Week 14 Eagles grades by position after crushing the Giants originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — The Eagles are officially a juggernaut.
After blowing out the Titans last week at home, the Eagles went to North Jersey and crushed the Giants 48-22 and it wasn’t nearly that close.
Get Philly local news, weather forecasts, sports and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Philadelphia newsletters.
The Eagles are 12-1 after Week 14, have already clinched a playoff berth and are closing in on the No. 1 seed in the NFC.
Quarterback
Jalen Hurts: 21/31, 217 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT, 109.2 rating; 7 carries, 77 yards, 1 TD
Two weeks ago, Hurts ran all over the Packers. Last week, he threw all over the Titans. This week? He did both. Just an impressive, impressive performance from the MVP candidate. It really started on his first drive, completing passes to seven different receivers. He was cooking all day. There were a few other passes where Hurts was on the money and his teammates didn’t come up with it; so his stats could have looked even better.
Grade: A+
Running back
Miles Sanders: 17 carries, 144 yards (8.5), 2 TD
Sanders set a career high in rushing yards a couple weeks ago and broke his own record on Sunday with 1 more yard. But he also ran for two touchdowns in this game and a ridiculous 8.5 average. He also crossed the 1,000-yard threshold for the first time in his career. But the most excited he was all afternoon came on a lead block for Hurts. And Boston Scott scored at touchdown against the Giants because of course he did — Giant killer.
Grade: A+
Receiver
A.J. Brown: 4 catches on 6 targets, 70 yards, 1 TD
The Eagles’ wideouts dropped a couple passes on Sunday but they still put up impressive numbers. Brown crossed 1,000 yards receiving for the year in this one. In addition to Brown’s 4/70/1 game, DeVonta Smith added 5/64/1 and Quez Watkins added 4/19. The Giants’ cornerbacks had no prayer of covering these guys.
Grade: A
Tight end
Grant Calcaterra: 2 catches on 4 targets, 24 yards
In what could have been the final game without Dallas Goedert, who is eligible to return from IR next week in Chicago, the group of Jack Stoll, Calcaterra and Tyree Jackson had a nice game. In addition to Calcaterra’s 24 yards, Stoll caught 2 passes for for 20 yards. Obviously, they’re not going to be featured in the offense like Goedert normally is but they contributed on Sunday as receivers and blockers.
Grade: A-
Offensive line
The Eagles had 253 rushing yards and allowed Hurts to stay very clean in the pocket almost all afternoon. That Giants line (at least the starters) is very good and the Eagles bullied them.
Grade: A+
Defensive line
Brandon Graham: 3 sacks, 4 tackles, 3 QB hits, 3 TFLs, 1 FF
The Eagles had seven sacks on Sunday; 3 from Graham and 1 each from Haason Reddick, Fletcher Cox, Josh Sweat and Milton Williams. They feasted on Daniel Jones and then held Saquon Barkley to 9 carries for 28 yards and Jones to 4 attempts for 26 yards. Dominant performance for the Eagles’ DL.
Grade: A+
Linebacker
T.J. Edwards: 6 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 PBU
Edwards had another TFL in this game and is now up to 10 on the season. He’s been making big play after big play. Kyzir White also had a couple tackles and a QB hit. And Christian Elliss had 4 tackles in limited time at the end of the game.
Grade: A
Secondary
Darius Slay: 4 tackles, 2 PBUs
Jones completed 18 of 27 passes for 169 yards and a touchdown. That was nowhere near enough. The Eagles gave up a few yards here and there through the air but with this game never in question, they just did what they needed to.
Grade: A
Special teams
Boston Scott: 3 kick returns, 117 yards (39.0), long of 66
The bad play on special teams came on the blocked punt that ended up giving the Giants a short field, although Arryn Siposs nearly converted a first down on the play before he got hurt. But aside from that and a penalty that pinned them deep, the Eagles made some plays on special teams. Scott continues to kill the Giants and did it with his kick returns on Sunday. That 66-yarder was a beauty. Britain Covey had a 16-yard punt return and looks way more comfortable back there. Even when Siposs was out of the game, the Eagles got a decent punt from Jake Elliott and Covey did a nice job holding for field goal attempts.
Grade: B+
Coaching
Record: 12-1
Hard to argue with the results in this one. Nick Sirianni had a great game plan. Shane Steichen called a gem of a game. Jonathan Gannon’s defense really gave up just one legitimate touchdown. This mostly young coaching staff is a big reason this team is so darn good.
Grade: A+
Subscribe to the Eagle Eye podcast
Apple Podcasts | Google Play | Spotify | Stitcher | Art19 | Watch on YouTube
