover the football. His pectoral injury had already happened, Bennett said a few weeks ago after he hit injured reserve.
In Bennett’s locker stall Thursday at the NovaCare Complex was a bottle of Caymus Vineyards wine.
A welcome back present? No, Bennett said, it was a gift from assistant special teams coordinator Joe Pannunzio, who treated the field goal block unit to a bottle of the Napa Valley wine.
The welcome back present is just playing football again.
“It feels good to be healthy, good to be back on the field, just play ball,” Bennett said. “I got tired of sitting around and healing up.”
Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown (hamstring) was absent from practice for the second consecutive day on Thursday.
Injury report
A.J. Brown (hamstring) was absent from practice for the second consecutive day on Thursday. The Eagles also were without Cam Jurgens (knee), Azeez Ojulari (hamstring), and Jackson.
Four players were limited: Grant Calcaterra (oblique), Landon Dickerson (ankle/back), Moro Ojomo (shoulder), and Jeremiah Trotter Jr. (ankle).
Dallas Goedert (calf) was upgraded to a full participant.
The Eagles also opened Darius Cooper’s practice window Thursday. The rookie wide receiver, who is on injured reserve with a shoulder injury, was a full participant.
Tune in Sunday at 11:30 as The Inquirer’s Olivia Reiner and Jeff McLane preview the Eagles’ rematch with the New York Giants.
The Eagles suffered their worst loss of the season at MetLife Stadium against the Giants just two weeks ago. One week later, the Giants suffered their worst loss of the season, a fourth-quarter collapse against Denver.
New York is winless on the road in 2025, and headed into the NFL’s most hostile environment with a rookie quarterback. Can the Birds get their revenge?
Here’s what the national media is saying about Sunday’s game …
How good are the Eagles?
The Giants’ star rookies gained a confidence boost after blowing out the Eagles two weeks ago. But a total collapse in Denver may have stalled that progress, NFL analyst Dan Orlovsky said on Get Up, so he still expects an Eagles win.
Though the Eagles might win, Orlovsky isn’t bullish on the Birds’ chances in the long term, although he’s “intrigued” by what Jalen Hurts showed in the passing game against Minnesota.
“This team can’t win a Super Bowl the way they’re running the football,” Orlovsky said. “They can win games, they can beat good teams, but they can’t run the football. My question is, is what we saw offensively last week going to be who you’re going to be for the rest of the season?”
Can the Giants rebound?
The Giants’ collapse against Denver is the type of loss that can cause a team to emotionally spiral. But Manti Te’o said on NFL Network that he doesn’t expect that to linger for New York on Sunday.
“When I see a team fall off like that, that’s just situational,” Te’o said. “Let’s be honest, I don’t think the Giants even anticipated they would be up that much. There’s a way to play the game, and there’s so much youth there that it may have slipped by them. I am buying that they will respond and build off of it.”
Manti Te'o thinks the Giants will bounce back this week from their tough loss against the Broncos. pic.twitter.com/RiHpSyQUmZ
Even after Jalen Hurts, DeVonta Smith, and A.J. Brown dominated in the passing game in Sunday’s win, there’s still drama with Brown’s social media posts.
On Instagram following Sunday’s game, Brown posted a photo with the caption, “using me but not using me.” Brown caught two touchdowns on four catches for 121 yards, his best game of the season. So what exactly does he mean by that caption? On First Take, Orlovsky said he believes Brown is indicating he still wants to be traded.
“I believe A.J. Brown prefers to be traded,” Orlovsky said. ”There’s been this consistent disconnect, whether it’s the lack of production, they don’t throw the ball enough, or they go on the road, he has [four catches for 121 yards], the game-sealer, and he’s still tweeting that out. I’m not trying to read too much into it, this is a Super Bowl-contending team, but for that to continuously happen, I do think there’s parts of A.J. Brown that would prefer to be traded.”
Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown stiff arms Minnesota’s Isaiah Rodgers during Sunday’s game.
