New York Giants (2-10 SU, 4-8 ATS) vs. Philadelphia Eagles (5-7 SU, 4-8 ATS)
Week 14 NFL
Date/Time: Monday Night Football, December 9, 2019 at 8:15PM EST
Where: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
TV: ESPN
By Loot, NFL Football Handicapper, Lootmeister.com
Point Spread: NYG +8/PHI -8
Over/Under Total: 47
The New York Giants come to Lincoln Financial Field for an NFC East matchup with the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday Night Football. This might not be the glitzy matchup the NFL had in mind when scheduling MNF games, as neither the Eagles or Giants have really shined this season. Still, it's a game with some actual playoff implications and therefore, an important game. The Eagles didn't do themselves any favors last week with a disheartening 37-31 loss to the Dolphins to fall to 5-7. Yet they are one game behind Dallas in the NFC East and the Cowboys aren't exactly thriving right now, either, so who knows? The Giants dropped their 8th game in a row on Sunday, losing to the Packers, 31-13, as their season continue going nowhere. Who can get the cover this week?
Let's face it, this season has been another flop for the Giants, long out of the running before the middle of the season even in a division no one wants to win. Still, after two one-score losses on the road, followed by a somewhat-gritty showing against the Packers last week, it's clear they're not laying down. At least they're out there trying to make some things happen. When a team has a long string of losses and nothing is going right, seeing some late-season grit could be the source of some wagering value at the very least. Still, it's a disheartening situation. You have Eli Manning on the sidelines watching them lose game after game. They don't even have the hardest schedule and are losing one game after the next, dropping games to the Cardinals, Lions, Jets, and the like. The point-totals they are allowing are rising and you have to wonder about team morale.
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The Giants' offense continues to spiral and on Sunday, QB Daniel Jones threw three picks on 20-for-37 passing and it was a rough game after two decent performances in a row. Saquon Barkley had 83 yards, but hasn't been the difference-maker they were counting on since he returned. Not many backs would be that great behind this line, however. There are some talented ball-catchers in Sterling Shepard, Darius Slayton, and others, but not having Evan Engram and Golden Tate (both questionable) in there has hurt and since coming off the bye, they've scored 27 points in two games and it's not a great situation.
It's not that there is nothing on the New York defense to like, as they have good players on all levels. But collectively, they haven't been very good and aren't getting any better. With Markus Golden leading the way, they can get after the quarterback a little bit. With four picks, Janoris Jenkins leads a secondary that can make plays. But other than that playmaking element that doesn't always manifest, there is nothing they do particularly well, bad against the run and worse against the pass. Opponents have surpassed 30 points in scoring against this bunch four of the last five games.
For most of the season, we've been waiting for the Philadelphia offense to turn over, to little avail. In various weeks this season, a salient case can be made for why the Philly offense should thrive and yet it rarely seems to manifest. And it's not like they haven't had excuses, with a bulk of their aerial attack out of action for long spells. Maybe with some guys coming back into circulation and with Carson Wentz getting into a better rhythm, they can start to show some of their prior form. And we saw some of that on Sunday with a 31-point output. But it's hard to be celebratory when you have this much at stake and you can't beat the Dolphins as double-digit favorites. It's disgraceful and they look like they don't want to win the division that much.
Getting Nelson Agholor and Alshon Jeffery back in this offense will help Wentz make better use of some of the other artillery at his disposal. The run-game isn't really taking off, but adding Jay Ajayi could pay off and Miles Sanders provides a little kick when needed. Wentz enjoys good tight end play from Zach Ertz and Dallas Goedert. With that offensive line and pieces coming back into formation, maybe we can see better results this week at home. It's just disheartening that when their offense finally gets their act together, the other side of the ball lets them down.
Getting both sides of the ball to play well has proven to be elusive for the Eagles. They were struggling to win games before and that was with the Eagles' defense allowing a combined 61 points in their last four games. So allowing 37 to Miami was a bad development for a team trying to steady things to make a real push as something that is still achievable. Miami was able to do something they haven't done all season and have some big running plays against Philly, while Ryan Fitzpatrick went for 365 yards through the air. DeVante Parker had 159 yards and two TDs. Call it an aberration—something that can happen in out-of-conference road games from time to time. Still, there is something about this team that makes you not really want to bet on them.
Neither team is easy to get behind, being a combined 8-16 against the spread, with most of their covers having come early in the season. They've been brutal from a betting sense, not just in an overall one. The Giants showed some early grit against the Packers before folding like a cheap chair. Now on the road in Philly for the 4th time in 6 weeks, I see a second-half fade allowing the Eagles to get the cover and win at home. I'll take the Eagles. But let's face it—any hesitancy in laying a number on the Eagles is very understandable.
Loot's Prediction to Cover the Point Spread: I'm betting on the Philadelphia Eagles minus 8 points. Tired of your credit card not working for sportsbook deposit? End that problem today by signing up and betting the MNF game at Bovada Sportsbook where your credit card WILL work and where you'll receive a generous 50% sign-up bonus!
