Jaxson Dart, Cam Skattebo power Giants to dominant win over Eagles

Man, the Giants needed this.  Get texts from Paul Schwartz with all the latest Giants news and insights, exclusive to Sports+ subscribers.Their co-owner, John Mara, who wears the losses like blood on his sleeve and is battling cancer, needed this. Head coach Brian Daboll, who’s been the most recent target of the social media mob, needed this. Every player in the Giants locker room, especially those who’ve endured loss after loss after loss to the Eagles, needed this. The faithful fans, who were loud and made a difference Thursday night at MetLife Stadium, needed this. Everyone needs some positive reinforcement at least once in a while. And the Giants earned it in spades on this night, upsetting the defending Super Bowl champion Eagles 34-17 in a result that must have tasted like expensive champagne, even though it was a mere Week 6 game in the middle of October and it lifted the Giants’ record to just 2-4. The Eagles had defeated the Giants in seven of the teams’ previous eight meetings, 16 of the past 20, dating back a decade. The Eagles have been the Giants’ daddy for too long. There’ve been blowout losses (see the 38-7 Eagles divisional playoff win in 2023).

There have been heartbreaking losses.And then there was the Saquon Barkley revenge game, the 176 rushing yards in a 28-3 Eagles laugher at MetLife last October. Make no mistake: This was an exorcism for the Giants and their fans, starved for a winner. They clearly have winners in the two rookies — quarterback Jaxson Dart, who completed 17 of 25 passes for 195 yards and a touchdown and added a rushing TD, and running back Cam Skattebo, who rushed for 98 yards and three TDs. Just four days earlier, in a terrible giveaway loss to the Saints in New Orleans, Dart turned the ball over three times and Skattebo lost a fumble that was returned 86 yards for a TD. Thank goodness for youth and short memories. The Giants took a 27-17 lead on a bull-rush 1-yard TD by the relentless Cam Skat...