EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. − The celebration was somewhat muted on the field.
That’s because the Eagles have much bigger goals than just clinching a playoff spot, which they did by beating the New York Giants 48-22 on Sunday.
The Eagles (12-1) still have the NFC East title on their radar, along with the top overall seed in the NFC playoffs, which would mean a first-round bye.
But it was a necessary first step, and the Eagles achieved it like they have throughout most of the season, by burying an overmatched opponent early.
Miles Sanders rushed for 144 yards and 2 touchdowns, A.J. Brown had 70 yard receiving, including a 33-yard TD, and DeVonta Smith added a 41-yard TD.
In the process, both Sanders and Brown passed the 1,000-yard mark in rushing and receiving, respectively. It’s the first time an Eagle had reached either milestone since 2014.
The defense held Saquon Barkley to 28 yards on 9 carries. The Eagles also sacked Giants quarterbacks 7 times, led by Brandon Graham with 3, including a strip-sack in the fourth quarter.
Jalen Hurts led all of it. He completed 21 of 31 passes for 217 yards and 2 TDs. He also rushed for 77 yards on 7 carries, including a 10-yard touchdown run.
The Eagles took an early 21-0 lead as Sanders scored from 3 yards out on the first drive, then Hurts hit DeVonta Smith for 41 yards, connecting on a 4th-and-7. Hurts and Brown hooked up from 33 yards, coming on the first play after Giants punter Jamie Gillan was called for an illegal kick.
Then the Giants benefitted from the Eagles’ punting unit as a punt block enabled New York to take over at the Eagles’ 15. Daniel Jones then completed a 2-yard TD pass to Isaiah Hodgins with 2:57 remaining in the half.
But the Eagles answered with a 29-yard field goal from Jake Elliott with 58 seconds left.
The onslaught continued into the second half as the Eagles opened the second half with a field goal. The Giants answered with a touchdown to pull within 27-14 with 5:40 left in the third quarter.
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But the Eagles took over from there. Hurts’ 10-yard TD run on a quarterback draw up the middle made it 34-14. Then Sanders scored from 40 yards out with 6:01 left to make it 41-14. Then Graham sacked Jones’ backup, Tyrod Taylor, forcing a fumble that the Eagles recovered at the Giants’ 23.
By this point, Hurts and most of the starters were out of the game. So Gardner Minshew led the brief scoring drive, which was capped by Boston Scott’s 3-yard TD run with 3:09 left.
That was more than enough for the Eagles.
2 milestones in 2 plays
Brown and Sanders came into the game needing 50 and 76 yards, respectively, for 1,000 yards for the season. They got there on successive plays in the third quarter.
On 2nd-and-10 from the Giants 47, Hurts hit Brown for 9 yards, giving him 1,001 for the season. It’s his third time over 1,000 yards in his four NFL seasons. On the next play, Sanders gained 15 yards, giving him 1,012. He since added to that total.
For Sanders, it’s his first time over 1,000 yards in his four seasons. His previous best was 867 yards in 2020. Sanders is at 1,068 yards. Brown is at 1,020. His career high is 1,075 in 2020 when he was with the Tennessee Titans.
The milestones for the Eagles are rare as well. The Eagles’ last 1,000-yard receiver was Jeremy Maclin in 2014 when he had 1,318 yards. It was the same year as the Eagles’ last 1,000-yard rusher in LeSean McCoy, who had 1,319 yards.
Weird punt plays
The punting unit Eagles benefitted from a punt play that doesn’t happen often, and the Giants benefitted from blocking Arryn Siposs’ punt.
Midway through the second quarter, the Giants were punting from their 43. But they were called for an illegal kick as Gillan dropped the ball as he was kicking, then kicked it on the bounce. The 10-yard penalty gave the Eagles the ball at the Giants’ 33.
They scored on the next play.
Then it was the Eagles’ turn. Punting out of his end zone, the Giants’ Elerson Smith blocked it. Siposs picked up the deflection and started running. He was pushed out of bounds at the 15, where the Giants took over. Siposs hurt his ankle on the play and was helped off the field. He didn’t return.
Siposs is also the holder on field goals. Wide receiver Britain Covey filled in that role on Elliott’s field-goal late in the first half. It’s believed that Elliott would serve as the punter.
The Giants proceeded to score their first touchdown of the game with 2:57 left.
Eagles take early lead on short passes
The Eagles used a ball-control offense, but with the pass, as they took an early 7-0 lead, using up 8 minutes, 4 seconds of the first quarter. Jalen Hurts attempted 10 passes, completing 9, bunt none went for more than 13 yards. Grant Calcaterra, who had 2 catches all season, caught 2 of the passes, for 23 yards.
The Eagles tried just four running plays, with Miles Sanders capping the drive with his 3-yard TD run.
Big chance for Brightwell
The Giants determined before the game that star running back Saquon Barkley would play through his neck injury. But it became clear early on that Barkley wasn’t going to get his usual workload, and that benefited Gary Brightwell, who starred at St. Georges in Delaware.
Brightwell was already the Giants’ kick returner. But he was also the running back on the Giants’ second series. His first carry went for 14 yards and his next went for 3. He finished with 5 carries for 23 yards. Brightwell came into the game with 9 carries for 50 yards.
Brightwell is one of two Delaware high school players on the Giants. The other, wide receiver David Sills from Red Lion Christian, was not on the game-day roster.
Miracle at the Meadowlands memory
The Eagles have had some memorable late-season games since MetLife Stadium opened in 2010, none more so than the Miracle of the Meadowlands Part II game later that year on Dec. 19.
The Eagles trailed 31-10 with less than 10 minutes remaining when they scored three touchdowns to tie the game. They won it on DeSean Jackson’s 65-yard punt return as time expired. On the punt return, Jackson at first fumbled the ball, picked it up, then burst down the right sideline before cutting all the way across the field as time expired.
The Eagles have two players remaining from that game, although neither played in defensive end Brandon Graham and defensive tackle Linval Joseph.
Joseph was the Giants’ second-round pick that year, but he was inactive for the game. Still, he remembers it well.
“DeSean Jackson, he fumbled the ball, picked it up, ran it in and celebrated − and crushed our season,” Joseph said. “Our season was over after that play. It was just one of those years.”
Contact Martin Frank at mfrank@delawareonline.com. Follow on Twitter @Mfranknfl.
