This Saturday night, the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles meet in the divisional round of the NFC Playoffs. It will be the third time these teams have met this season, and their first meeting wasn’t until December 11.
The Eagles came out victorious in their previous two meetings but take that with a grain of salt as the Giants rested many key players for the second game.
Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts missed the two games prior to their second meeting with the Giants. He suffered a shoulder injury and was sidelined. Gardner Minshew led the team to two losses before Hurts returned in the final week of the season. Then the Eagles got a week off with a first-round bye.
Hurts was questioned about his injury and the potential for Giants’ defenders to target his weakened shoulder. He shrugged it off as nothing new.
“It’s football,” Hurts told reporters. “I’ve got a bounty on me every week I go out there on the field, so I’m going to go out there and just play my game. Whatever happens, happens.”
That’s one way to look at it.
Ultimately, the Giants’ defense must show up this week. They managed to eke out a win last week against the Minnesota Vikings, but the defense wasn’t a strong point.
Wink Martindale will make adjustments this week to prepare for a team that defeated the Giants twice already this season, but the players have to execute.
Let’s hope Wink whips them into shape so the Giants’ next stop is the Conference Championship and not their couches.
