Giants Defense Knows They Can't Sleep on Struggling Eagles Offense
The Giants' defense essentially won them their first game on Sunday against the Washington Football Team, and now it will look to make another big impact against another division rival on Thursday night.
Defensive coordinator Patrick GRaham's unit is bursting at the seams with confidence, though not necessarily arrogance as they also readily admit that there are things they still need to clean up.
Still, it's that confidence that comes from being a difference-maker that proves to them that they are indeed a formidable unit that can make a difference rather than some hapless bunch of personalities slapped together by chance.
But the Eagles' offense is not quite the same unit that the Giants faced in Week 6, despite what the numbers say.
The Eagles currently rank 22nd in the NFL in total yards but have surged in recent weeks with back-to-back games of 28+ points against the Steelers and Ravens.
Still, Eagles quarterback Carson Wentz, regarded as one of the better passers in the NFL, hasn't played with the same type of polish he's shown in years passed.
Wentz has completed 138 of 235 pass attempts for 1,401 yards, eight touchdowns, and nine interceptions this season and currently holds the third-worst quarterback rating among NFL starters with 71.2.
In addition, Wentz has committed a league-high 14 total turnovers and is in the midst of his worst six-game start to a season in his career, leading the Eagles to their worst start to a season since 2012.
However, Wentz hasn't had much help around him either, as injuries have ravaged the team fairly dramatically this year.
Philadelphia has played games without six of its top seven offensive linemen, tight ends Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert, first-round rookie wide receiver Jalen Reagor and veteran wide receiver Alshon Jeffrey and DeSean Jackson.
For the Giants, the matchup against their division rival will be just much of a challenge as it will be an opportunity as they look to snap a seven-game losing streak against the Eagles dating back to 2016.
Inside linebacker and defensive captain Blake Martinez understands that challenge and what Wentz brings as a quarterback beyond his drop off in numbers this year.
"The one thing that you see everywhere is that they've been going through a lot of injuries, a lot of moving parts throughout the offense," Martinez said.
"But for [Wentz], he's done an amazing job out there, you watch him on film, you still see him doing the Carson Wentz things that you see nonstop."
Wentz is coming off his best performance of the season against the Ravens, a game in which he almost led his team back from a 17-point deficit.
Wentz's final stat line read 21 completions on 40 attempts for 213 yards, two touchdowns, and no interceptions.
However, those numbers could have been much better were it not for Sanders and wide receiver John Hightower each dropping would-be touchdown passes.
While a missed game-tying two-point conversion attempt resulted in an Eagles' loss, Wentz is taking some serious momentum into Week 7 against the Giants and is starting to get into a groove with his make-shift offensive supporting his case.
"Last week he almost led the comeback against the Ravens so it's just little things here and there that they're trying to iron out with the new guys," Martinez said.
"You can start seeing that they're getting their groove going and for us, it's going to be a task that we don't allow this Thursday to be 'that game' for him."
Wentz has traditionally had "that game" against the Giants.
In Week 13 of last year, Wentz was able to halt the Eagles' three-game losing streak with a 325-yard two-touchdown comeback performance against the Giants. He capped it off with a game-winning touchdown pass to Ertz in overtime to win 23-17.
That win sparked the Eagles to their run toward an NFC East title, a run that culminated in Week 17 against the Giants where Ertz was once again on, throwing for 289 yards and a touchdown in a 34-17 victory at MetLife Stadium.
Now, it's up to Martinez and his teammates to make a statement that their new-look defense led by coordinator Patrick Graham is not the same unit that Wentz has been able to beat up on over the years.
