It's not typical for the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles to be meeting for the first time this late in the season. But maybe it worked out for the best, as a Giants Week 16 showdown with the Eagles comes pre-loaded with plenty of storylines.
For the Giants, a return trip to the playoffs is not in the cards this year. But Tommy DeVito has been a fun distraction for a few weeks, and has even gotten the team into the win column a bunch. After a subpar performance against the New Orleans Saints last week though, this meeting with the Iggles will be a big test for DeVito. Can he rebound in time to show the Giants' decision-makers that he's more than a fun meme generator, or will he turn into a pumpkin cutlet?
Things in Philly have taken a sharp turn in recent weeks as well. A 10-1 start has given way to a three-game losing streak that could've easily been a five-game skid with some lucky breaks not going this team's way. Changing defensive coordinators in Week 15 is not a move typical of a team with Super Bowl aspirations, so what does that say about what's going on with Nick Sirianni's club?
There's no better gift than ruining a rival's Christmas. So who will prevail in this NFC East battle, ho-ho-ho edition? Let our Giants Week 16 predictions guide the way.
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Waller leads Big Blue passing attack
The shine is coming off DeVito a bit. His yards per pass attempt average has fallen in three consecutive weeks, he couldn't pilot the offense to a touchdown in Week 15, and he's taken too many sacks while out there.
Perhaps a return to the lineup from Darren Waller will help? In his first game action since October, the tight end turned in a mostly efficient performance against New Orleans. Despite playing just 42 percent of the snaps of offense, Waller finished his day with four catches for 40 yards on six targets.
The Eagles have a bottom-five pass defense, and have been desperate to add linebacker help as recently as this month. Tight ends have given them problems this season as it is.
Waller should be able to function as a safety valve for DeVito at minimum. If he can hit a big play to jolt this Giants offense a bit? Even better.
Saquon shines
The Philly pass defense is bad, but it's not as if it's been letting down the rush defense, which has really struggled since the Week 10 bye. Since the week off, the Eagles have gotten gashed on the ground, giving up 100 rushing yards in five straight after having done so just once in their first 10 games.
Saquon Barkley is coming off a dreadful performance against the Saints, a nine-carry, 14-yard day that was easily his worst of the season.
But dropping DeVito back isn't the roadmap to a Giants win. (In the two games DeVito has thrown the most, the Giants are 0-2.) Brian Daboll will need to establish Barkley early and often, taking advantage of a Philly defense that's in the midst of an identity crisis.
An 80-yard day for Saquon (which he's done in two of the team's previous four games, both wins) would take a lot of pressure off Mr. Cutlets. The Giants would be wise to pound the rock until the Eagles prove they can stop it.
Eagles fly past Giants
It's true that nothing is going right for the Eagles at the moment, and that this stretch of bad play has exposed some serious flaws in the defending NFC champs.
With that being said, this should be a game for them to get back on track. The Eagles have lost three straight, but playing the San Francisco 49ers and Dallas Cowboys in back-to-back contests is no layup.
These are probably the best circumstances the Giants could've hoped for, and Daboll has done a masterful job keeping his team competitive despite a losing record. But his team will be at a talent deficit in Week 16, one that will prove to be too much to overcome.
A loss by single-digit points is still a loss for the Giants in this one.
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