Giants beaten by Eagles and suffer catastrophic injury.
First off, apologies for no post-game review of the Broncos game last Week. I was away and giving up 33 points in one quarter really ruined my holiday.
I was low-key very happy to not write a report on that. It would have been a case of how many Steps song titles I could fit into the article, and Tragedy would have been prominently featured.
Moving onto the Week 8’s 38-20 defeat to the dreaded Eagles. This looked like how all Eagles games usually go: we get bullied and humiliated.
To think we were on such a high two weeks ago and now the season is all but over.
Here are my main takeaways from the game.
Officiating the tush push
I hate to use poor officiating as an excuse. While I do not believe some flags and whistles not happening would have changed the result, it certainly did not help us.
Despite my hatred for seeing the Eagles succeed, I have never been against the ‘Tush Push’ as a play, even when the Eagles ran it four times in a row against the Giants two weeks ago.
Other teams try it and just are not as successful at running it as the Eagle. There has not been a high injury rate on the play and I have never understood why a play should be banned just because it favours one team.
However, my opinion has now changed. The play clearly can not be officiated properly.
With countless uncalled false starts and early whistles stopping turnovers, the play needs to either be banned or the league need to bring in some AI technology to officiate the play.
Or it needs to become a play where you can challenge any aspect of it, including if there was a false start or not, or expedited reviews from the eye in the sky.
Cam Skattebo
It is such a shame to see any injuries in the NFL, but to see Giants running back Cam Skattebo go down with a snapped ankle – and the distress it caused Jaxson Dart to see his friend in pain – was heart-breaking.
The kid brought such an energy to the team with everyone buying into his ‘running through brick walls’ mantra. He will be missed on the field for his playmaking ability and on the sidelines for his energy.
The surgery has been been a success, according to his own personal social media accounts. I just hope he can make a full recovery and be ready to play a part in the 2026 season.
The toughness of ‘Skat’ was really on show when he was asking for a hand up off the floor, ready to get going for the next play, only to see his foot pointing the total opposite direction.
Run defense
In the offseason, owner John Mara stated he was sick of seeing teams run all over us.
Nearly half way through the season, the defense is giving up 5.7 yards per carry, which is the worst in the NFL. This was only made worse by the Eagles handing the ball off on a 2nd-and-31 and picking up 34 yards on the play.
It is a problem that has plagued the team for multiple seasons now. Shane Bowen was brought into stop it and he has failed.
When the strength of your team is the pass rush, it is so important to get other teams into passing downs so that these pass rushers can attack the quarterback, but we just cannot stop the run.
Jaxson Dart
Dart is really looking like the real deal, and far beyond any expectations I had for him.
His ability to thrown on the run, the way he extends plays, the way he feels pressure – it all looks so natural to him. He even slid after picking up a first down this week, which was great to see.
He is still struggling with holding onto the ball a bit too long, but he did throw the ball away in this game, which is unusual for him. It is all part of the rookie quarterback learning curve.
I do not recall him checking the ball down to a running back in any of his games. This will come too.
Dart has faced very tough defenses in his five games, loud crowds and running an offense that really lacks an ‘X Factor’.
Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes would struggle to put up the numbers Dart has when one of your starting wide receivers is a practice squad elevation and your starters are dropping all the bullseyes you keep throwing at them.
The only reason to watch Giants football for the remainder of this season is to watch Dart’s progress. If he can put up three touchdowns most games without any weapons, then it should all be much easier and productive for him next year when Nabers is back.
I honestly think if you had offered me at the start of the season the situation we are in right now, I probably would have taken it – minus the injuries to Nabers and Skattebo.
I am an optimistic person but I struggle to see how the season is not over. Hang in there, Giants fans, we have our franchise quarterback and the dark times will be over soon. He is the chosen one!
