Jeff McLane’s keys to Eagles vs. Giants in Week 8: What you need to know and a prediction

The Eagles host the New York Giants in a Week 8 matchup at Lincoln Financial Field at 1 p.m. on Sunday. Here’s what you need to know about the game:

Wide receiver A.J. Brown is out with a hamstring injury. His presence is of obvious importance. DeVonta Smith has had more of the hot hand recently, but the attention his counterpart receives from defenses has helped Smith catch 21 of 26 targets for 346 yards over the last three games.

Jalen Hurts’ bounce-back performance against the Vikings will mean only so much if momentum is stalled a week later. And no Brown, despite whatever may be bothering him off the field, will make it that much harder on the quarterback. Receiver Jahan Dotson’s workload will increase. John Metchie, Xavier Gipson, and possibly Darius Cooper (shoulder) are next on the receiver depth chart. Tight end Dallas Goedert figures to be Hurts’ second option.

» READ MORE: Eagles vs. Giants predictions: Our writers pick a winner for Week 8

Can the Giants make it as hard on Hurts in the rematch? They play more man coverage than almost any other defense, and normally, that’s a recipe for passing success for the Eagles. But Hurts had his worst game of the season in the initial meeting. He saw blitzes only a quarter of the time, but he was sacked twice and tossed an interception when defensive coordinator Shane Bowen sent extra rushers.

The Giants’ strength remains their front four. Brian Burns, Dexter Lawrence, Abdul Carter, and Kayvon Thibodeaux pressured Hurts a combined 11 times. The Eagles’ offensive line will be without center Cam Jurgens (knee). Brett Toth, his likely replacement, may be a marked man.

The Eagles still were unable to run the ball in Minnesota, but the increased use of under-center runs led to success off play-action. It’s a wonder it took Nick Sirianni and Kevin Patullo so long to get to it. But the hope is that the four passes for 121 yards and a touchdown that came after Hurts was under center will force the Giants to respect the pass.

Saquon Barkley has been facing six-man fronts and stacked boxes at an increased rate this season, and the only way to slow it is for Hurts to make defenses pay with his arm. The Giants, who ranked third-to-last in the NFL in expected points added per rush, offer another opportunity to get Barkley off the schneid. He would like nothing better than to do so against his former employer.

The Eagles found out 90 minutes before the last game vs. the Giants that they would be without defensive tackle Jalen Carter. They then lost cornerback Quinyon Mitchell in the early going. The absence of two of their best defensive players wasn’t a fitting excuse for how Vic Fangio’s unit performed at the Meadowlands, but it helped explain a season-worst outing.

Carter (heel/shoulder) returned the following week and had arguably his best performance with two hurries that led to interceptions. He hasn’t quite looked like the game wrecker he was most of last season, but it was a step in the right direction.

» READ MORE: Jalen Carter, Landon Dickerson, Nakobe Dean among five reasons Eagles will win the rematch vs. Giants

Mitchell, meanwhile, had a lot to do with keeping Vikings receiver Justin Jefferson in check on Sunday. The other cornerback spot is a question mark with Adoree’ Jackson out with a concussion. Kelee Ringo has toggled back and forth at the spot and likely will start again with Jakorian Bennett (pectoral) still out.

One possible way to avoid the return of Ringo would be to move Cooper DeJean outside in all packages and play Parry Nickerson in the slot in nickel personnel.

The Giants may have Darius Slayton (hamstring) back, but their receiver group isn’t the same without Malik Nabers, even though the Eagles made them look superior in the first meeting. Safety has been an under-the-radar issue. Rookie Drew Mukuba has been out of position at times, which has stressed Reed Blankenship, who hasn’t been as impactful.

Tackling was an issue the first time around. The Eagles missed 11 and got bowled over by Giants running back Cam Skattebo (19 carries for 98 yards and three touchdowns). They also had trouble getting rookie quarterback Jaxson Dart to the ground. He escaped several would-be sacks and scrambled five times for 42 yards — he rushed for 58 yards overall.

The Eagles are down another edge rusher with Azeez Ojulari (hamstring) sidelined. Brandon Graham came out of retirement this week, but he’s still ramping up. That leaves just Jalyx Hunt, Joshua Uche, and Patrick Johnson at outside linebacker. Inside linebacker Jihaad Campbell helped on the edge the last game, but mostly on base downs and had only three pass-rush attempts. He may get more on Sunday.

» READ MORE: Eagles Week 8 film preview: Key for big day for Jalen Hurts, stopping Giants rookie duo, and more

The Eagles enter about as banged up as they’ve been all season with three starters sidelined. They’re already without outside linebacker Nolan Smith. Middle linebacker Nakobe Dean’s return helped settle the run defense last week, and he could do the same against the Giants. But Brown and Jurgens are key guys, and missing Jackson and Ojulari will test the team’s depth.

Still, it’s hard to win twice within the division, especially within a 17-day span. The Giants may be reeling from an epic choke against the Denver Broncos. It’s not like they have much to fall back on. Dart and Skattebo have brought energy to a floundering franchise, but I like the odds that Fangio won’t have another hiccup against an inferior opponent.

Prediction: Eagles 26, Giants 19