Giants Finally Make the Grade Against Eagles

EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ – The Giants were feeling pretty good after 30 minutes of football Sunday, dominating the Eagles en route to a comfortable two-score advantage.

You don’t go 1,470 days without beating someone in your own division without realizing the other shoe is about to be dropped, however.

That came in the form of a career-long 56-yard touchdown run by Giants killer Boston Scott on Philadelphia’s first possession of the third quarter.

The big play and an ensuing two-point conversion on the ground by Miles Sanders gave the Eagles life in an empty MetLife Stadium and turned a dull atmosphere into a shootout for a short period of time at least.

This time, however, the Giants responded by ending their four-year-long streak of misery and eight consecutive losses against the Eagles with a 27-17 win.

We tell you why with the grades:

The OGs – F: No Original gangstas here as Issac Seumalo wasn’t activated from IR while Nate Herbig was dressed and presumably available but did not play after fighting through a finger injury during the week.

That left Sua Opeta at left guard, Matt Pryor at RG, and Carson Wentz too often fighting for his life. When you have a struggling quarterback the surest way to ensure he stays that way is to make sure the blocking in front of him is porous.

The CBs opposite Darius Slay – D: The Eagles had the Giants on the ropes after the Scott TD run until Daniel Jones simply went to consecutive fade patterns. The first a slot fade in which Sterling Shepard ran clinically against Avonte Maddox and then a 50/50 ball in which Golden Tate simply went over good coverage by Nickell Robey-Coleman.

The two plays went for 27 and 38 yards and in short order, the Giants had extended their lead. The corners opposite Darius Slay continue to have a very difficult year.

Travis Fulgham – F: I’m not sure if the clock struck midnight for good on this Cinderella but Fulgham snared just one of five targets for eight yards and failed to generate much separation on the first watch of the game with Jalen Reagor and Greg Ward seeing the most traffic from Wentz when it came to the receivers.

Jason Kelce – D: The wind was swirling at 15 MPH to start and I’m not sure that can affect a center snap but Kelce, who occasionally has a game where he’s wild had it at MetLife with at least three low snaps that impacted plays for the Eagles in a negative fashion. He did have a brilliant block to help spring Scott on his TD run which saves him from the failing grade.

Carson Wentz – D: If you thought the self-scout of a bye week was going to cure all the ills, forget it. Wentz is still wild high and inconsistent throwing the football which points to uneven mechanics. The good news is that Wentz did not turn the football over despite being under siege most of the afternoon. Small steps.

Situational Football – F: The Eagles played 60 minutes of football Sunday and failed to convert a single third down, finishing 0-for-9.

Then there is the on-field decision-making like 4th-and-10 down 24-17 and the game on the line, a back-shoulder fade to Jalen Reagor, a rookie receiver whose biggest weakness is route-running at this stage against a top-10 cornerback in James Bradberry?

Dumbfounding.

The NFC East – A: At least for the Eagles. No matter what happened today the Eagles were going to remain in first place at 3-5-1 and Washington came up short in a comeback attempt against Detroit. That means the Eagles still lead Giants, WFT, and Dallas by two games in the lost column.

John McMullen contributes Eagles coverage for SI.com’s EagleMaven and is the NFL Insider for JAKIB Media. You can listen to John every Tuesday and Thursday on “The Middle” with Eytan Shander, Harry Mayes and Barrett Brooks on SportsMap Radio and PhillyVoice.com. He’s also the host of Extending the Play on AM1490 in South Jersey. You can reach him at jmcmullen44@gmail.com or on Twitter @JFMcMullen

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