3 Matchups The Eagles Need To Win vs The Giants

When the Eagles played the Giants 2 weeks ago, it was supposed to be a get-right game. It turned into a nightmare. They played the worst game they have had since the loss to the Bucs last season. The Giants shredded the Eagles' defense, and Hurts threw his first pick of the season.

But, in the week that followed, the Eagles got a big confidence boost with a massive game by Jalen Hurts, AJ Brown, and DeVonta Smith vs the Vikings. Meanwhile, the Giants blew a massive lead vs the Broncos in heart-wrenching loss.

So will the Eagles get their revenge and kick the Giants while they are down, or will it be a repeat of the Thursday Night debacle? If things are going to go differently this time, they need to win these matchups.

Skattebo demolished the Eagles in the first game. Only 98 yards, but 3 rushing TDs. It felt like he broke at least one tackle on every run. The Eagles' D had a nightmare trying to wrap him up. Half of his yards came after contact. The Eagles quite simply need to tackle better this time, or it will be the same story as week 6.

One thing that might help the Eagles, Nakobe Dean is back in the defensive lineup. He only played on special teams in the last game, but played a big role on the Eagles' defense vs the Vikings. With the Eagles still thin at Edge, you can expect them to once again play Jihaad Campbell at Edge, with Dean at ILB. Fans may forget how good Dean was last season because of Zack Baun being an All-Pro, and Dean being out since the Wild Card Round. But he played a huge role in that elite Eagles defense.

If the Giants can't run the ball, it is hard to see the offense doing much. Jaxson Dart has played very well, but injuries to the WR core limit their ability to do damage through the air, and their O-Line still leaves a ton to be desired. The main key to the Eagles' defense having a good game is finishing tackles. Luckily, Dean is another sure tackler to have out there on the field.

Having Jalen Carter back out there, who looked great last week vs the Vikings, will also make a huge difference.

The Eagles are not the only team beat up heading into this game. While they will be without a few key faces, including potentially AJ Brown with a hamstring injury, the Giants will be missing half of their secondary.

Their best corner, Paulson Adebo, and their best safety, Jevon Holland, have both missed practice so far this week after missing the end of the Broncos game. You may note the Broncos threw all over the Giants in the 4th quarter, after both of those players left with injuries. 33 points allowed in one quarter.

DeVonta Smith had one of the best games of his career last week. And with Brown potentially out, Smith might need to have another great game. If the Giants' secondary is down its two best players, it is easy to see that happening.

There were plays to be made through the air vs the Giants last time. But Jalen Hurts had an uncharacteristic bad game. Hurts and Smith regained their chemistry vs the Vikings. Going back to that well might be the Eagles' best game plan this week too.

The Eagles need to get the run game going, and not just for the sake of beating the Giants. The run game was their identity last year. It was unstoppable.

Does it need to be that good for the Eagles to repeat? No. They have a good enough pass game to win without nearly 200 rushing yards per game. But it needs to be viable, and so far, it has not even reached that low bar. Barkley is getting hit before he hits the LOS far too often.

Part of that is injuries along the line. With Cam Jurgens expected to miss the game, they will continue to operate with a patchwork line. But the guys playing need to be better, Barkley needs to be better, and the coaching staff needs to find ways the scheme the run game better.

If they fail to do that, maybe they win this game anyway. But they will not win another Super Bowl. It is not early in the season anymore. This is an issue they need to fix. Fixing does not have to mean being as good as last year. But it does need to mean the run game is a threat again.