Giants takeaways, report card from NFL Week 8 loss to Eagles

Grading the Giants’ 38-20 loss to the Eagles on Sunday:

1. Sometimes a player is irreplaceable, and that is the case with the loss of Cam Skattebo. What he offers on the field is undeniable, but it is the attitude and injection of braggadocio that cannot be duplicated. Skattebo, along with Jaxson Dart, was becoming a new face for this team, and now he won’t be around, as he is headed for ankle surgery and a long rehab. Tyrone Tracy Jr. should not be discounted as a player, and he will have his moments. But Skattebo is a different sort of cat, and his connection with Dart is the real thing. Tune in to 2026 for any more of that.

2. Saquon Barkley was not going to go an entire half-season without cracking the 100-yard barrier. He got 65 on his first touch and away he went, en route to his first real rushing eruption with 150 yards. The Giants defense had been better of late in stopping the run, but this was regression. Heck, it wasn’t all Barkley. Third-stringer Tank Bigsby broke off a 29-yard run on second-and-26 early in the fourth quarter, and that simply cannot happen. It sure seems as if the Giants miss Micah McFadden more and more as time goes on. McFadden went down with a foot injury in the opener and has not been seen since.

3. Theo Johnson is a tease of a tight end. He does some really good things that make you think he is developing into a plus player, and then he reminds you that he is not there yet. Johnson had the chance to make a big play with the Giants down 14-7 in the second quarter. Johnson got a step on linebacker Zack Baun down the left sideline, and Dart put the ball where it needed to be. The ball slipped through Johnson’s hands deep inside Eagles territory, and the Giants had to settle for a field goal. It would not have been a routine catch, but it was a catch that a top tight end has to make.