Ryan Clark didn’t go that far, but said that Brown was opening himself up to those rumors with his actions.
“He also has to understand the consequences of his actions,” Clark said. “When you tweet out ”using me but not using me,” read books on the sidelines, said certain things you’ve said in postgame interviews, people are going to try to connect the tea leaves and come to their own conclusions. It could honestly be, finally in this game they used me.”
For all the attention on Brown, Smith also had his best game of the year against the Vikings, with a 79-yard touchdown as the highlight among his nine catches for 183 yards.
“Because of all the attention on A.J. Brown, because of the drama, DeVonta’s kind of being overlooked as a top-10 receiver in the NFL,” Mina Kimes said. “I think he’s capable of that.”
Coming off a big win over the Minnesota Vikings, the Eagles (5-2) will return to Lincoln Financial Field to host the New York Giants (2-5) on Sunday. As both teams prepare for their second matchup of the season, here are updated odds and interesting prop bets from two of the biggest sportsbooks…
Eagles vs. Giants updated odds
The Eagles and the Giants are meeting for the second time in two weeks, following a 34-17 Eagles loss to New York at MetLife Stadium in Week 6.
Earlier in the week, both sportsbooks had the Eagles listed as 7.5-point favorites. Since then, the odds haven’t changed as they enter Week 8.
JalenHurts is coming off an excellent performance in which he threw for 326 yards and three touchdowns to earn a perfect passer rating, making this the third consecutive week the quarterback has thrown for over 270 yards.
Jaxson Dart is coming off a Giants’ loss to the Broncos where he threw for 283 yards and three touchdowns. Dart has thrown for over 200 yards in two of his last four games.
For this week’s matchup, both sportsbooks have Hurts’ over/under set at around 205 passing yards, and Dart’s over/under is set at just under 200 passing yards.
Hurts has thrown for eight touchdowns in his last four games, while Dart has thrown for seven. In their last matchup, both quarterbacks recorded one passing touchdown. For this week’s matchup, both sportsbooks have Hurts’ over/under set at 1.5 passing touchdowns and Dart’s over/under set at 0.5.
In six of seven games, Saquon Barkley has rushed for under 70 yards. Last year’s NFL Offensive Player of the Year is coming off a game that saw him rush for 44 yards in the Birds’ win over the Minnesota Vikings.
Giants’ running back Cam Skattebo is coming off a game that saw him rush for 60 yards against the Denver Broncos.
A.J. Brown missed practice on Wednesday due to a hamstring injury. The receiver played 46 offensive snaps against the Vikings, recording four receptions for 121 yards. Meanwhile, DeVonta Smith also stood out with nine receptions for 183 yards.
However, neither sportsbook has player props listed at the moment. Instead, they have the odds for Dallas Goedert and Barkley’s over/under in receiving yards. In the team’s last game against the Giants, Goedert finished with nine receptions for 110 yards and one touchdown. Barkley had two receptions for 9 yards.
For the Giants, Wan’Dale Johnson is coming off a game that saw him finish with six receptions for 95 yards. Giants tight end Theo Johnson added to that with three receptions for 66 yards.
In Week 7, Smith and Brown scored for the Eagles. For the Giants, Tyrone Tracy Jr., Dart, Daniel Bellinger, Johnson, and Skattebo found the end zone.
In their last meeting, Hurts and Goedert scored for the Eagles. Skattebo dominated on the ground, rushing for three touchdowns. Dart and Robinson also made their way into the end zone.
Rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart has quickly become a fan favorite in New York, leading the Giants to a 34-17 win over the Eagles in Week 6 and flashing potential for the future.
But he will get his first experience with the environment in Philadelphia on Sunday. Here’s what the Giants are saying about their second matchup in three weeks with the Birds:
Dart and the Giants are 2-1 at home, including that win over the Eagles, but haven’t won a road game this season (0-4).
Lincoln Financial Field is one of the toughest stadiums for a road team to play at in the NFL — especially for division rivals.
