Eagles show how good they can be when Saquon Barkley runs the offense

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Saquon Barkley lit up the Giants after fans set his old jerseys ablaze. Jalen Hurts played turnover-free football for a second straight game. Nick Sirianni stuck to calling big plays — like getting scores out of a pair of fourth-down calls — rather than calling out combative fans in the stands.

When the Eagles push aside controversy and sloppy plays, it turns out they can still be a pretty formidable team.

Philadelphia is finding its footing with Barkley playing like the franchise running back the team sorely needed and Hurts — while not at the MVP level he was two seasons ago — protecting the ball and still scoring tush-push touchdowns in a recent hot streak.

Even the defense is playing like, well, a defense finally worthy of causing concern for opposing offenses.

And yes, back-to-back wins against NFL bottom feeders Cleveland and the New York Giants may not prove a true measuring stick for Philadelphia's worth as a serious Super Bowl contender — and more league weaklings are ahead — but confidence and good habits often come with any kind of winning streak. They're the kind of ingredients that serve as the mark of any winning team and the Eagles — while clouded by last-season's epic collapse — can still be one of the best ones in the NFL.

“I love this team," Sirianni said.

There was plenty to love on Sunday against the Giants. Barkley ran for 176 yards and a touchdown in his first, emotional game against his old team. Hurts finished a modest 10 of 14 for 114 yards but scored on two tush-push quarterback sneaks and threw a 41-yard touchdown pass to A.J. Brown.

Barkley’s 658 yards rushing in 2024 are the most ever by an Eagles running back through the first six games of a season.

“I think we won convincingly, but we still left some food out there and played with our food, and that’s the beauty of it,” Barkley said.

The Eagles (4-2) ended up making the win look easy even as they again were shutout in the first quarter. They are the only team in the NFL that has yet to score in the first quarter this season.

What’s working

The pass rush. The Eagles' defensive line pressured Daniel Jones all game before the QB was pulled in the fourth quarter. The Eagles had eight sacks and allowed 119 total yards (43 passing, 76 rushing). In the first half, five players had sacks: Nakobe Dean, Jalen Carter, Bryce Huff, Josh Sweat and Nolan Smith. Sweat has a sack in three straight games. Jalyx Hunt earned his first career sack with a strip-sack of Jones in the fourth quarter.

“Felt like we captured some mojo in that pass rush,” Sirianni said.

What needs help

Special teams continues to be a sore point under coach Michael Clay. Oren Burks was flagged for an offside penalty on the opening kickoff and the Eagles were hit later in the game with an illegal block. While not as egregious as previous ones, the penalties continued a troubling trend of ill-timed plays. Notably, the Eagles had a punt blocked against New Orleans, muffed a punt against Tampa Bay and had a field-goal attempt blocked and returned for a touchdown against Cleveland.

Stock up

Nakobe Dean. The Eagles linebacker had two sacks and led the team with 11 tackles. He had the first full sack of his career.

Stock down

Receivers DeVonta Smith and Jahan Dotson. Smith had just one catch for minus-2 yards and Dotson, so far no better with the Eagles than he was as a first-round bust in Washington, was targeted only once and failed to have a catch. With two catches, Barkley was the only player besides A.J. Brown (five catches, 89 yards and a touchdown) with more than one reception. Yes, the offense was run-heavy behind Barkley, but the receiving corps outside of Brown has to find a way to get more involved once the schedule get harder.

Injuries

RG Mekhi Becton sustained a concussion in the first half and was replaced by Tyler Steen.

Key numbers

20-9 — The Eagles have the second-best road winning percentage (.690) in the league — behind only Kansas City (.741, 20-7) — on the road since Sirianni took over in 2021. The Eagles play two of their next three games on the road.

Next steps

The Eagles’ soft schedule stretch continues with a game Sunday at Cincinnati (3-4). They follow with games against Jacksonville and at Dallas, and neither team has a winning record. The Eagles' Nov. 3 game against the Jaguars was flexed out of the Sunday night prime-time slot and now will start at 4:05 p.m.

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Dan Gelston, The Associated Press