The Giants-Eagles rivalry is going primetime as the two NFC East foes kick off Week 6 action on Thursday night at MetLife Stadium (8:15 p.m. ET, FOX).
The gulf in class between these two is obvious. The defending Super Bowl-champion Eagles have been one of the more consistent contenders in the NFL over the last few years; meanwhile, the Giants continue to languish in dysfunction.
What could possibly go wrong?
Here are a few things to keep an eye on for Thursday night.
Philly’s wrath
Cracks have slowly been forming within the Eagles’ foundation despite winning 20 of their last 22 games, and it came to a head last week when the Denver Broncos came back to hand Philadelphia its first loss of the season.
The passing game has been an afterthought, ranking 31st in the league with 161.8 yards per game. Quarterback Jalen Hurts has been shy to throw the deep ball, with just 12 completions over 20 yards through five games. It’s left star receivers AJ Brown and DeVonta Smith voicing their frustration about their roles with the team, but Thursday night against the Giants and their 25th-ranked passing defense appears to be the perfect opportunity for a get-right game.
The Eagles have beaten the Giants in seven of their last eight meetings, and their standing as a touchdown-favorite on the road indicates that not many think that will change any time soon.
Limiting mistakes
For a team that has had the same head coach for four seasons, a culture of composed football remains clearly absent.
The Giants have had the second-most penalties enforced against them this year, at 43, and the 415 yards they have come off them are the most in the NFL.
Turnovers have also become a significant issue, as highlighted by their Week 5 loss to the New Orleans Saints. Big Blue committed five turnovers in total, with rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart committing three of them (two interceptions, one fumble).
While their minus-5 turnover differential is third-worst in the league, the Eagles’ plus-4 mark is in the top-10.
More trouble for Dart
Dart’s stock came down to earth a bit with his struggles against New Orleans in his second career start, though growing pains are to be expected. It does not help that his already-thin arsenal of weapons continues to be depleted.
After losing star receiver Malik Nabers for the season in Week 4 against the Los Angeles Chargers, veteran pass-catcher Darius Slayton was ruled out for Thursday night’s game with a hamstring issue.
That makes Wan’Dale Robinson the Giants’ No. 1 receiver moving forward, with the seldom-used Jalin Hyatt serving as No. 2. It will force Dart and offensive coordinator Mike Kafka to continue utilizing a two-tight-end set, which appeared to work down in New Orleans. Both of the rookie’s touchdown passes went to tight end Theo Johnson in the loss.
More Saquon drama
Ex-Giants running back Saquon Barkley has the perfect life since he left the Giants in free agency two offseasons ago to sign with the Eagles. He rushed for 2,0000 yards last season and won a Super Bowl. He also remains a fixture of their offense this year.
But the Giants won’t stop catching strays from the fallout of his departure, which is getting a new wrinkle on Thursday night with the release of the documentary “Saquon,” following the star rusher over a five-year stretch from when he tore his ACL with the Giants in 2020 to winning the Super Bowl with Philly back in February.
A major portion of the documentary is the tense contract stand-off between Barkley and Giants brass, headlined by co-owner John Mara shooting down the running back’s trade request in the summer of 2023.
How much longer does Daboll have?
Will the Giants’ head coach get the remainder of the 2025 season regardless of how bad things get? Probably not.
Fans are already fed up, and Mara will likely yield to public pressure if it reaches unbearable levels. That swell will only grow if the Giants put up a dud against Philadelphia at home in primetime. Daboll is 10-29 since the start of the 2023 season, and sinking to a 1-5 start would basically end any unrealistic hopes of the playoffs by the second weekend of October.
That is not the step forward that Mara wanted to see when he gave Daboll and Schoen a stay of execution following last season’s 3-14 debacle.