“It’s going to be intense, for sure,” said Dart, a first-round pick out of Mississippi. “I can’t wait to go out there and compete and feel the hostility in the air and the rivalry between the two organizations. I kind of compare it to an SEC rivalry.”
Former Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart is anticipating the environment at Lincoln Financial Field being similar to an SEC rivalry game.
‘Stick close to your brothers’
Dart’s teammates are trying to prepare him for the environment at the Linc. Eagles fans certainly will be out to give Dart and fellow rookie Cam Skattebo a warm Philly welcome.
“I mean, if he didn’t have any haters, he’ll find out where they all live,” Giants receiver Darius Slayton said Wednesday. “He’s about to get introduced to all of them.”
“You’ve got to stick close to your brothers in the locker room, just stay tight as one group, because that team and that fan base, they’re going to get a little gritty on the sidelines,” tight end Daniel Bellinger told the New York Post. “I would tell him, ‘Listen, focus on you, focus on the team, and stick together and not worry about the outside noise.’”
Facing Dart again
The Eagles and Giants played just two weeks ago. Before that Thursday night showdown, Dart had started just two games, so the Birds had minimal NFL tape on which to evaluate him.
The Eagles and Vic Fangio now have firsthand experience. Dart said this is the first time in his career that he’s played the same team twice in such a small window of time. How will the Giants respond to that challenge?
“[Fangio’s] done a great job in this league for a long time,” Giants coach Brian Daboll said. “I can’t answer what he would do or what he wouldn’t do. You watch your game, you see how they played you. [Jalen] Carter’s back. Does that make a difference relative to the scheme and what they want to do? I don’t know.
“I just know that Vic’s a challenging coordinator to game plan against. Again, Jaxson’s played a good amount of football in his career. These last four weeks, he’s got a routine down, and we do everything we can do to get him ready to play.”
Breaking tendencies on offense for the Eagles played a big role in their Week 7 win over the Minnesota Vikings. With a rematch looming with the New York Giants on Sunday, that formula will likely be put to good use again.
Jalen Hurts finished the Vikings game with a perfect passer rating (158.3) and continued his trend of exploiting zone coverage for a second straight game. But the influx of under-center play-action and connecting on his deep shots with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith made all the difference.
Can the offense carry that momentum against the Giants, while figuring out its running-game issues? Here’s what we learned from the film ahead of Sunday’s rematch between the division foes:
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts thrived passing from under center against the Vikings in Week 7.
More under-center play-action
Of Hurts’ 326 passing yards against Minnesota, 121 of them came on play-action, under-center throws downfield. Entering that game, the Eagles averaged just 0.8 yards from under center, which ranked 30th in the NFL, according to Fantasy Points Data.
Hurts completed all four of those pass attempts, including the 79-yard touchdown strike to Smith. The play-action also opened up the middle, allowing the Eagles offense to attack an area of the field it has often neglected.
Jalen Hurts and the #Eagles utilizing under center play-action on Sunday will be important going forward and should open more opportunities to attack the intermediate middle of the field throws.
The Giants, according to Next Gen Stats, are giving up the eighth-highest total of passing yards on throws traveling 10 to 19 air yards, yielding 71.9 yards per game. Hurts has completed four of six passes in that range of the field in each of his last two games.
There are also examples of the Giants defense giving up explosive plays off play-action passes from under center. New York yielded a 33-yard gain to CeeDee Lamb during a matchup with Dallas in Week 2, and surrendered an 87-yard touchdown connection from Spencer Rattler to Rashid Shaheed in Week 5 against New Orleans.
Two of the longer throws the #Giants have given up this season came off under center play-action. Spencer Rattler hit Rashid Shaheed for an 87-yard TD and Dak Prescott found CeeDee Lamb for a deep crosser for about 40 yards. Opportunities for big plays off play-action will be… https://t.co/m7NsicRJr9pic.twitter.com/iTqTv6yjuk
In their Week 6 matchup, Hurts, who has typically thrived against man coverage in his career, completed just six of 12 passes against New York’s man looks on defense, according to Next Gen Stats. And he threw his lone interception of the season, which all but ended the game.
