Eagles-Giants matchups to watch in Week 6
Eagles-Giants matchups to watch in Week 6 originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
The Eagles (4-1) are traveling to North Jersey to face the Giants (1-4) in an NFC East battle on Thursday Night Football.
Here are some key matchups to watch:
Eagles OL vs. Giants DL
The Giants' defense got a ton of pressure on Saints QB Spencer Rattler on Sunday but they didn't sack him a single time in the loss. In fact, they pressured Rattler on 17 of 31 dropbacks for a 54.8% pressure rate, per NextGen Stats. Those 17 pressures are the most in a game without a sack in the NFL this season. On the flip side, Rattler handled that pressure and performed well under it. That will be a big key for Jalen Hurts in this game.
The strength of the Giants' roster is their defensive line with Brian Burns, Dexter Lawrence, Kayvon Thibodeaux and rookie Abdul Carter. Burns is tied for second in the NFL in sacks with 5 through 5 games but the Giants have just 10 sacks as a team. The Giants' outside linebackers flip side-to-side so both Lane Johnson and Jordan Mailata will have to be ready for all of them. While the first-round pick Carter has just a half sack, he is among the league leaders in pressures with 25; he has been disruptive.
Surprisingly, Lawrence doesn't yet have a sack this season but he's the best nose tackle in the NFL and is an absolute load inside against the run and pass. With Landon Dickerson (ankle) banged up and with some questions on the interior of the offensive line, that's a huge matchup in this game.
Saquon Barkley vs. Giants run D
Maybe a game back at MetLife Stadium is exactly what Barkley needs to break out of the early-season slow muck. After an incredible campaign in 2024, Barkley is averaging just 3.2 yards per carry this season and those big holes just haven't been there for him. Barkley's longest run this season was a 17-yarder against the Broncos in a game where he got just six total carries and nine total touches. He is averaging just 1.9 yards before contact per attempt, which ranks 32nd in the NFL among 44 qualified backs.
Because Barkley didn't play in Week 18 (along with the other starters) last year, he got just one game against his former team. Barkley got booed every time he touched the rock at MetLife Stadium in Week 7 and he had one of the best games of his career. He had 17 carries for 176 yards and a touchdown before the starters got pulled in a 28-3 win. That's the game where he let the young guys eat. Maybe this will be the first time Barkley gets to feast all season. Barkley is dealing with knee soreness but is expected to play in this game.
The Giants are giving up 5.3 rushing yards per attempt this season, which ranks 29th in the league and they've allowed 700 rushing yards, which ranks 26th. So there might be some light to run through.
A.J. Brown vs. Paulson Adebo
The Eagles' passing offense did some good things against the Broncos in the first half but when the Broncos went more zone heavy in the second half, that passing offense really dried up. Brown had a tough matchup against Patrick Surtain II and was still able to make some plays. Not to mention, the attention he garnered allowed DeVonta Smith to break out for a 114-yard performance. The Giants this offseason signed Adebo to a three-year, $54 million contract, making him a top-20 highest-paid cornerback. Adebo has been at the LCB spot for the last three weeks but maybe this is a game where he'll travel with Brown. If not, expect Adebo on the left side, Cor'Dale Flott on the right and Dru Phillips in the slot. If that happens, the Eagles will be able to pick their matchups. The Giants' safeties are Jevon Holland and Tyler Nubin. Through five games, the Giants have the NFL's No. 25-ranked pass defense.
Here's where PFF ranks the Giants' three CBs rank among the 106 qualified corners and their coverage stats:
24. Cor'Dale Flott: 14 catches on 21 targets, 169 yards, 0 TD, 4 PBUs
56. Dru Phillips: 29 catches on 41 targets, 261 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT, 5 PBUs
85. Paulson Adebo: 22 catches on 36 targets, 225 yards, 1 TD, 3 PBUs
In Week 5, the Eagles' offense got out of whack. Jalen Hurts threw 38 times, while Barkley had just 6 rushing attempts. While there were factors that led to that disparity, that's not ideal. It'll be interesting to see how balanced the offense is in Week 6.
Vic Fangio vs. Jaxson Dart
The Giants began their season with Russell Wilson as their starter but that was short-lived. They now have rookie first-round pick Jaxson Dart in there and he will make his third-career start on Thursday night. After leading the Giants to a win over the Chargers in his first-career start, he lost to the Saints in Week 5.
Against the Saints, Dart completed 65% of his passes for 202 yards and had 2 touchdowns but also threw 2 interceptions and lost a fumble in a game where the Giants had 5(!) turnovers. Dart has shown an ability to run a little bit through two games too. The shame for Dart is that the Giants are without Malik Nabers for the rest of the season after an ACL tear in Week 4. That leaves the Giants with their top receivers as Wan'Dale Robinson and Darius Slayton, who might also not play because of injury. They also get TE Theo Johnson involved some too. But they don't really have a ton of weapons.
I like him," Vic Fangio said of Dart. Another mobile quarterback. I think he's got that air about him to be a quarterback. I think he's confident in his abilities and in their offense. Got the gun run game to contend with. They'll run quarterback draws, quarterback designed runs. He's good. I think they got themselves a quarterback."
Traditionally, Fangio has had a lot of success against rookie quarterbacks and there are reasons to think that will continue in this game. While the Eagles' defense had a rough fourth quarter against the Broncos, they have shown glimpses of being they looked like in 2024 and still have a ton of talent.
It'll be important for the Eagles' defense to continue its success in the red zone and it should have an advantage if the Giants get inside their 20. The Eagles have the No. 3-ranked red zone defense (42.9%) in the NFL and the Giants have the worst red zone offense (31.6%) in the league.
Eagles run D vs. Cam Skattebo
The Giants used a fourth-round pick to take Skattebo, a 5-11 battering ram, out of Arizona State. Through five games, Skattebo has 63 carries for 240 yards (3.8) and 2 touchdowns. He did lose a fumble against the Saints, contributing to that poor ball security game.
But aside from that fumble, Skattebo was pretty good against the Saints with 88 yards on 19 touches (59 rushing, 45 receiving). Skattebo forced five missed tackles against the Saints and has forced 21 missed tackles this season, per NextGen Stats. The Eagles have gotten a little leaky at times against the run and Skattebo is averaging 3.4 YAC/attempt this season.
Jalen Carter vs. Giants iOL
While Jalen Carter is clearly playing through a shoulder injury and doesn't yet have a sack this season, he is still being disruptive. He got the push on a stunt that got Za'Darius Smith free for a sack against the Broncos and Carter should have drawn a holding penalty on another one of his rushes. With Carter, Jordan Davis and Moro Ojomo, the Eagles should be able to get pressure up the gut, where the Giants are most susceptible.
The Giants starters on the interior of their O-line are LG Jon Runyan, C John Michael Schmitz and RG Greg Van Roten. The Giants this season have allowed 54 pressures, per PFF, and 31 have been charged to those three interior offensive linemen:
LG Runyan: Ranked 44/78 - 2 sacks, 4 hits, 7 hurries, 13 pressures
C Schmitz: Ranked 24/35 - 0 sacks, 1 hit, 6 hurries, 7 pressures
RG Van Roten: Ranked 58/78 - 2 sacks, 0 hits, 9 hurries, 11 pressures
Left tackle Andrew Thomas is back and playing well but right tackle Jermaine Eluemunor (back) might not be able to go. Another injury to monitor this week.