PHILADELPHIA – Giants captain Saquon Barkley did not speak to the media postgame on Sunday after being held to 32 rushing yards on 15 carries by the Philadelphia Eagles.
Devontae Booker, who has been the Giants’ best running back this season, stepped forward as the only non-quarterback to speak for a horrendous offensive performance.
“I really don’t even look too much into it,” Booker said of what his presence at the podium said about his strong season. “I just focus on myself and try to be better week-in and week-out and do whatever I can to help the team win.”
Barkley’s absence was jarring because anyone can take credit when things are going well. The players with C’s on their chest are needed most when their team is down and out, looking for answers.
Booker out-snapped Barkley 53 to 26. Barkley didn’t play down the stretch. He has been dealing with a “nagging” left ankle sprain.
Still, there was no medical reason provided for Barkley’s lack of availability, just his normal postgame treatment and the Giants’ imminent departure from the stadium.
Judge implied that he took Barkley out because of his ankle and because the offense wasn’t doing anything anyway.
“Just situation of the game,” Judge said. “He’s got some bumps and bruises. I thought Saquon played hard. Obviously we couldn’t get anything going for him.”
Booker, interestingly enough, said he thought the Giants’ play-calling should have stuck with the run.
“The run was working,” he said. “We veered away from it somehow. I think if we kept running it it would have been great.”
It wasn’t exactly working. Barkley averaged 2.1 yards per carry.
Still, Booker had six rushes for 27 yards, and he can be excused for thinking the Giants’ running game is all-world when compared to their success passing the ball.
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Left tackle Andrew Thomas seemed shaken up and grabbed his helmet after tackling Eagles safety Rodney McLeod on an interception return. Thomas appeared to hit his helmet hard on the field when he made the play. But the NFL’s concussion spotter didn’t pull him from the game and he wasn’t examined immediately after that drive … Corner Jarren Williams was wobbly after tackling Eagles running back Jordan Howard in the fourth quarter. He was tended to by the Giants’ medical team and surprisingly came back into the game … Special teamer Cullen Gillaspia hurt his foot on a big Jalen Reagor punt return and was limping out of the stadium after the game. He’s been playing hurt … Graham Gano hit a 54-yard field goal for the first points of the game. The Eagles scored 34 unanswered … David Sills made his first career NFL catch for five yards from Mike Glennon in the fourth quarter.
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The Giants played without typical starting right tackle Nate Solder and backup defensive tackle Danny Shelton, who both were placed on the COVID-19 reserve list on Saturday. Solder, a cancer survivor with a son who is battling cancer, was a high-risk opt out last season.
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Matt Peart started at right tackle in place of Solder but didn’t make it through the first quarter. He sprained his left knee while engaged with defensive lineman Cameron Malveaux and had to be helped off by trainers. He was replaced by Korey Cunningham.
Peart was struggling badly before he got hurt, too. Eagles DE Josh Sweat beat Peart to knock the ball out of Fromm’s hand twice on first quarter third downs, killing the Giants’ first two drives. One was an incomplete pass. One was a fumble recovered by the Giants. Both led to punts.
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The Giants might need a new punter next season. A struggling Riley Dixon had several more bad hits on Sunday, including a 33-yarder that Jalen Reagor returned 39 yards to set up an Eagles field goal and a 13-3 lead in the third quarter. Dixon is due to make $3.1 million in 2022, and cutting him would only cost the team $320,000 in dead cap space.
He did have one good punt to pin the Eagles deep early, but newly signed corner Darqueze Dennard strangely did not try to down the ball and let it roll into the end zone. It wouldn’t be surprising if Dennard is no longer on the team on Monday.
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The officials confused the entire stadium on Sunday after DeVonta Smith caught a third-quarter touchdown pass. First they called it a touchdown, then they announced it as incomplete, then they announced the play was under review. That didn’t seem like the correct order of that process.
Refreshingly, referee Walt Anderson took responsibility for messing up that situation in a pool report.
“It was really just a communication lapse on our part,” Anderson said. “We just wanted to make sure that we got it right.”
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The Giants have been outscored 68-0 this season in the final two minutes of the first half following Jake Elliott’s 22-yard field goal with 1:57 to play. The Giants offense couldn’t answer and had to punt before half. The trajectory of this season’s futility: 42-0 the first six games, 3-0 the next five games, and 23-0 the last four.
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Eagles coach Nick Sirianni tested out of the NFL’s COVID protocol after meeting with his team virtually during the week, so he was on the sideline coaching his team … The Giants made a ton of roster moves ahead of Sunday’s game. They activated special teamer Cam Brown and CB Aaron Robinson from the COVID list. And they activated four practice squad players as COVID replacements: Dennard, Sills, DT David Moa and guard Isaiah Wilson. Wilson did not play a single snap. He still hasn’t been made available to the media. He signed on Sept. 30 … Sunday’s Giants inactives were WR Collin Johnson (hamstring, late-week injury), RB/special teamer Gary Brightwell (neck) and G Ben Bredeson (ankle).