The Philadelphia Eagles just won the NFC East duel against the New York Giants with 22:21. A last-minute pass from Carson Wentz to Boston Scott gave the hosts the lead, putting them at the top of the division. However, Giants quarterback Daniel Jones made the craziest play of the game shortly after the break.
Around six minutes were played in the third quarter when Jones (20/30, 187 YDS, 2 TD, INT, 4 ATT, 92 YDS, FUM) kept the ball in a zone read and through a wide open hole in the Eagles defense could walk. Jones was on his way to the end zone, no opponent far and wide, the touchdown seemed certain – until the Giants quarterback suddenly stumbled and fell eight yards from the end zone after an 80-yard run.
It was a play that could hardly have been more symbolic of the game at the time: Six of the seven drives after half time ended in three-and-outs, Jones’ long run was the only exception. Both teams aggressively made numerous mistakes – drops, bad reads and misunderstandings in blocking.
The Eagles got off to an excellent start in the game: On the first drive, Philadelphia marched thanks to a fast no-huddle offense and several scrambles by Carson Wentz (25/43, 359 YDS, 2 TD, INT, 7 ATT, 14 YDS, TD) down the field. In the Red Zone, a running Wentz got a new first down with a fourth-and-one and then also caused the touchdown to the 7-0 lead.
The Giants equalized on their second drive: Golden Tate (REC, 39 YDS, TD) beat his opponent Cre’Von LeBlanc on a fade route, Jones threw a perfect pass at his slot receiver. The 35-yard touchdown catch marked the score’s first points in the game.
Afterwards, both offenses showed more and more sand in the gear. The Eagles punted five times, the Giants six times. Wentz threw a terrible interception in triple coverage, Evan Engram (6 REC, 46 YDS) made a drop that landed in the hands of Jalen Mills. Dion Lewis (3 ATT, 23 YDS, FUM) also fumbled the ball shortly before the break, but Jake Elliott (1/2 FG, 1/1 XP) then missed a 29-yard field goal.
NFL: Wentz pass on Scott puts Eagles in the lead at the last minute
Only Jones’ long run, after which the Giants took the lead 14-7 despite the stumble, after a penalty against Nickell Robey-Coleman, made points again before the game turned into a real thriller. At 10:14 am, the Eagles played a fourth and goal from the three yard line, but the pass to Hakeem Butler was unsuccessful.
In return, the Giants put down their best drive of the game: Thanks to a long penalty against LeBlanc, New York marched over 97 yards down the field, Sterling Shepard (6 REC, 59 YDS, TD) finally caught a short pass from Jones in the end zone. Only with the courage of desperation at 10:21 six minutes before the end did the Eagles offense wake up.
Wentz found John Hightower (REC, 59 YDS) with a 59-yard pass through the air and a little later brought the Eagles up to a score with a short pass to Greg Ward (5 REC, 42 YDS, TD). After a punt by the Giants, in which Engram made another nasty drop, Wentz led his team again into the opposing red zone. After a penalty against Jason Kelce, he placed a perfect pass on a Boston Scott wheel route (12 ATT, 46 YDS, 3 REC, 46 YDS, TD), the touchdown gave Philly 22 after a missed two-point conversion: 21 in the lead.
In return, the Giants could no longer answer. With just 30 seconds remaining, Jones was knocked down in the pocket by Brandon Graham and lost the ball. Vinny Curry secured the home team the Fumble and the Eagles victory.
Philadelphia fears about two key top performers after the game. Lane Johnson had to leave the field again due to his ankle injury, and DeSean Jackson was hit hard after a punt and never returned to the game. The Eagles will meet the Dallas Cowboys at home next week, the Giants will host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Philadelphia Eagles (2-4-1) – New York Giants (1-6)
Result: 22:21 (7: 7, 3: 0, 0: 7, 12: 7) BOXSCORE
Eagles vs. Giants – the most important statistics
- Jones’ interception in the first half marked his eighth game in a row with at least one turnover, the longest run in the NFL. The second longest streak? Wentz, who lost the ball for the seventh time in a row.
- Wentz’s touchdown run on the first drive of the game was his fifth run this season. After just seven games this season, Wentz has more rushing touchdowns than any Eagles quarterback in the past ten years. Michael Vick posted nine rush touchdowns in 2010.
- The Eagles took their first win, trailing in the last quarter, since 2012. Back then Philadelphia won against the Buccaneers, then the Eagles had lost 36 such games in a row.
- Jones’ crazy Zone read run in the third quarter made for a real first. The 80-yard run was the longest non-touchdown run by a quarterback in at least 40 years.
The star of the game: Carson Wentz, Quarterback, Eagles
Wentz played a far from perfect game. The 27-year-old was much more accurate than at the beginning of the season, but held the ball too often too long and made a number of bad decisions on his passes, especially when he intercepted James Bradberry. In the crucial moments, however, Wentz was there and became a match winner: he kept the first touchdown drive alive with his scrambles, late in the game he threw perfect passes to Hightower and Scott. A clutch performance by the Eagles quarterback!
Flop of the game: Andrew Thomas, Left Tackle, Giants
For disciplinary reasons, Thomas had been replaced as left tackle by Matt Peart the previous week, which might have been the better choice in the game against the Eagles. The fourth pick of the draft was once again completely overwhelmed in the pass blocking. Thomas allowed two of the three Giants sacks: first he was caught on the wrong foot by a spin move by Derek Barnett, later he recognized a lightning bolt from Nathan Gerry too late. In addition, Thomas was responsible for a few other pressures. Also very weak: Evan Engram and his game-winning drops.
Analyse: Eagles vs. Giants – die Taktiktafel
- The Eagles had clearly decided to involve DeSean Jackson (3 REC, 34 YDS, ATT, 12 YDS) early in the game on his comeback. The first two plays of the game were an endaround run and a pass on a comeback route of the speedster. In the further course of the game, however, Jackson was searched much less often.
- The Giants, in turn, tried to get the ball into the hands of Evan Engram early on. The tight end also received a run on his team’s first offensive play and was the recipient of a screen pass a little later. Even after his costly drop that led to interception (also in a play designed for him), Engram remained the focus of New York’s offense, but didn’t play well. Two minutes before the end he made the next extremely expensive drop.
- Philadelphia had identified Darius Slayton (2 REC, 23 YDS) as the Giants’ most dangerous receiver. Darius Slay was usually assigned to Slayton as a direct opponent, and he often received safety assistance on top of that. After a five-yard penalty at the beginning of the game, Slay eliminated his opponent almost entirely.
- On a fourth-and-goal early in the fourth quarter, the Eagles tossed a pass on a fade route from Hakeem Butler, who was isolated on the right side of the formation against Logan Ryan. It was Butler’s first ever snap in the NFL! Even if the Giants were a little lucky that Ryan did not receive a penalty from the referees at the Incompletion, it was an extremely dubious play call from the hosts – symbolic of the ineffective play designs of the Eagles in the Red Zone.
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