The Philadelphia Eagles used a dominant first-half defensive effort on the road to take down the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.
A combination of lightning-strike-like rushing back Saquon Barkley and a suffocating Eagles defense never let New York establish offensive momentum resulting in a 28-3 win for the visiting team from Philly. New York cobbled together 119 yards of total offense but averaged only 2.2 yards per play against Vic Fangio’s defensive front who recorded eight sacks on the afternoon.
Saquon’s First Half Fireworks
The win improves the Eagles to 4-2 on the season vaulting the Dallas Cowboys (3-3) in the NFC East standings following action in Week 7. The division-leading Washington Commanders (4-2) play the Carolina Panthers (1-5) in the afternoon NFL window.
About a month out the Eagles feasted on a Giants offense like it was Thanksgiving Day. While the bird is usually on the table during the American festivities, these Birds fought back early to take down a division rival away from home. The teams exchanged consecutive 3-and-outs with Josh Sweat and Nolan Smith Jr. recording sacks in the first quarter for Philadelphia. For Smith Jr., it is his second sack in consecutive weeks after taking down Deshaun Watson last week. The Eagles have not any scored points in the first quarter of a game this season.
There was no scoring in the first frame but there were fireworks still to come in North Jersey in the second quarter. Saquon Barkley dashed for 55 yards before punching in the touchdown for a 7-0 Eagles lead. It is the 5th rushing touchdown on the year for Barkley. Bryce Huff shut down the Giants’ next drive in his old stomping grounds with a second down sack and ultimately forcing another New York punt.
Cooper DeJean returned that boot for 28 yards which kick-started the Eagles on another scoring drive. The Eagles were stopped near midfield on a 4th-and-3 when Jalen Hurts launched a deep shot hauled in by AJ Brown for a 41-yard touchdown doubling the Eagles lead, 14-0.
Jalen Carter picked up a second-quarter takedown of Giants QB Daniel Jones. In the first half, the Eagles totaled five sacks all by different players – Dean, Sweat, Huff, Carter, and Smith Jr. The New York Giants thought they scored a late touchdown to tight end Theo Johnson, however, an offensive pass interference call wiped the points on the board. New York settled for a late field goal onto the scoreboard before halftime for a 14-3 deficit.
Eagles offense takes care of business with lead
The third quarter featured three-and-out before Saqoun left another mark on the day. Sitting at 99 yards, Barkley burst up the middle for 38 yards to record his 20th NFL 100-yard rushing day. Jalen Hurts scored the touchdown to extend the lead further, 21-3.
Jalen Carter and Nakobe Dean each acquired a second sack on the resulting drive for the Philadelphia defense. Dean paced the Eagles’ defense with 11 total tackles, six solo takedowns, and two sacks resulting in plays for lost yardage.
With the ball back in possession, Barkley dashed once again for a chunk play with 41 yards pushing his daily total to 175 yards on the day. Barkley finished with 176 yards against his former team which is second all-time behind Cedric Benson carving up the Chigaco Bears for 189 yards in 2009. Once again, Jalen Hurts finished the touchdown run using his legs to make the final changes on the MetLife scoreboard, 27-3.
New York’s head coach conceded the game down 24 points by placing backup signal-caller Drew Lock into the game in the fourth quarter. Nick Sirianni responded with Kenny Pickett. New York was helped to gain yards and the Eagles drained the clock when they regained possession until the clock read 0:00. We will have plenty more breaking down the Philadelphia Eagles’ 91st regular season over the New York Giants during the week on Philly Sports Network.
Mandatory Credit: Robert Deutsch-Imagn Images
