For New York Giants, Steep Climb To The Playoffs Begins With Philadelphia Eagles

For the New York Giants, following last Sunday’s 20-20 tie against the Washington Commanders, their season record is 7-4-1. That puts them ahead of both Washington and the Seattle Seahawks in the battle between these three teams for the final two NFC playoff spots.

And yet: FiveThirtyEight projects both Seattle and Washington as likelier to reach the playoffs than the Giants. What gives?

Well, the Giants face the Philadelphia Eagles twice, with the first matchup coming Sunday at 1 PM ET at MetLife Stadium. They also take on the 10-2 Vikings, while their rematch against Washington, the only team to beat Philadelphia, comes on the road.

But for head coach Brian Daboll, nothing about that daunting schedule changes his approach, he told assembled media on Monday.

“No. I think you just got to get ready to play the next week and the next team,” Daboll said. “For us, it’s the best team in the NFL right now; one loss. They lost to Washington. They have a star-studded roster. I think (Philadelphia Eagles general manager) Howie (Roseman) has done a great job of putting together a bunch of talent there on that team. (Philadelphia Eagles quarterback) Jalen (Hurts) is playing phenomenal. Those receivers are, they’re exceptional (as is the) O-line, defensive line, corners. They’ve got a star-studded cast.”

Figuring out how to slow down Hurts is a task that no team has managed, and for the Giants, it may need to happen without standout defensive lineman Leonard Williams, who did not participate in practice again on Thursday. But they should have the services of both Azeez Ojulari and Kayvon Thibodeaux, a pair of outside linebackers, both finally healthy at the same time, who made life difficult for Washington all afternoon on Sunday, and that can only help the cause.

“It was one of those things, it was obviously a big day getting after the quarterback, but we really haven’t the initial starting lineup together since we started, if you want to really reflect on it,” Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale told the media on Thursday. “So, when you get the entire starting lineup together that’s when it’s going to be even more fun than what it was Sunday, but you can see the difference. You guys can see it, you can feel the difference or however you want to say it and just watching the both of them out there. I think he was on a pitch count, Azeez was, and (senior VP of medical services) Ronnie Barnes asked me how many reps he had I said, “I forget”, I think he went over the pitch count. It’s a tribute to Azeez too, because he’s really worked his tail off in trying to get ready to go and get back from all the injuries that he’s had. It’s been a tough year for him, so I was really happy for him.”

But the Eagles are not 11-1 on the strength of their offense alone — the Giants need to figure out how to make sure that a passing attack featuring Daniel Jones and a dwindling band of receivers — Odell Beckham Jr. still hasn’t walked through that door — can create enough offense against the league’s stingiest defense in passing yardage allowed. Saquon Barkley can help by running through the occasional holes in Philadelphia’s run defense, but even he was limited in practice Thursday with a neck injury.

One way to do that could be for Jones to incorporate Barkley more into the passing game directly.

“Each week, we talk about those things and how we can get him in the most ideal premier look,” offensive coordinator Mike Kafka said of Barkley on Thursday. “It probably just hasn’t shown up as much as we’d probably like to. Those things present themselves each and every week and that’s what we look for as a staff – how we can get those things done over and over and over again. That’s part of our evaluation process on the week to week.”

If it all seems like difficult terrain ahead, well, the Giants better get used to it. There’s no path to the playoffs that doesn’t involve figuring it out.