Questions with the Enemy: Giants vs Eagles

May 31, 2014; Los Angeles, CA, USA; New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. and Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Jordan Matthews during the 2014 NFLPA Rookie Premiere at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Giants Nation, it’s rivalry week.

That’s right, the New York Giants are going to do battle with Philadelphia Eagles this Sunday Night, Prime Time NFL.

For GMEN HQ, that means getting together with Inside the Iggles and asking some questions about their birdy little team. If that’s not enough for you, you can always get the opinion of the most jacked-up punter in the league:

"Week 6 against the Eagles should be one of the biggest games of the year for us. And even though we are close to home for this “away” game, playing at Lincoln Financial Field is one of the most difficult places to play in the NFL for the Giants since there is such a fierce rivalry between the two teams.The Eagles are a team with a QB I think will be there for a long time. Nick Foles is coming off his best season in the NFL, he’s incredibly talented and reminds me of Peyton Manning. He can make all types of throws."

You know, because everyone cares what the punter thinks.

Regardless, Steve offers an interesting comparison in form of Peyton Manning, high praise indeed, but it seems in general, Steve likes to praise the enemy before doing battle. Well, now that the punters’ thoughts are out of the way, let’s see how the ENEMY responded to our questions from GMEN HQ’s Zac Andrews, with a bonus question thrown in from our Staff Writer, Anthony Valerio:

1. The Eagles offensive line has been banged up and partially suspended for the first quarter of the season. How will Lane Johnson’s return impact the run game and McCoy’s effectiveness?

Lane Johnson was suspended for the first four games. He returned last week against the Rams and he was solid. With the rest of the offensive line showing signs of improvement, if Johnson plays a bit better this week, we might see a much more potent Eagles’ running game and LeSean McCoy might hit the 100-yard mark.

2. Is Foles’ having accuracy issues due to bad pass protection, or is he having issues with throwing mechanics?

Nick Foles is not playing very well. There are a lot of factors that come in play here. If I had to name the most important ones, I’d say (a) an expected statistical drop after a stellar season, (b) defenses know the Eagles offense much better, (c) pass protection problems, (d) Foles not making the most of his opportunities. Foles’ mechanics are better than most quarterbacks, but he needs to be protected to throw. Almost all his bad throws come when he is under duress.

3. What is the secret behind the outstanding special teams play?

Better special teams players (Chris Maragos, Brandon Bair, Bryan Braman) and a second year under special teams coordinator Dave Fipp.

4. Marcus Smith and Jordan Matthews seem to be the most high profile rookies on the Eagles, what do Giants fans need to know about these new additions to the enemy squad?

Honestly, these are the only rookies that have contributed, together with seventh-rounder Beau Allen. Matthews has been the third receiver so far. He gets the job done, but expectations were even higher for the Vanderbilt product. Smith is an outside linebacker. He is not a big threat when rushing the quarterback, but the Eagles love his versatility. He hasn’t shown much yet and he has played more snaps at inside linebacker than outside, due to injuries that the starters had.

5. What under the radar Eagles’ players should the Giants be particularly concerned with on Sunday Night Football?

The players I think the Giants shoud be concerned with are Darren Sproles, Zach Ertz, Trent Cole, Fletcher Cox and Vinny Curry, but I doubt any of them is considered an “under the radar” guy. The Eagles have no aces up their sleeves, in terms of personnel. All the tricks come from formations, alignments and playcalling.

Bonus: Are the Giants to be the Eagles biggest rivals and if so, why?

Right now, the Cowboys are the Eagles biggest rivals, both in terms of fan hate and battling for the division. But if the Giants win on Sunday, something that would be no surprise to me the way the G-Men have been playing, then it will be a race for three.

If the Eagles win, they will be two games ahead of New York and the schedule gets tougher for the blue men. That’s why this game is so important, not just because it is a rivalry game.

Conclusion

You heard it here folks, everyone hates the Dallas Cowboys. Right?

Outside of that, great stuff from Inside the Iggles, GIORGOS KASSAKOS. Join us soon, as our writer’s head over to IGGLES territory to answer the questions of the enemy.

Until then — a Giants Nation fan prediction question: Who wins Sunday Night?