PHILADELPHIA — The Eagles’ injury-depleted defense held on long enough for Carson Wentz and Philadelphia’s new-found rushing attack to rally.
Jake Elliott kicked a 43-yard field goal with 22 seconds remaining, and the Eagles beat the New York Giants 25-22 on Sunday after trailing 19-3 in the first half.
Wentz made key throws and undrafted rookie Josh Adams delivered big runs to put the defending Super Bowl champions back in the playoff chase.
“This was a big game mentally, to show resilience and battle back,” said Wentz, who was 20 of 28 for 236 yards and one touchdown.
Adams scored on a 1-yard run and ran up the middle for the 2-point conversion to give Philadelphia a 22-19 lead.
After the Giants tied it on Aldrick Rosas’ third field goal, a 29-yarder, the Eagles held the ball for 5:27.
Coach Doug Pederson went for a fourth-and-1 at the Giants 42, and Wentz completed a 12-yard pass to Nelson Agholor right before the two-minute warning. Adams ran three times and Elliott made the go-ahead kick.
“I had a lot of confidence in our guys, they played man zone and it was well executed,” Pederson said about the pass to Agholor. “Guys knew exactly what to do. Great job by Carson hanging in there in the pocket.”
The Eagles (5-6) stayed in the mix in the NFC East. Dallas and Washington are tied for first place at 6-5. The Giants fell to 3-8.
In the first half, Eli Manning picked apart a Philadelphia defense that was missing its top four cornerbacks, a starting safety and a starting linebacker. But Manning threw an interception to Malcolm Jenkins at the Eagles 2 before the second quarter ended.
Saquon Barkley finished with 101 yards rushing for New York, but had only five touches in the second half after 15 in the first.
“We’re going to spell him a little bit as we go,” Giants Coach Pat Shurmur said of his rookie running back. “It had nothing to do with the outcome of the game.”
The Eagles relied on their little-used rushing attack to take the lead in the fourth quarter. Wentz tossed a 23-yard screen pass to Corey Clement, and the next six plays were runs, capped by Adams’ score.
Adams had a career-best 84 yards on 22 carries.
The Giants jumped ahead on the opening drive as Manning flipped a 13-yard TD pass to Barkley. Barkley made it 19-3 in the second quarter when he broke loose up the middle for a 51-yard TD.
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