That hit should have been Philadelphia's way back in. Instead the game turned there. Jameis Winston came in for a short stretch, went 6 of 8 for 71 yards and threw the Giants' only touchdown pass. New York scored 7 in the third quarter to turn an 8-6 deficit into a lead it never gave back. McCarthy (hip) returned later in the game. Baun was listed as questionable to return with a back injury, so the hit cost Philadelphia too.
The preview pointed to Philadelphia's pass protection as the real problem: McKee was sacked 5 times in Washington with Jake Majors out at center. A new quarterback didn't change anything. Milton went down 7 times, and Arvell Reese, who was a footnote in the preview's Houston paragraph, had the best game of anyone on the field. The rookie linebacker led everyone with 12 tackles and recorded 3 of those sacks.
The line score shows how the game went. Philadelphia scored 8 in the opening quarter, then got shut out in the second and third and managed only a field goal's worth in the fourth. Clear skies, 58 degrees at kickoff and a light wind meant the weather had nothing to do with it. The Eagles' receivers did. With DeVonta Smith, Dontayvion Wicks and Britain Covey all inactive, Milton had little to throw to and spent his afternoon running or getting sacked. The search didn't produce individual lines for Saquon Barkley or Malik Nabers. The scoring makes clear that neither one took over the game.
New York didn't look dominant. It was 6 points behind its 27-21 overtime win in Houston, it played most of the third quarter with its backup quarterback, and its backfield was thin, with Cam Skattebo inactive and Tyrone Tracy on IR. That was enough against an Eagles team with this many players out. At 5-2-1 the Giants have Washington next. Philadelphia is 2-7 and losing more often than it is competing.
