The New York Giants hoped to boost their NFC East record with a long awaited victory against division rivals the Philadelphia Eagles last Thursday night in Philadelphia.
The Giants had not defeated the Eagles since November 2016. A win looked promising for Big Blue in the second half of the game, but penalties at crucial moments were costly and the Eagles unexpectedly soared back in the last few minutes to win 22-21.
“Every time the Eagles and Giants play, it always comes down to the last drive,” said Giants Head Coach Joe Judge. “That’s kind of regardless of who is here, whether it’s coaches, players, whoever it is. That’s just a rivalry that’s going to go that way. “
Eagles scored on opening possession. The Giants answered with a 39-yard touchdown pass from QB Daniel Jones to WR Golden Tate, when about 4:20 remained in the first quarter.
Giants defense kept the pressure on Eagles QB Carson Wentz as he was called for intentional grounding with about 20 seconds remaining in the first quarter. He was covered by Devante Downs who had five total tackles for the game. Philly went for a field goal about two minutes into the second quarter and didn’t score again until the third quarter.
New York was behind 10-7 at halftime, but returned with fervor. Jones had an amazing 80 yard run in the third quarter. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Jones reached up to 21.23 MPH, the fastest top speed of a quarterback since 2018. He tripped before reaching the end zone at the 20 yard line. “I just tried to run faster than I was running and I got caught up,” said Jones. “We finished the drive and scored a touchdown. That was a relief to me for sure.” The Giants scored when Jones handed off to RB Wayne Gallman three plays later.
New York went ahead 14-10 and kept the lead early into the fourth quarter. Jones passed to WR Sterling Shepard in the end zone for another touchdown with 6:21 remaining extending the lead to 21-10.
Then, the Giants defense loosened. The Eagles scored twice in the fourth quarter with less than 5 minutes remaining on the clock. The Giants couldn’t score in the last 29 seconds.
“I thought our players played hard,” said Judge. “I thought we showed a lot of flash throughout the game of ways we want to play the game and there are some things we did that held us back. Ultimately, [we had] too many turnovers and penalties and things we have to eliminate.”
This division matchup seemed particularly important considering the Giants/Eagles history, but New York acknowledged the importance of all games following the loss.
“Anytime I’m going out there I want to win,” said Giants LB Blake Martinez. “I want to play to the best of my ability and every week I’m just trying to keep getting better and better making plays that come to me for my team.” Martinez led defense with seven tackles and two assists.
“At this point, our focus is to look at all of the stuff we’ve done already in this first chunk of the season,” said Jones. “We’ve got a long week right now leading into Tampa Bay. Our job is to go ahead and make the adjustments and make sure we improve as team.”
Giants have to make improvements before they face Tom Brady and the Buccaneers next Monday night at MetLife Stadium. The Giants had a total of nine penalties while the Eagles had seven. New York lost the ball on two fumbles. The Eagles had none. New York can’t afford those mistakes against one of the best defenses in the league. At 1-6, Giants are in last place in the NFC East race. The Eagles, Washington and Dallas have only 1 more win than New York.
