This weekend, the New York Giants face their divisional rival the Philadelphia Eagles.
Both these teams have made the playoffs, but the Giants know that if they win, they can take the Eagles’ number one seed away from them.
Here are 2 keys to a Giants’ Victory this weekend
1. Expose The Eagles Quarterback Issues
For the majority of the season, the Eagles were quarterbacked by Jalen Hurts, who lead the team to a very strong record.
Then, he got a shoulder injury and was ruled out.
This meant that backup quarterback Gardner Minshew has been playing.
In the two games he has played as the Eagles quarterback, the Eagles have lost them both, with the Eagles looking like a shell of their former selves against the New Orleans Saints.
Minshew was sacked 6 times in this game and threw an interception that led to a pick 6 for the Saints, sealing their victory.
At the moment, we do not know if Hurts will be playing on Sunday.
If he is not able to, the Giants’ defense needs to take full advantage of the poor Eagles offense.
Their performance in the victory against the Indianapolis Colts was a perfect example of what they should do to weak offenses.
By shutting down the Eagles’ offense, their chances of victory will increase.
2. Play the Starters
The Giants have made the playoffs and are locked into the 6th seed in the NFC.
This is a meaningless game in relation to the Giants’ playoff race.
This raises questions of whether the Giants should play their starters, or allow their second and third-string players to take the field.
The majority of the starters are in the best shape they have been in awhile.
The likes of Daniel Jones, Saquon Barkley, and Kayvon Thibodeaux have all shown why the Giants deserve a place in the playoffs this year.
These players need to be 100% for the playoffs and not playing them in week 18 would allow them to be in the best possible condition for the game.
But, this is a rivalry game, and the Eagles are in poor form right now.
Playing the starters at least for one half would allow the players to play in a very hostile environment, which would prepare them for their road playoff games.
If the Giants do not play their starters, they are missing a massive opportunity to score a win against a rival and deny them their number one seed.
