The Philadelphia Eagles look to bounce back from their first loss since last December when they visit a New York Giants team that hasn’t won a Thursday game in a decade.
The Eagles (4-1) have won their last three Thursday night games under coach Nick Sirianni, while the Giants (1-4) are 0-10 on Thursday under their last four head coaches.
Current coach Brian Daboll is 0-4, while his predecessors Joe Judge, Pat Shurmur and Ben McAdoo are each 0-2. New York’s last victory in this short week – a 32-21 victory over Washington in 2015 – came in Tom Coughlin’s final season on the sidelines.
That’s just one storyline in this prime-time NFC East matchup, which is also the second trip back to MetLife Stadium for Eagles running back Saquon Barkley and the divisional debut of Giants rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart.
Leading 17-3 early in the fourth quarter last week, Philadelphia was en route to a franchise-record 11th straight victory before the Denver Broncos stormed to a stunning 21-17 upset.
Barkley rushed just six times, his fewest carries in a game since Week 11 of 2021, when he was with the Giants. He scored against Denver on a 47-yard pass play, the longest by an Eagles running back since 2016, but is nowhere near the pace of his dominant 2024 campaign.
“I don’t really know what you want,” Barkley said after the loss. “If I touch the ball too much sometimes, we don’t throw it enough. If we throw it too much and I only have nine touches, I don’t wonder ‘what are we doing enough?’ My job is to win football matches.”
Perhaps a return to his old stomping grounds will revive Barkley, who ranks 22nd in the NFL with 267 rushing yards. In his first game in East Rutherford, New Jersey, he carried 17 times for 176 yards and a touchdown in a 28-3 win over the Giants in Week 7 last season.
“Obviously with Saquon, he’s going to be full of energy, ready to play here Thursday night,” Giants defensive coordinator Shane Bowen said. “So it starts there, and then we have to make sure we do a good job managing those playmakers on the perimeter. They’re going to find ways to get them the ball. They always do.”
Barkley needs 11 yards from scrimmage to become the first player in the 2018 draft class to reach 10,000.
As for the Giants, the focus is on their latest first-round pick. Dart won his home debut against the Los Angeles Chargers in his first NFL start in Week 4 and took a 14-3 lead last weekend in New Orleans before the Saints scored the final 23 points of the game.
He’s excited to face his first NFC East opponent and the defending Super Bowl champion.
“Obviously the divisional games carry a little more weight,” Dart said. “Understanding the history of this game and the intensity of it also carries weight. I’m really excited to be on the field Thursday night and have a lot of fun competing. It’s going to be a really cool environment.”
Dart participated fully in practice Tuesday and Wednesday after being listed as limited Monday due to a hamstring issue.
Giants running back Tyrone Tracy Jr. had no injury designations on Wednesday’s injury report, lining him up for a return against the Eagles.
Tracy, 25, hasn’t played since Week 3 due to a shoulder injury and was limited in practice this week. He has totaled 68 yards on 22 carries in three games this season. The sophomore back totaled 839 yards with five touchdowns as a rookie last season.
Right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor (back) is questionable after being limited Wednesday. Linebackers Swayze Bozeman (ankle) and Demetrius Flannigan-Fowles (hamstring) and wideout Darius Slayton (hamstring) did not participate in practice this week and were ruled out of Thursday’s game.
Barkley was a limited participant on Tuesday and a full participant on Wednesday. He does not carry an injury designation for Thursday’s game.
Eagles defensive tackle Jalen Carter (heel) is listed as questionable after being listed as a limited participant in Wednesday’s estimated review session.
Linebacker Nakobe Dean (knee) is also listed as questionable to make his season debut. He suffered a torn patella tendon during Philadelphia’s wild-card victory over the Green Bay Packers on January 12.
Philadelphia has ruled out left guard Landon Dickerson (ankle) and tight end Grant Calcaterra (oblique) for Thursday’s game.
The Eagles have won seven of the last eight meetings, including the playoffs.
–Field level media
