NY Giants Week 8 Report Card: A Thorough Thumping by the Eagles

The five sacks quarterback Jaxon Dart absorbed mainly were his fault for holding onto the ball for what seemed like forever while his receivers tried to shake loose from the Eagles' defenders.  

Per NextGen Stats, only Beaux Collins (3.89 yards), Wan’Dale Robinson ( 3.37 yards), and tight end Theo Johnson (3.32 yards) managed to top this week’s league average of 2.89 yards of separation.

Not that it did any good, as the best the Giants got out of their pass catchers this week was Robinson’s three catches for 48 yards.

There were also two drops by the receivers, and of the six contested catches to be made, they only came up with three. Not good.

The run game, meanwhile, lost its steam when rookie Cam Skattebo had to leave the game with a dislocated ankle. The Eagles also apparently figured out how to bottle up Dart from hurting them with his legs. 

In all, the Giants were limited to 68 yards on 21 carries and a long of eight, with the one touchdown by Dart, and failed to make the big plays that were there for the taking.  

Defense: F

In what was, without question, the worst showing of the season–and yes, this includes the fact that they had four sacks of Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts–the Giants gave up 276 rushing yards, an average of 8.4 yards per attempt. 

That included allowing two 100-yard rushers, Saquon Barkley in his “get-right” game and Tank Bigsby, who had 150 and 104 yards, respectively. Barkley got things started with a 65-yard touchdown run in which he whizzed right by Tyler Nubin for the score on the opening drive.

And while the Eagles didn’t take to the air as much, when Jalen Hurts did attack the undermanned defensive secondary, it was usually successful, completing 15 of 20 attempts for 179 yards and four touchdowns. 

You think maybe at some point the Giants, who were torched by tight end Dallas Goedert for two of those aerial touchdowns, will learn how to better defend the opposing tight end? 

Special Teams: C-

For all the worry about the Giants carrying just Graham Gano on the gameday roster, he was the least of the team’s problems. 

Instead, the coverage units, and in particular on kickoffs, had an afternoon to forget, which included returns of 41 and 32 yards by Will Shipley. 

The Giants' average starting field position (34-yard line) was only one yard better than the Eagles, whereas the Eagles won the starting field position battle hands down on kickoffs, their drives starting on their 38-yard line, and the Giants' drives starting on their 32-yard line.   

Coaching: F

It’s hard to blame Brian Daboll on what was a wasted challenge on the tush push, which was a fumble, even after the officials advised him of forward progress. Still, it cost them a time out. But that wasn’t the worst of the coaching problems this week 

Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen has, it seems, zero answers for fixing the run defense or getting his guys to cover tight ends. 

Yes, there were injuries, but can anyone say there were noticeable adjustments to compensate for those injuries? 

More pre-snap penalties contributed to the problems, and overall, it's not a stretch to say the Giants were outcoached by the Eagles.