This weekend's NFC Divisional playoff game between the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles is the stuff that even the writers of the famed Rocky series would dream of.
On the one side, you have the Eagles, the No. 1 seeded team in the NFC, coming off a bye, armed with a loaded roster and multiple years of experience in their offensive and defensive systems.
On the other, you have the scrappy, underdog Giants, the No. 6 seed which last week upset the Minnesota Vikings despite its roster deficiencies. This is the same Giants team that, over the last month of the season into the playoffs, just so happens to be playing some of its best ball.
But this is also a Giants team that hasn't won in Philadelphia since 2013. Will the third time be the charm for the New York Giants? Much depends on their prep and a few things from the Eagles' side of things, so let's check in with Eagles Today publisher Ed Kracz for the temperature of this Eagles team ahead of their big game Sunday.
What is the biggest key to the game from the Eagles' perspective?
Lane Johnson’s health and ability to play the entire way with a torn muscle in the groin that will require surgery whenever the season ends. The All-Pro right tackle will try to play through the injury, but whether or not he can be 100% effective and not have to limp in out.
Jack Driscoll is a decent backup, but he’s no Johnson.
The Eagles are just a different team with Johnson in the lineup. They are 14-3 against the Giants when Johnson plays.
What storyline stands out most about this game?
Quarterback Jalen Hurts’ shoulder. It’s a great mystery, though, as in interviews with the QB, it didn’t sound like he is at 100% and may not be for as long as the postseason goes.
While he hasn’t been listed on the team’s injury report all week, head coach Nick Sirianni said after the regular-season finale that his QB “was hurting bad” after leading the Eagles to a 22-16 win on Jan. 8.
The Eagles did not use Hurts in any run-pass option sets against the Giants’ backups, choosing to play it safe with their QB. If the Eagles choose that path again, it won’t turn out well for them since a big part of his game is his mobility and keeping defenses guessing on ROPs.
Another piece to the shoulder is the throwing component. Hurts did not look as crisp or as accurate on some throws. Whether that was due to not playing for the previous two weeks or the shoulder soreness is anybody’s guess.
Give me 2-3 bold predictions.
1) Whoever wins the turnover battle will win the game, which may sound like a ‘duh’ prediction, but the Jaguars turned the ball over five times against the Chargers in their wildcard game and won, anyway. So it happens.
2) The Eagles will do what they have done all season – sack the quarterback, in this case, Daniel Jones.
They have been good at impacting the QB all season, which is why they enter the game with the league’s No. 1 ranked passing defense for the first time since 1991.
As good as Darius Slay and second-team All-Pro James Bradberry have been, the defensive line accounted for 70 sacks, the most the NFL has seen from one team in a season since the 1989 Vikings and just two away from tying the league record set by the 1984 Chicago Bears.
They are, though, the first NFL team to have four players reach double figures in sacks in one season: Haason Reddick had 16, with Josh Sweat, Javon Hargrave, and Brandon Graham checking in with 11 apiece.
The defense had seven sacks against NYG quarterbacks in the first matchup, with Graham tying a career-high with three.
Predict the final score.
The Giants are playing with a lot of confidence after entering the playoffs on a "sort of" bye. They didn’t have to play their starters in the regular-season finale in Philadelphia, and that rest certainly looked beneficial in their win over the Vikings.
Now, it’s the Eagles coming in off a bye, and I think with a hunger to show they were the No. 1 seed for a reason, and that is, simply, they have been one of the best, if not the best, teams consistently all season.
Certainly, they have a better roster, but the better team doesn’t always win, especially in a one-game winner moves on, loser goes home scenario.
I think that, eventually, the cream will rise to the top, as the cliché goes, and the Eagles will find a way to win a tight game.
EAGLES 24, GIANTS 20
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