Hurts’ early touchdown pass to Brown against Minnesota was proof of his improvement as a passer, making plays with his arm rather than taking off and scrambling. According to Next Gen Stats, Hurts had his first game with a positive expected points added (which measures team performance on a play-by-play basis) per drop back on scrambles without actually taking off and running.
If Hurts can continue that trend, the Eagles should be in for another big passing day — the Giants are giving up the seventh-highest total of passing yards per game in the NFL (245.3) and the second-most passing yards on throws that travel 20 or more air yards (62.9), according to Next Gen Stats.
Giants rookie running back Cam Skattebo rushed for 98 yards and three touchdowns against the Eagles in Week 6.
Keeping Dart and Skattebo in check
In Week 6, rookies Jaxson Dart and Cam Skattebo ran wild over the Eagles defense, which was without defensive tackle Jalen Carter and cornerback Quinyon Mitchell, who left the game with a hamstring strain. And the pairing hasn’t slowed down after accounting for 156 of the Giants’ 172 rushing yards in that game.
Skattebo was a little more subdued against Denver, rushing for 60 yards on 3.1 yards per carry. But Dart continued to make plays downfield and on the move, hurting the Broncos defense with his arm. Dart is coming off his best passing day, throwing for 283 yards and three scores.
His connection with wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson continues to grow. When he escapes the pocket and extends plays, Dart has consistently found Robinson outside the numbers or over the middle of the field for big gains — first against the Eagles in Week 6, then Denver last week.
#Giants QB Jaxson Dart has found a lot of comfort in finding Wan'Dale Robinson outside the numbers on Sail concepts and when he's scrambling around in the backfield in the intermediate areas of the field.
Tight ends continue to be among Dart’s favorite targets. He threw two more to that position group Sunday in Denver, finding Daniel Bellinger (44 yards) and Theo Johnson (41 yards) for touchdowns.
Of Dart’s seven touchdown passes, five have gone to tight ends, and Johnson has four of them. Because of the high tight end usage, the Giants could look to attack downfield and utilize double moves against the Eagles’ secondary to spring Johnson or Bellinger.
Against Minnesota, a double move from Jordan Addison created a 32-yard completion between Mitchell and Drew Mukuba in zone coverage. The Giants completed a pass on similar action to Bellinger, albeit against man coverage.
The #Giants hit a double move to TE Daniel Bellinger on Sunday for a big gain and the #Eagles gave up a similar double move to Jordan Addison on Sunday against the Vikings. Expect New York to try and again take some vertical shots against the Eagles defense. pic.twitter.com/N2x0BdWG4Z
But the most important thing the Eagles need to do to prevent New York from taking shots downfield is to stop the run. The Birds defense has allowed 26 runs of 10 or more yards, tied for the seventh-most in the NFL, and it particularly struggles on outside runs.
The Giants made the Eagles pay in their previous matchup, with three of the five rushes that went 10 yards or more coming from runs outside the tackles, according to Next Gen Stats. The running-back toss play to Skattebo has been effective over their last two games.
#Giants went back to the RB toss play to Cam Skattebo out of shotgun against the Broncos, but did it out of pistol against the #Eagles twice 2 weeks ago. #Eagles defense will need to find answers to slowing the play down this upcoming Sunday. pic.twitter.com/YwnkRIOE85
Although his status for Sunday’s game is in question, defensive end Brandon Graham, now back with the Eagles, could provide a huge boost in the run defending department. Graham’s reps before his first triceps injury last season showed a promising trend of setting a firm edge and knifing through offensive lines.
He would be a major boost to a run defense that ranks 22nd in the NFL in rushing yards allowed per game (127.9).
I think the biggest value Brandon Graham can bring back to the #Eagles by un-retiring is how well he set a firm edge in the run game and how consistently he beat TEs on base and kick out blocks.
