New York Giants vs. Philadelphia Eagles: Breaking Down the Giants Game Plan

The New York Giants take their three-game win streak on the road Sunday when they face the Philadelphia Eagles. The 3-2 Giants are looking to knock the 4-1 Eagles from the top of the NFC East, where they currently sit tied with the Dallas Cowboys. 

The Giants have been hot over the past three games, scoring an average of 35 point per game and winning each game by at least two scores. Against Atlanta, they started off slow but eventually found their rhythm on both sides of the ball and thoroughly outplayed the Falcons.

In contrast, the Eagles started off Week 5 fast against the St. Louis Rams but nearly blew a 34-7 third-quarter lead. The Rams stormed back with three touchdown drives but fell just short of completing the comeback. It has been this kind of inconsistent play that has haunted the Eagles all season long. 

There have already been a lot of fireworks during the pregame smack talk between the two teams. If the Giants want to back it up and gain both a win and bragging rights, they need to keep playing at the high level they have been. With this in mind, let's breakdown what the Giants have to do in order to win this game.

On Offense

The offense has been gaining most of the headlines for the Giants and rightfully so. After an abysmal season last year in which Eli Manning threw 18 touchdowns and 27 interceptions, he is now currently on pace for 35 touchdowns and 16 interceptions. He has finally settled into this offense and is ready to have a career year.

The offense got a big boost last week with the debut of first-round rookie Odell Beckham Jr. OBJ showed the explosiveness and burst that made him on of the highest-rated players in the draft, having four catches for 44 yards while also drawing three penalties, including a 26-yard pass-interference call. His touchdown catch (seen below) proved his hamstring injury is no longer a problem. 

Beckham's presence gives an added dimension to an already dangerous-looking offense. Playing against the Eagles this week, the Giants must take advantage of everything Beckham, Victor Cruz and Rueben Randle bring to the table. The Eagles secondary hasn't been playing exceptionally well this year, having already given up a league-most 13 passing touchdowns.

Head coach Chip Kelly knows the difficulty the Eagles face this week against these receivers, saying:

"

He is obviously very talented as a high draft pick.Everybody looked at him coming out, he was one of the top receivers in the draft. Then you add him to a Victor Cruz and a Rueben Randle and Preston Parker is playing real well. It is just another weapon that you have to worry about.

"

The Eagles secondary was especially susceptible last week in the intermediate-to-deep area of the field. Rams quarterback Austin Davis had a 127.3 quarterback rating on throws of over 10 yards and had three touchdowns. This is an area the Giants must look to attack. If Manning gets in a groove early in this game with his receivers, it will help alleviate the pressure on rookie running back Andre Williams.

Williams will get his first start of the season in place of the injured Rashad Jennings. Williams has been the leading rusher for the Giants the past two weeks, notching 131 yards on 35 carries. His bruising running style has aided him when running between the tackles. 

However, the Eagles defensive front features a number of good linemen who will make success running the ball difficult for Williams in his first start. Among these linemen is defensive end Fletcher Cox, who is rated eight in the league against the run among 3-4 defensive ends, according to Pro Football Focus (subscription required). 

By getting the passing game going early, it will help put the Eagles defense on its heels and won't allow them to put extra men in the box. At this point, it will be up to the offensive line to break through this defensive front and let Williams reach the next level. From there, it is on him to use his power to break through the secondary. It also will help the Giants catch the Eagles off-guard with draw plays. 

One area of the Philadelphia defense that the Giants could exploit is the inside linebacker spots. Both starters DeMeco Ryans and Mychal Kendricks are questionable to play this weekend. This leaves Emmanuel Acho and Casey Matthews as the starters. These are personnel matchups that both Williams and tight end Larry Donnell must exploit.

The Giants need to get Donnell involved this week as he was shut out against the Falcons. This is especially true in the red zone, as the TE be massive size mismatch against Philadelphia's linebackers or defensive backs. He is a big target and should give Manning some easy completions.

Keys to Success

1. Get the passing game going early and be aggressive on deeper throws. 
2. Find ways to get Larry Donnell involved more, especially in the red zone. 

On Defense

The Giants defense has been equally impressive over the past three weeks, holding some very good offenses in check. Since New York's opening game loss to the Detroit Lions, the Giants defense hasn't allowed an opposing offense to top 20 points (seven of Arizona's 25 points came on a punt return for touchdown). If the unit can duplicate this kind of success against the Eagles, it may start stealing some headlines away from the offense. 

A revitalized defensive line has been a key contributor to this recent success. Jason Pierre-Paul is fully healthy again and has been a wrecking force on offensive lines. His play doesn't show up statistically since he has only 1.5 sacks, but his presence is known to the tackles who have tried to block him, especially Jake Matthews:

One surprising contributor is former Denver first-round pick Robert Ayers, who was brought in during free agency as a replacement for Justin Tuck. The Broncos released Ayers after five underwhelming seasons. He has resurrected his career so far in New York, having two sacks and grading out as the third-best 4-3 defensive end in the league behind JPP and Miami's Cameron Wake, per PFF. 

The defensive line should be able to get penetration up the middle where the Eagles have been hit hard by injury. Philly is currently missing starting center Jason Kelce and All Pro left guard Evan Mathis.

Their replacements have been less than stellar. Left guard Matt Tobin has a minus-4.4 pass block grade while center David Molk has a minus-7.2 grade. This provides an excellent matchup for second-year defensive tackle Johnathan Hankins. Hankins is having a breakout year so far, leading the Giants with 2.5 sacks. 

This defensive line will also have to make sure they don't allow the Eagles to finally get their running game going. Running back LeSean McCoy has had a down year so far, failing to rush for 100 yards in a game so far. The Giants have done a good job bottling him up as of late, holding him under 50 yards in their previous two meetings. 

It will be the linebackers responsibility to make sure McCoy and Darren Sproles aren't factors in the passing game as well. Starting middle linebacker Jon Beason is slated to return after missing three games with a foot injury and outside linebacker Jacquian Williams is proving he is a legitimate starter. This should bode well for the Giants being able to contain the two shifty running backs.

Head coach Tom Coughlin knows all to well the potential McCoy and Sproles have to break open this game. He told George O'Gorman of The Trentonian, "They use misdirection along with it, so you have to stay home. You have to recognize they are very good at the rocket, the outside screen to the wide receiver. Both running backs are very good at the screen."

The one area of the Giants defense that will be the main focus of this game is the secondary. This unit leads the league in interceptions with eight and looks to increase this number against Nick Foles, who has been turning the ball over quite a bit more than expected. After having just four turnovers all of last year, Foles already has five interceptions and three lost fumbles. 

On top of this, the safeties are going to have to work with the linebackers to cover the Eagles pair of dynamic tight ends; Brent Celek and Zach Ertz. The Giants corners match up well with the Eagles receivers so they will likely play on an island the whole game. This leaves the safeties able to help cover these tight ends. They cannot be allowed to run free over the middle. The linebackers have been iffy in coverage this year so if there is an area to exploit, this is it. 

Keys to Success

1. Attack the center of the Eagles offensive line. Expose the weakness at the guard and center positions, disrupting both the run and passing game.
2. Roll safety coverage to support the linebackers against Philadephia's tight ends. 

Conclusion

I expect this to be a hard-fought game. Five of the least eight meetings between these two teams have been decided by 10 points or fewer. In the end, I think the Giants will have enough offensive firepower to take advantage of the Eagles secondary and come away with the win.