It is strange that the Giants have had to wait this long to catch up with the Eagles. They cannot delay the inevitable any longer.
The 14th week of the NFL campaign, well past Thanksgiving and nearly two weeks into December, is late in the process to be facing for the first time an NFC East rival that is on the schedule twice every season. So much has gone down with both teams, yet Sunday afternoon at MetLife Stadium will be the 2022 introduction of the Giants to the Eagles and the Eagles to the Giants.
When Brian Daboll described the Eagles, winners of three straight and 11 of their 12 games this season, as “a team that’s pretty much run through everybody,’’ he was not overinflating the next opponent, as coaches are wont to do. The Eagles have beaten the good (Vikings, Cowboys, Titans), the so-so and the bad. The only blemish in 12 games is a 32-21 loss to the Commanders in Philadelphia on Nov. 14.
“The biggest statistic is 11-1, and usually that correlates,’’ Daboll said. “I think Howie [Roseman, Eagles general manager] has done a great job of putting together a really good team and Nick [Sirianni] is a fantastic coach, I’ve known him for a while. They’re playing at a really high level, that’s why they’re the best team in the league.’’
Asked what catches his eye, Daboll said, “Everything,’’ then he started listing what he liked about the Eagles.
“Defensive line, the receivers, their quarterback, their offensive line,’’ Daboll said. “I mean, their offensive line is as good as it gets, it starts with [Jason] Kelce, he gets everything set, he’s been a fantastic player for a really long time. Jalen [Hurts] is operating at an extremely high level. A.J. [Brown], DeVonta [Smith], the running game is really good, the defense, the corners, they can rush the passer and stop the run. There’s a reason why they’re 11-1. They’re a well-rounded team.’’
There is almost no end to the superlatives:
• The Eagles have back-to-back games of 450 or more total yards and five or more touchdowns for the first time since 1981.
• The Eagles lead the NFL in rushing touchdowns with 23, just two short of their franchise record for an entire season.
• The Eagles lead the NFL with 23 takeaways, including a league-best 15 interceptions.
• The Eagles are second in the league with 42 sacks, with three or more sacks in six consecutive games.
• The pass defense leads the league, allowing just 178.5 yards per game.
• The average of 28.2 points a game is second in the league to the Chiefs (29.2).
• They convert 45.8 percent on third down, third-best in the league. Their red-zone offense scoring of 73.8 percent is second-best in the league.
• Jalen Hurts has won 14 of his past 15 starts and is the only quarterback in NFL history with 7,000-plus passing yards (7,003) and 1,500-plus rushing yards (1,665) through 31 career starts.
• Hurts has accounted for 29 touchdowns — passing for 20 and running for nine. The Giants have 26 touchdowns as a team.
“They’re a good team, there’s no doubt, you understand that going into the game,’’ Daniel Jones said. “They’re an explosive offense, they got a good defense, that factors in. We got to play our best ball.’’
Based on studying the Eagles, are they the best team the Giants have seen this season?
“Probably, yeah,’’ Jones said. “Yeah, probably. They’re extremely talented, they play well, they play hard, they play together. They’re a good team.’’
There have been a few close games along the way for the Eagles: 38-35 in the opener in Detroit, 29-21 to the Jaguars, 20-17 in Arizona, 17-16 with a comeback in Indianapolis. There seemed to be a vulnerability with the run defense — 17th in the league, allowing 117.9 yards per game — then last week the Eagles absolutely shut down the great Derrick Henry (11 carries, 30 yards). That sent a message that struggling Saquon Barkley and the Giants must have received.
“Every team, regardless of their records has strengths, has weaknesses,’’ receiver Darius Slayton said. “We’re gonna try to exploit the weaknesses and stay away from the strengths.’’
It is not so easy to find weaknesses in a team such as the Eagles. And the Giants, after a 6-1 start, are 1-3-1 in their past five games.
“There’s been times where they’ve been in close games and just been able to make a play to win the game,’’ Slayton said. “That doesn’t mean, the other team might have had ’em on the ropes or maybe they were able to exploit something but just not get the win.’’
