Rusty or Chomping at the Bit, How will Eagles Respond off Bye Week?

The Eagles reacted to having a week off in jannuary, a rare thing for manhy in the locker room, while Nick Sirianni discusses how his team did not play well down the stretch

PHILADELPHIA – The Eagles weren’t playing overly well before heading into their playoff bye, losing two out of their final three games and, even in the one win, not looking particularly sharp.

So, will they be rusty when they host the New York Giants on Saturday night (8:15/FOX), or come out like a pack of hungry dogs?

“(Intensity) should already be ramped up,” said WR A.J. Brown earlier in the week. “This game means a lot. I know when we get the opportunity we have to let it all loose.”

Brown is familiar with a bye weekend to open the playoffs and also how that team, last year’s Titans, didn’t take advantage of being the No. 1 seed in the AFC and lost in the divisional round to the Bengals.

There aren’t many Eagles, however, who have had that bye experience in January.

“It was crazy having this much time off this time of year knowing you’re still in it,” said tight end Dallas Goedert. “It was a cool week for us to get better, then the weekend off watching the games. Then, like everybody said, we’re ready to get back to it.

“It seems like it’s been an awkward amount of time off since we played for this time of the year, which is cool, but I think we’re all ready to get back out there.”

They better be.

There are no more tomorrows for whichever team loses. 

“I get the feel that we all understand this is a playoff game,” said CB James Bradberry, one of the team’s key free agents whenever the season ends. “It’s a big game and that’s why guys are eager to get back out there, not really because we had a week off, but I know guys were happy we had a week off.”

Head coach Nick Sirianni said prior to Thursday’s practice that he doesn’t prescribe to the notion of rust and that having a bye week shouldn’t lead to a slow start and/or a loss.

“I think you’re hoping that you’re continuing to rise your level of play,” he said. “I know well, hey, we didn’t play our best game vs. New Orleans, we lost to Dallas and perceived that we didn’t play our best game vs. the Giants as well.

“But what results happen on the field and the way the game turns out doesn’t necessarily mean you’re not growing also. We feel we’ve continued to get better. Just like we don’t dwell on a loss, we don’t go back and dwell on a win.

“We just try to keep moving forward, so that’s for you guys to say this was your best game, this is what you’re supposed to look like. We know we’re getting better in here and it’s not just like we’re getting better because we’re here. No. We’re getting better we practice hard.”

Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Fan Nation Eagles Today and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglesmaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.