For the last two games, Eagles opponents entered the game struggling to defend the run but were still able to hold Saquon Barkley to 58 and 44 total rushing yards. Looking beyond the numbers, though, tells a different story.
The Eagles are trying to get Barkley out in space and last week’s game that featured under-center play-action passing showcased an evolved plan for the running game. After finding some success earlier in the season on Barkley pitch plays to the left side of the offensive line, the Eagles called four outside toss plays against the Vikings that yielded 14 yards. It also provided some new run scheme looks from under center that can be paired with play-action passes.
The #Eagles ran an outside plays 4 times against the #Vikings for Saquon Barkley — twice out of 21 personnel with Cam Latu leading, once each out of 11 and 12 personnel. Netted 14 yards but gave Barkley much more space to operate with. pic.twitter.com/WUQ7NRJ0Ew
Denver ran a similar play that popped a big gain against the Giants’ defense in Week 7, with J.K. Dobbins rumbling for a 32-yard gain. Expect the Eagles to keep the toss play as a run scheme option for Barkley on Sunday.
In addition to the toss play, the Eagles have found success in getting Barkley some daylight on split-zone runs against the Giants and Vikings that created 18-, 8-, and 9-yard gains. The action allows a backside tight end (Dallas Goedert) or motioning receiver across the formation to keep a defensive end or edge rusher from crashing down the play for a loss.
One run scheme that has been pretty effective for Saquon Barkley and the #Eagles offense over the last 2 games has been split zone runs out of 11 personnel. Barkley popped an 18-yard run against New York a couple weeks ago and had carries of 9 and 8 yards against the Vikings on… pic.twitter.com/tGksOgLrPO
Barkley’s rushing numbers could be even worse if not for his elusiveness in the backfield. Twice last week he had to force someone to miss right after he got the handoff to turn a potential negative play into a positive one.
Even with #Eagles RB Saquon Barkley averaging just 3.3 yards per carry, there are a handful of times a game he legitimately turns a no gain run turn into positive yards. This play against the Vikings is a great example, turns a potential no gain run into 7 yards. pic.twitter.com/l5fUok9yEK
With center Cam Jurgens’ status for Sunday in question, the Eagles must continue to find ways to give Barkley room to run. Mixing in variations of run schemes should help aid a potential breakout performance.
The Eagles and Giants meet for the second time in three games Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field, and the Eagles will be aiming to flip the script after taking an embarrassing 34-17 defeat in Week 6 at MetLife Stadium.
The Eagles have plenty of things they studied after that loss, and some of them showed on the field Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings.
What will happen in Week 8? Here’s what some of the numbers tell us:
23.9%
The Eagles don’t really need a reminder of this, but the Giants offense goes as Cam Skattebo goes.
The rookie had 110 yards from scrimmage, including 98 on the ground, two weeks ago at MetLife Stadium. He bowled over Zack Baun and then scored on the next play. Then he did a backflip.
Skattebo accounted for 30% of the Giants’ yards that night, which is ahead of his season-long average of 23.9% of New York’s offense. If Skattebo stays at this pace, that would be the second-highest mark by a Giants rookie since 2000, behind only Saquon Barkley’s 33.5% in 2018, according to Next Gen Stats.
The Eagles will have to tackle better if they want to slow down Cam Skattebo in their rematch with the Giants.
The Eagles will need better answers for Skattebo. They were much better against Jordan Mason on Sunday in Minneapolis, where they held Mason to 3.8 yards per carry. Skattebo was at 5.2 a week earlier, in part because of his ability to run through tackles. Since taking over as the lead back in Week 3, Skattebo is up to 31 forced missed tackles, which trails only the San Francisco 49ers’ Christian McCaffrey during that stretch.
Brandon Graham could help the Eagles at setting the edge against the run, but it’s unclear if Graham will be ready to go for Sunday’s game.
Rookie quarterbacks tend to be beatable by blitzing them and causing havoc, but Jaxson Dart defied that law Sunday vs. the Denver Broncos.
