The Eagles are set to host the New York Giants on Thursday Night Football in a game that could have major playoff implications given the fact that every team in the NFC East is terrible. The Birds have already lost one divisional game this season, and another one could cost them a chance for a second-consecutive NFC East title. That means the Eagles will need to have a few players step up tonight if they want to come away with a big divisional victory. Here are five players fans should pay extra-close attention to.
Jalen Hurts
Hurts saw a big increase in snaps last week against the Baltimore Ravens, and almost all of those snaps results in positive plays. With the entire offense ailing, Hurts will likely be called upon multiple times tonight to work some magic and give the offense a boost.
Boston Scott
Scott gets the start in Miles Sanders' absence, and even though he has struggled so far this season, he could have a big game against New York. He had the Giants' number last season, scoring four total touchdowns in two games, and he made plays in both the running game and the passing game.
DeSean Jackson
Jackson will be playing for the first time since the Week 3 game against the Cincinnati Bengals. It's unclear if he will play every offensive snap, or if Doug Pederson will have him on some sort of snap count to try to prevent a re-injury to his hamstrings. The Eagles haven't had a deep threat in the offensive gameplan since both Jackson and Jalen Reagor have been out, so maybe the offense will play even better now that they could take the top off of a defense.
Javon Hargrave
Hargrave will get the start next to Fletcher Cox thanks to Malik Jackson dealing with a quad injury. He only has one sack so far this season but he has pressured the quarterback a few times. The Eagles are paying him top dollar though, so he'll need to prove himself Thursday Night against a weak Giants o-line that he deserved that contract he got back in March.
Jake Elliott
Elliott has missed his last two field-goal attempts and is just 70% on the season (7/10). We've yet to see Elliott go through any rough patches as an Eagle, so his next kick or two will be pretty crucial in determining if Elliott is in his own head. The Eagles offense needs to give him plenty of chances tonight to kick for some points (extra points are preferable, but field goals are fine too).
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