Reeling Giants outclassed by Eagles in blowout loss

The Giants once seemed as if they were on the fast track toward scoring a playoff ticket for the first time since the 2016 season. But they are in the slow lane these days, and that ticket now is listed as questionable.

They were 1-3-1 in their previous five games, capped by a tie against Washington that felt like a loss after a late blown lead.

The next task was to try to take down the Eagles, ranked No. 3 in offense, No. 2 in defense and, most important, No. 1 in record.

Predictably, it didn’t go well for the Giants. Indeed, they got flattened.

Jalen Hurts passed and ran all over them, throwing for 217 yards and two touchdowns and rushing for 77 yards and another score. Miles Sanders totaled 144 of Philadelphia’s 253 rushing yards and ran for two touchdowns. Brandon Graham had three of his team’s seven sacks. And the Eagles took down the Giants with ease, 48-22, on Sunday at MetLife Stadium.

So make it a 1-4-1 wrong-way run. After their 6-1 beginning, they are 7-5-1 with four to go. The next one will be a large one in determining their fate — at 7-5-1 Washington. The Giants currently have the NFC’s seventh seed and last wild-card berth. The Commanders hold the sixth seed via a tiebreaker.

The Giants also have games at Minnesota and Philadelphia and against Indianapolis.

In a word, difficult.

“When you’re winning, it’s fine; when you’re losing, it’s humbling,” coach Brian Daboll said. “When you lose like this, you own it. They played well.”

Dexter Lawrence called the game “embarrassing.”

“You just build from it,” the nose tackle said. “You feel it. You let it burn a little bit. You just get in the film room and correct what the mistakes were.”

Nick Sirianni was told after the game that his 12-1 Eagles officially had clinched a playoff spot. “I’m like, ‘Oh, that’s nice,’ ” the Philadelphia coach said. “We’ve got way bigger goals than this.”

Sanders’ 3-yard touchdown run capped the Eagles’ first drive, a 14-play, 84-yard journey.

Next Eagles drive: 12 plays, 91 yards, touchdown.

On fourth-and-7 at the Giants’ 41, Hurts threw toward the right side to DeVonta Smith, who had beaten Darnay Holmes. Julian Love came flying over as the free safety with his eyes on an interception, but his timing was off. Smith caught it at the 15 and took it to the end zone with 2:55 gone in the second quarter.

“I think that was a pivotal moment in the game, a big momentum swing for us,” Hurts said.

Daboll had a question for Love on the sideline: “What happened?” “I told him I thought I had it,” Love said. “He said, ‘OK.’ That’s pretty much it. The best players have to play the best. In that situation, I’ve got to make the play . . . I misjudged it.”

The Giants’ next drive ended with a punt and another misjudgment. When the ball slipped out of punter Jamie Gillan’s hands, he kicked the fumbled ball on the hop — and that’s not allowed.

“We got to do a better job there,” Daboll said.

The illegal kick came with a 10-yard penalty and a loss of down, setting up Philadelphia at the Giants’ 33. On the next play, Hurts fired a TD pass to a wide-open A.J. Brown. It was 21-0.

The Giants did something right the next time the Eagles had the ball. Arryn Siposs had to punt from his own end zone, and Elerson Smith blocked it. Siposs picked it up at the 2 and tried to get to the 18 for the first down, but he stepped out at the 15. Giants ball.

Daniel Jones, who threw for 169 yards, cashed in three plays later, rolling right and hitting Isaiah Hodgins for a 2-yard score.

Momentum swing? Not exactly. Boston Scott returned the kickoff 66 yards to the Giants’ 35, and Jake Elliott eventually turned the return into a 29-yard field goal and a 24-7 lead with 54 seconds left before halftime. Elliott then ended the first drive of the second half with a 39-yarder.

Jones countered by diving in from the 1 to bring the Giants within 27-14 with 5:40 remaining in the third quarter.

Hurts then found a crease in the right side of the line and raced 10 yards for a touchdown on the ensuing possession. The margin was back up to 20.

“They executed very, very well,” defensive end Jihad Ward said.

Love still believes the Giants are a playoff team. “Without a doubt,” he said. “We’ve got four games left. I haven’t been in this position to control our destiny. The energy has remained in the building, which is great. We’ve got to shake this one off.”