Dart was 8-for-14 for 193 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception when facing pressure from the Broncos, according to Next Gen. The interception was obviously a negative result, but the 193 passing yards were the third-highest total against the blitz by a quarterback this season.
Impressive stuff from the 25th overall pick in this year’s draft.
This isn’t a departure from his success when the teams met two weeks ago. Dart was 9 of 13 for 99 yards and a touchdown when the Eagles blitzed him. He has been blitzed on a league-high 38.6% of his drop backs, according to Next Gen.
Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart hurt the Eagles with his legs to the tune of 58 yards and a touchdown.
Perhaps the lesson learned from the film Sunday for the Eagles will be Denver’s success when not sending extra rushers. Against four or fewer rushers, Dart went 7-for-19. The Broncos also kept him in check with his legs. He was solid when throwing on the move, but he did not gain any scrambling yards, a departure from his previous starts.
The Eagles have plenty to clean up there from the last matchup, and scrambling quarterbacks have been the Achilles’ heel for their defense, as Vic Fangio pointed out last week when asked about why the run defense has struggled. Dart accounted for 58 yards and a touchdown on the ground two weeks ago.
4
The Eagles almost doubled up their under-center play-action drop backs in Sunday’s win at Minnesota.
They entered with just five such plays in their first six games, and on Sunday they called four play-action drop backs. Those plays resulted in four completions for 121 yards and a touchdown.
It was a tendency-breaking day. Before Sunday, Jalen Hurts handed off on 42 of the 48 times he lined up under center.
The Eagles have at least given the Giants something different to think about.
The Eagles’ running game hasn’t been good, and it was especially bad Sunday vs. the Vikings, who boast a pretty formidable defensive front. But Barkley managed just 44 yards on 18 carries, and his 2.4 yards per attempt ranked as his second-lowest output of the season.
Eagles running back Saquon Barkley was held under 2.5 yards per carry against Minnesota.
Here’s a big reason the running game is struggling: Barkley, according to Next Gen, has been contacted behind the line of scrimmage at a rate of 58%, the highest in the NFL. He has gained the fewest yards before contact (minus-2) among running backs with at least 30 carries directed between the tackles this season.
Last season, Barkley gained 264 rushing yards before contact on carries between the tackles, second in the NFL.
19
Rookie edge rusher and Philadelphia’s own Abdul Carter is having a pretty good rookie season with the Giants. The No. 3 overall pick leads the NFL with 19 quick pressures, according to Next Gen, and has 29 total pressures this season. Only seven players have generated more pressure. A quick pressure occurs when a player pressures a quarterback within 2.5 seconds on a passing play.
Carter has caused havoc, but he was nullified two weeks ago when Lane Johnson held him without a pressure across 14 matchups. Carter managed just two pressures in that game, according to Pro Football Focus, his lowest single-game total this season.
72.9%
We highlighted the Eagles’ playoff chances in this exercise last week, and it’s worth following up here.
Consecutive losses in games the Eagles were supposed to win put them in a precarious spot, trending toward being a coin flip to make the playoffs, according to FTN Fantasy’s projections. But the win against the Vikings bumped the Eagles’ playoff chances nearly 14 points to 72.9%.
The Eagles are one of six NFC teams with a 5-2 record. Getting to 6-2 before the bye would be helpful, and would likely increase that playoff percentage slightly.
“Quite honestly, nobody really expected us to put up a performance like this,” Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart said afterward.
Maybe we should have.
One of the more shocking upsets in recent Eagles history happened at MetLife Stadium on Oct. 9, when the 1-4 Giants got their second win over the 4-1 Eagles, who were defending Super Bowl champions and the winners of the last seven truly meaningful games against their closest NFC East rivals.
Should it have been so shocking?
After all, the Giants’ losses came at the Commanders, who had the services of since-injured quarterback Jayden Daniels; at the Cowboys, who have the No. 1 offense; at home against the Chiefs, a current dynasty; and at the Saints, where Dart, in his second start, committed three of the Giants’ five turnovers.
