The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the New York Giants by a score of 34-17 on Sunday, earning them the No. 4 seed in the NFC and a trip to the Wild Card round. New York scored twice in the third quarter to tie the game at 17-17 but was outscored 17-0 in the fourth.
Carson Wentz had a solid outing despite not having Alshon Jeffery, DeSean Jackson, or Zach Ertz at his disposal. He completed 23 of 40 passes for 289 yards, one touchdown, and no interceptions. The Eagles’ line protected him well without Lane Johnson or Ertz, giving up just one sack.
But the real story for the Eagles in this win was the breakout performance from running back Boston Scott. Scott, who did not even get into a game until October and didn’t register more than seven touches in a game until Week 14, finished with 138 total yards and three touchdowns. Miles Sanders also ran for 52 yards on nine carries in the absence of Jordan Howard.
The Eagles’ receivers provided just enough downfield production for their run game to continue gashing New York. Dallas Goedert caught four passes for 65 yards while Josh Perkins, Deontay Burnett, and Greg Ward, Jr. combined for 12 receptions for 141 yards and a touchdown.
For the Giants, Daniel Jones had another up-and-down game in which he showed flashes of promise as well as questionable decision-making. Jones completed just 28 of his 47 pass attempts and totaled 301 yards with one touchdown and one interception. He was sacked four times and coughed up a costly fumble in the fourth quarter that led to an Eagles touchdown that sealed the game.
Saquon Barkley proved his ankle is completed healthy again with a 68-yard touchdown run that kept the Giants in the game in the third quarter. He finished with 117 total yards on 17 carries and five receptions to close out his sophomore campaign.
Rookie Kaden Smith led the Giants’ receivers with 98 yards on eight catches, and Golden Tate added 68 yards and a touchdown on five receptions.
The Eagles, champions of the NFC East, will have a home playoff game next week against the loser of Seahawks vs. the 49ers. The Giants, meanwhile, enter the offseason in search of improvements as well as a new head coach after they parted ways with Pat Shurmur.
