Eagles face tall order versus Giants ground attack during Divisional Round

The first playoff game is almost here and Philadelphia Eagles fans are understandably excited. Their team is two wins away from a trip to Glendale, Arizona for Super Bowl LVII. Philly is favored to beat the visiting New York Giants, and here’s the best part. The Birds are the healthiest that they’ve been in weeks.

The Giants are healthy too, and unlike the Eagles, they’ve been playing good football lately. They also have some momentum. While Philadelphia was resting and recovering during their bye week, the Giants used their ground game to gash the Minnesota Vikings’ defense and win the game by a 31-24 margin.

Daniel Jones ran for 78 yards and notched almost as many rushing attempts (17) as pass completions (24). Saquon Barkley rushed for two scores and tallied 109 all-purpose yards. Barkley sat out the season finale versus Philadelphia, but in Week 14 he was only given nine carries en route to 28 yards on the ground during the Giants’ 48-22 loss to Philadelphia in Week 14.

Don’t be fooled by Barkley’s Week 14 statistics versus the Eagles as he could be a factor in the Divisional Round.

If Barkley has another off game versus the Eagles during the Divisional Round of the playoffs, that could bode well for Philadelphia, but fans should remember that he played that Week 14 game with a neck injury. The Giants were trailing 21-0 in the second quarter, so New York couldn’t afford to continue running the ball as consistently. It also made minimal sense to put Saquon is harm’s way.

Barkley rebounded to close the regular season. He averaged 76 rushing yards per game. He scored two touchdowns during his final three games. He looked dynamic versus Minnesota in the NFC Wild Card Round, and if he is able to carry momentum into Saturday night’s contest, that could spell trouble for the Eagles’ defense.

Jonathan Gannon’s unit is top-ranked versus the pass, and they led the NFL in sacks (70). They have unfortunately had trouble stopping the run. Only five teams allowed more yards per rush than Philadelphia (4.6) this season.

On the other hand, only two teams had more rushing yards (2,519). The Eagles have a formidable rushing attack of their own. They own a higher yards-per-rush average (4.8) than New York had during the regular season.

While no one will ever confuse Jones for Jalen Hurts, the Eagles need to account for Danny Dimes’ running ability.  This season he has rushed for 708 yards. That is 285 yards more than his career-best (and only 52 yards less than Hurts).

Barkley looks fully recovered from the ACL tear that deprived him of his 2020 season. He’s certainly not the running back that gained only 598 yards last year anymore. Luckily for Philadelphia, the Giants’ receivers are average at best.

Still, the Eagles can ill afford to sell out in an attempt to prevent New York from running the ball. Either way, it is expected that the G-Men will rely heavily upon their rushing attack. Barkley and Jones will be the focal point of New York’s attempts to ruin Philly’s championship dreams.