Further, the Eagles played without two Pro Bowl players, defensive tackle Jalen Carter and guard Landon Dickerson, and they lost top cornerback Quinyon Mitchell in the second quarter.
So, maybe the Giants weren’t so bad, and, clearly, the Eagles weren’t as deep as they needed to be.
A lot has changed in two weeks. That should make all the difference come Sunday afternoon.
1. Dickerson is healthy
Dickerson was the seventh-best guard in the league last season, according to Pro Football Focus, when he was named to his third straight Pro Bowl and played in his second Super Bowl in three seasons. He has dealt with knee surgery that cost him most of training camp, a back injury that limited him in September, and an ankle injury that cost him the Giants game. He’s still ranked in the middle of the pack.
Eagles guard Landon Dickerson celebrates with wide receiver Devonta Smith after Smith’s touchdown in Minnesota on Sunday.
Dickerson was his healthiest this season last Sunday in Minneapolis, and the resulting grade showed it. Even with fifth-year backup Brett Toth playing at center for the first time next to him, Dickerson dominated.
Toth was Dickerson’s replacement in the loss to the Giants. Things did not go well.
2. Carter is healthy
The Eagles built their defense around Carter, who has succeeded Fletcher Cox as the franchise’s core defensive player. Carter’s injured heel cost him the game against the Giants, but the 10 days between the Giants game and the trip to Minnesota not only gave the heel time to heal (heh heh), it also allowed his sprained right shoulder to strengthen.
The shoulder cost him time in training camp and, intermittently, during the regular season. It also made him a horrific tackler: the worst, in fact, among all NFL defenders, according to PFF.
Also, he’s finally in good enough shape to be effective for more than half an NFL game. Of course, there’s no viable reason he should not have been in better shape to start the season.
In Minnesota, Hurts and his top three receivers, A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, and Dallas Goedert, finally appeared to be in sync. Hurts threw for 326 yards and had a perfect 158.3 passer rating for the first time in his career.
Much had been made about the ineffectiveness of the passing game through the first six games, but, as we warned when the season began, injuries to Brown and Smith kept the passing attack from practicing as a complete unit the entire preseason, which is why the preseason (and preseason games) exist. Hurts is always gun-shy. He’s much more gun-shy when he’s not comfortable. Last Sunday, for the first time, he looked comfortable.
Also, the team changed offensive coordinators for the third consecutive season.
Also, the offensive line has played just one of seven games from start to finish with its starters intact, and that’s why the Eagles won at Kansas City.
New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart scrambles during an Oct. 9 matchup with the Eagles.
4. Familiarity
There’s a little more tape on Dart, whose elusiveness and fearlessness are a formidable combination. Combine that with unpredictability, and you get a kid who will make a lot of plays but will also make a lot of mistakes.
A lot of the tape on Dart shows Eagles defenders getting roasted.
Don’t expect much more of that sort of tape from Sunday’s game.
5. Return of the Macks
Nobody commanded more respect in the Eagles locker room last season than 15-year veteran defensive end Brandon Graham. His return from retirement Tuesday will resound whether or not he takes a snap on Sunday.
A close second: third-year linebacker Nakobe Dean. Before he injured his pectoral muscle in the playoffs last season, he ranked 10th among all linebackers in overall defense, seventh as a pass rusher, according to PFF, and his impact as a tackler in his return Sunday was dynamic: He had six tackles, three solos, and a tackle for loss … on just 23% of the defensive snaps.
The Eagles who were around before this season knew what to expect when Brandon Graham rejoined the team for his first practice Wednesday after coming out of retirement earlier this week.
The newbies had only heard the stories. Maybe they had met Graham in passing. Fellow edge rusher Joshua Uche recalled swapping jerseys with Graham after an Eagles-Patriots game in 2023. But when Uche joined the Eagles, it was in part because Graham was no longer with the team. “I just missed him,” Uche said.
