The Eagles can’t lose to the Giants.
It’s an impossibility — like counting all the stars in the sky or staying dry in the front seat on Splash Mountain.
Or at least it feels like that after the Eagles have tried every which way to lose to the Giants and still manufactured enough crazy comebacks to win eight straight, 12 of the last 13 and 20 of the last 24. So while the Giants (2-7) have every reason to dread Sunday’s matchup, the Eagles (3-4-1) own the psychological advantage of any neighborhood bully.
“A lot of times in these rivalries you possibly could think that you own someone,” Eagles great Brian Westbrook told The Post, “but when both teams are under .500 and have been underperforming and have had some of the inconsistencies that they’ve had all season long, there is really no room to talk or think that you own anything.”
Westbrook’s Eagles were 9-7 in the regular season plus two playoff wins against the Giants from 2002-09. He is an Eagles pregame show radio analyst and a sports talk co-host on 97.5 The Fanatic, so he understands the pulse of Philadelphia.
“They were our biggest rival,” Westbrook said. “The Giants had a bunch of really good players and you would see them during the offseason and there would be some healthy trash talk during the game, but they always had our respect and we had theirs. When you play opponents you respect, it’s always a good rivalry. That’s what the Giants were for us.”
There’s no reason to think the current Eagles don’t respect the Giants. There’s also no reason to think the Eagles are anything but supremely confident after overcoming double-digit deficits to win in each of the last three seasons — the Giants blew an 11-point lead with five minutes to go in a 22-21 loss on Oct. 22 — and winning six of the last seven at MetLife Stadium.
Sterling Shepard is the only player on the roster with a win over the Eagles in a Giants uniform. Giants coach Joe Judge said he doesn’t believe a team can lose a game before kickoff based on intimidation — just on poor preparation and focus.
“We need to win,” tight end Evan Engram said. “We’ve been on the losing end a lot of times recently. We have an opportunity to change that Sunday. That’s what we’re really focused on. We’re definitely really motivated to be on the winning end this time.”
Jason Garrett played for the Cowboys when they were kings of the NFC East. As a head coach, he steered Dallas to 11 wins in 14 meetings against the Giants from 2013-19, including six straight to end his tenure.
If anyone has experienced how dominance can become psychological, it’s Garrett — now the Giants’ offensive coordinator.
“Anything like this that comes up [where] we’ve had a streak where we’ve beaten a team six games in a row or we’ve lost six games in a row, the first part of that equation is many of the players and coaches weren’t involved in that success or adversity,” Garrett said. “But the other way to look at it is, ‘Hey, it’s like a new play.’ Whatever we did before, good, bad or indifferent, is really irrelevant to what’s going to happen right now.”
The Giants just experienced the other side, beating Washington last week for the fifth straight time since Dec. 9, 2018. They are 2-22 against the rest of the NFL during that span.
“I don’t think it [affects] any of the confidence,” said linebacker Blake Martinez, who is new to the Giants but was part of the Packers’ recent dominance over the Bears, “but it’s definitely something you think about throughout the week, knowing that you can either end that streak or continue the streak type of thing.”
Westbrook, who is partnering with Crown Royal to promote the Water Break and the #PurpleBagProject, said he thinks the Giants and Eagles are reasonably matched.
“If I’m on the Giants team, I’m thinking, ‘We gave that last game away,’ ” Westbrook said. “If I’m on the Eagles team, I’m thinking, ‘We have a chance to take control of this division by winning this week.’ Both teams are looking at it a little bit differently, but neither one of these teams should be saying, ‘We are far and away the better team.’ ”
Crazy eights
A look at the Giants’ eight consecutive losses to the Eagles:
Oct. 22, 2020: Eagles 22, Giants 21
Evan Engram’s dropped pass stops the Giants from running out the clock and opens the door for the Eagles to score two touchdowns (the last by Boston Scott) in the final 4:38.
Dec. 29, 2019: Eagles 34, Giants 17
Eagles clinch the NFC East and a playoff spot by scoring the final 17 points to break a fourth-quarter tie behind the then-unknown Boston Scott.
Dec. 9, 2019: Eagles 23, Giants 17
Giants squander a 14-point halftime lead in Eli Manning’s final road start and lose on Zach Ertz’s touchdown catch in overtime.
Nov. 25, 2018: Eagles 25, Giants 22
Giants’ 16-point first-half lead evaporates as playcalling inexplicably goes away from Saquon Barkley. Jake Elliott kicks the winning field goal with 22 seconds remaining.
Oct. 11, 2018: Eagles 34, Giants 13
After scoring seven first-quarter points in their first five games, the Eagles double that total and the Giants are booed at home throughout the third quarter.
Dec. 17, 2017: Eagles 34, Giants 29
The Giants plead to no avail for a defensive pass interference penalty when Manning’s pass falls incomplete on fourth-and-goal from the 11-yard line in the final minute.
Sept. 24, 2017: Eagles 27, Giants 24
Shut out for three quarters, the Giants score 24 fourth-quarter points, blow two fourth-quarter leads and lose in regulation when Elliott kicks a franchise-record 61-yard field goal at the buzzer.
Dec. 22, 2016: Eagles 24, Giants 19
Eagles delay the Giants clinching a playoff spot by snapping a five-game losing streak with two defensive stops in the final two minutes.



