Week 14 of the NFL regular season wraps up tonight as the 2-10 Giants take on the 5-7 Eagles in Philadelphia. The NFC East has been a dumpster fire so far this year as all the teams currently stand at under .500. With the Dallas Cowboys also taking a loss in week 14, the Eagles have the chance to tie them in the division with a victory tonight. If they can do so, the week 16 match up between the Cowboys and Eagles will surely decide the winner of the East. With all four teams in the NFC East struggling heavily this season, it poses the question of the validity of the current playoff system where each divisional winner is given a home playoff game, even if their record is worse than the wild card team.
This week marks the return of Eli Manning as the Giants starting quarterback. Rookie QB Daniel Jones went down last week with an ankle injury, giving the two time Super Bowl champion his potential last few starts in the NFL. The Giants offense has been terrible this year no matter who has been taking snaps behind center. They rank 21st or worse in the league in every major offensive category in terms of points and yards gained. Their offensive line hasn’t played well which has plummeted the value of their best weapon Saquon Barkley.
The Eagles have had their own troubles this season as well. The secondary was banged up in the beginning of the year and got killed through the air over that stretch. With everyone back healthy, they had a few good games defensively until they gave up 37 points to Ryan Fitzpatrick and the Dolphins last week in a humiliating loss.
The Eagles need this game much more than the Giants, but that doesn’t mean Eli Manning and company won’t try to embarrass the Eagles on their home turf. Vegas has the spread at -9.5 in favor of the home Eagles, but don’t be surprised if this game remains close throughout its entirety. All the stats point to the Eagles being able to take care of business at home tonight, but their inconsistency throughout this year is inescapable. What a difference a few years makes, as the Eagles went from the under dogs who took down the Patriots in Super Bowl LII to a team fighting to find an identity at the back end of the season. Even with all the drama, the Giants just don’t have enough talent on both sides of the ball to win this match up.
Prediction: Eagles 27, Giants 20
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