Graham had been around the NovaCare Complex before this week and had been working out, but this week he’s back in the meeting rooms and on Wednesday he went through his first practice. The Eagles tried to fill the void he left behind when Graham retired from football in March. They signed veterans like Uche, Azeez Ojulari, and Ogbo Okoronkwo in the offseason. They then added an even more experienced veteran in Za’Darius Smith after Week 1. But Smith, 33, lasted only five games before hanging up the cleats himself.
Nothing could really replace all of the things Graham brought. And on Wednesday, make no mistake about it, Graham was back.
“The energy he brings, the leadership he brings, and the juice he brings out there on the field, we needed that part of the engine back,” Uche said.
Uche said Graham practiced normally and went through the day just like any other player in the position room.
“It feels good today,” Graham said, still dressed in his pads outside his old locker stall after practice, the same stall recently vacated by Smith. “I’ll just say that. I ain’t going to go too crazy. But I felt good.”
Eagles defensive end Brandon Graham practiced Wednesday for the first time since unretiring and said he felt good.
Graham, who was listed as a full participant on the Eagles’ practice report, said he didn’t feel too far away from being in football shape because he has spent the last few months working out, many times at NovaCare. He did joke that he tapped his helmet to come out after only a few plays. Is he in good enough shape to play Sunday vs. the New York Giants?
“We’re going to see, man,” Graham said. “I’m going to let Coach do that. Honestly, I’m just here to continue to keep affirming everybody with what they are and their ability.”
How and when Graham performs remains to be seen, but that part — the leadership and the positive energy — should have an immediate impact.
“It was a vibe, man,” rookie linebacker Jihaad Campbell said of his first practice with Graham. “That’s the OG. I was fortunate enough to have a relationship with him outside of being here in his early retirement, I guess you could say. He brings nothing but positive vibes, man, great energy to the brotherhood that we have here. He’s just an all-around great dude. He’s like a guy where it’s like, you look at him and you smile and you got to say what’s up. He never has bad intentions, he’s never talking about nothing negative, he’s always going to bring you up.”
And the trash-talking?
“It’s safe to say it ain’t no act,” Campbell said. “That’s just organic, exactly who he is, and I saw it for myself.”
Campbell said it didn’t seem like Graham had been away from football “for three months or however long it was.”
It was seven, but Graham said he knew he “wasn’t all the way done.” He was hoping the Eagles wouldn’t need him, but opportunity knocked as injuries piled up and Smith stepped away from the game. The Eagles reached out to him, and he and his wife, Carlyne, agreed it was right.
Graham said he told his teammates that he’s “here to give you affirmations every day and work hard and let’s all be professionals and try to build this thing and get us another one.
“It don’t matter how you start, it’s how you finish.”
Graham knows that well, both from the perspective of the totality of his career — a draft bust who turned into the franchise’s all-time leader in games played — and in the micro sense of last season, when the Eagles started slowly and eventually won the Super Bowl.
Brandon Graham announced his retirement from the Eagles in March. He unretired on Tuesday after just seven months out of football.
Graham retired on top. He cried and gave a heartfelt speech next to two Super Bowl trophies. As far as storybook endings go, he had a perfect one after making a surprising return from injury to play in the Super Bowl in February.
“Reality set in,” Graham said. “That story book will still be there, but reality set in. I still had the urge, and of course, I felt like I was still on my game last year. I still feel like I could help the team. If I didn’t feel like that, I wouldn’t be back and Howie [Roseman] wouldn’t have picked me up.”
There is the risk that the ending to that story changes, and it’s something Graham said he talked about with Carlyne.
“When you think about it, when Tom Brady and all them boys came back, you still say he got seven rings and he’s still going to tell the story,” Graham said. “If I still feel like I can play, why not?
“I just feel like I still got a duty to come in and help because I feel like I still got a lot of juice left.”
The Eagles, new and old, got a taste of that Wednesday.
![Giants prepare Jaxson Dart for playing in Philly: ‘He’s about to get introduced to all [of his haters]’](https://wp-brooklyn.enclave.vn/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/JDTVBQ4N5VBIXEOQTH54736UGE-675x450.jpg)
