NFL
By: Mark T. Wilson
The Philadelphia Eagles will take on the New York Giants this Thursday in a short week for both teams. The Eagles are coming off their first defeat of the season at the hands of the Denver Broncos, while the Giants are trying to figure out what went wrong in their loss against the New Orleans Saints on Sunday.
The question surrounding the Eagles is, can they fix their offense before it all blows up? The Giants are starting a rookie QB in his 3rd game, and that should have Vic Fangio foaming at the mouth. Regardless of the records, this is still a division game against rivals. Can the Giants find some success, or will the Eagles find their groove?
Here are 3 keys to victory for the Philadelphia Eagles against the New York Giants.
Block Out The Media
This is what they wanted. The media was waiting for the moment when the Eagles lost a game so they could shout how right they were regarding playing too close to the vest. With 18 weeks in a season, they were sure to be right at some point.
Give the ball to AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith was all we heard over 4 weeks. Well, the Eagles did that and took their first loss. Now it’s back to run Saquon Barkley. Don’t let the media dictate what a defending champion does on the field. That’s exactly what happened here. They need to play their game the way they know how, and not how other people outside think they should.
Clean Up The Penalties
The Philadelphia Eagles are too good a team to keep making Tennessee Titans-type mistakes, especially with the game hanging in the balance. False starts, pass interference, illegal shifting, and such. While the offense stalled in the second half against the Denver Broncos, the Eagles also kept shooting themselves in the foot.
The Giants are a division rival, and with them being Barkley’s old team, this game will always carry extra weight. Every position coach on the Eagles must take their units to the side during practice and drill into their heads how important it is to stay focused in the game. Yes, they lost the Broncos’ game because they diverted from their identity, but they also lost the game because they made too many mental errors.
Balance
Who the hell knows what happened against the Broncos? No idea if Kevin Patullo or his next-door neighbor was calling the offensive plays Sunday. How the hell does Barkley carry the ball 6 times against a defense that WANTED Jalen Hurts to pass the ball so they could rush the passer? Make it make sense.
Yes, the Passing game did some good things, but where is the balance? Either it’s been run heavy and now pass heavy, but where is the balance? That loss should be a wake-up call for the offense. Against the Giants, things should get on track, but with Patullo, who knows?
