We’re a far way off from the three picks Hurts threw in the last Giants game. I said I wanted blood and I got it. Philadelphia didn’t just win, they annihilated the Giants. Just like last week, the team came out limp in the first half but busted the doors in for the final 30 minutes. The result was a blowout win and an outside shot at the playoffs. Here are the top plays from a Week 16 matchup between the Eagles and Giants at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia.
Almost Plays
Darius Slay INT
If Darius Slay (PHI CB, #02) hadn’t been a shutdown corner all year or if the Eagles lost this game, I would have looked at this drop much less generously. The ball was so underthrown, it was almost as if Slay was the receiver. The ball was in his hands and was underthrown by two yards. As I type this hours later, I’m gobsmacked that he didn’t come away with a turnover on this throw.
Goedert Missed Open
Goedert had two almost-touchdowns, actually. One was called back due to a holding penalty. One was Goedert wide open in the end zone (which Hurts explained in detail in the post-game presser), one was a pass being called back due to holding. While neither was his fault (unlike the drop last week), it’s always better to see star players getting the ball. The Eagles still won, so it’s hard to be too angry, though. That is, unless you had Goedert in fantasy this week.
Group Play
Alex Singleton Pick 6
This would be higher on the list, but it took two different players to make this play happen. Rodney McLeod (Eagles S, #23) broke up the pass and Singleton (Eagles LB, #49) took advantage of the deflection from his teammates and put the game to rest. That is, assuming there was any sort of delusion that the Giants could overcome a 24-point deficit with 10 minutes left.
Individual Plays
Quez Watkins Catch
There have been a couple of Hurts throws that have been questionable. I applaud the young Eagles QB for not throwing it into double coverage like he did last week when Goedert made an amazing catch, though. In fact, you could see that Hurts even led Watkins (Eagles WR, #16) outside. I’d be lying if I said the throw didn’t make me nervous in real time. It ended up working out so I can’t critique it too harshly, but I always get nervous when Hurts throws a deep ball beneath a receiver and a defender is in the vicinity.
DeVonta Smith Catch
This throw didn’t scare me nearly as much as the one to Watkins. The Watkins throw was near a defensive back who was driving in on the pass. Not only did Hurts throw a deep ball beyond the defender, but Smith Eagles WR #6) high-pointed it and made sure he was the only one who could get it. Given that the game was still within reach at this point and Hurts was 5/15 for 47 yards, the offense desperately needed a spark. Lo and behold, Devonta did as Devonta does and made a big catch when the team needed him most. I cannot stress this enough: the Eagles are VERY fortunate to have Smith at their disposal.
Reagor Punt Return
Jalen Reagor (Eagles WR, #18) has gotten a lot of grief from Eagles fans. That tends to happen when your tenure through two years can be best described as “underwhelming.” Reagor was booed last week by fans anticipating poor play as soon as he stepped on the field. That’s not to say that he hasn’t been bad this year, but that’s a bad look in my opinion. Fortunately, Reagor didn’t give too much reason to boo against the Giants. In fact, the stadium came alive when he had a big return to give the Eagles primo field position. That’s the type of positive reinforcement he needs. You could even see Reagor running like a kid who just made a big play in street football after the play.
Milton Williams Sack
Mama, there goes that man! Seeing Howie Roseman (Eagles GM) hand-pick productive players is admittedly rarer than one would hope, but in Williams’ (Eagles DT, #93) case, it seems Roseman’s knowledge of the game of football seemed to have served him well. Of course, it helps that the Giants offensive line forgot that it was their job to block for their quarterback. New York’s brain collectively melted, but I prefer to think that the penetration Williams got was a combination of factors. A. the aforementioned terrible NY offensive line. B. Williams has been improving since the first week of the season.
DeVonta Smith TD
From ruled a touchdown, to not, back to being counted as one, the sequence of events that followed this was quite a spectacle. At the end of the day, I’m glad the referees ended up correctly ruling that this was a touchdown (no bias involved). Just like last week, Devonta showed off his toe-drag magic for a critical catch. I guess those ballerina lessons paid off, after all. This was technically the best touchdown of the day, as the score was easily the most impressive of the three, but there were two that were, one way or another, in my opinion, more meaningful.
Boston Scott TD
People have long debated who the true king of New York is. There are many worthy candidates– Nas, Jay-Z, Biggie Smalls, 50 Cent– but all of those are wrong. No, the true king of NY is Boston Nealand Scott (Eagles RB, #35). In his endless conquest of the greater New York area, Scott tallied 15 carries, 41 yards, and a touchdown en route to a blowout of a heated rival.
Lane Johnson TD
Big man touchdown. Need I say more?
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Dylan Patrowicz is a featured writer at The Birds Blitz. For more from Dylan, check out his archive and read through our Eagles articles for the latest news about the Birds.
