In the classic NFC East rivalry between the New York Giants and Philadelphia Eagles, the twice-a-year series has been painted green.

Philadelphia, the host for the first of two regular-season meetings with Big Blue in Week 9, has rarely let the Giants find success when they visit Lincoln Financial Field.

In fact, the Giants’ last victory on their divisional opponent’s turf came back in 2013, when two-time Super Bowl champion Eli Manning was still handling the offensive reins. The franchise hasn’t swept the Birds since 2007, the season it went on to win Super Bowl XLII.

From front office and coaching leadership to the talent on the field, the Eagles have long held the edge over the Giants. Still, for the first time in well over a decade, the tide could be turning as New York holds the division lead at 4-2-1 and sits 3.5 games ahead of Philadelphia’s banged-up roster in the loss column.

The Eagles are in a rare, compromised position. They are finding that the Giants’ early success stems from major improvements on offense under John Harbaugh and offensive coordinator Matt Nagy, a unit that will challenge Philadelphia’s fading defense on Sunday.

“Good,” Eagles defensive coordinator Vic Fangio told local media on Wednesday about what he’s seen from the Giants’ revamped offense on tape.

“They’ve got a really good offense and a lot of skill at the receiver position. They did a nice job of raiding the Ravens not only for John [Harbaugh], but [Isaiah] Likely, [Patrick] Ricard, and they’ve got a lot of the Ravens-type offense that they had when [senior offensive assistant] Greg Roman was there.

“And they’ve intermixed some of the Kansas City-type passing in there with Matt [Nagy], so they’ve got it going now; good wideouts, good tight ends, two good backs, and the quarterback has come in a short period of time and done a really nice job.”

J.J. McCarthy Can Let It Fly in Philadelphia

The Eagles have grown accustomed to facing some mediocre offenses in their recent history with the Giants, who’ve finished in the bottom half of the league in scoring seven times in the past decade.

Meanwhile, that same side of the ball has been Philadelphia’s calling card, with six seasons of owning a top-15 offense and three consecutive years in the top seven from 2022-2024, when they made two Super Bowl appearances and captured their second franchise title in 2024.

One strange storyline heading into their latest meeting is the complete reversal: the Birds’ offense has crumbled under the weight of injuries, including to starting quarterback Jalen Hurts, and has fallen to No. 32 in total production, marking their worst output since the turn of this century.

An unexpected change at quarterback hasn’t dealt the same fate to the Giants, who’ve gone from Jaxson Dart to their third starter, J.J. McCarthy, in the span of four weeks.

McCarthy has defied expectations in his early reps under center, completing 63.3% of his passes for 495 yards, one touchdown, and an interception, helping lift New York to the division lead.

Taking on a rejected former first-round pick was once labeled a desperation move by Harbaugh and the Giants.

Now, with the offense operating at its highest level in five seasons and a real chance to march into their toughest road environment and widen the lead on the pack with an upset over the Eagles, the vibe has shifted to the Giants having committed highway robbery.

“For them to get him for a fifth-round pick is a steal,” Fangio added on McCarthy’s early impact.

McCarthy has reopened the RPO-style system that Nagy prepared with Dart at the start of the season, and he has been the catalyst in bringing the threat of big plays back into an offense that could present a major mismatch for the Eagles defense on Sunday.

In his first 54 dropbacks this season, McCarthy holds a team-high 9.1% big-time throw rate, second-best in the NFL, with only one attempt that could have been a turnover.

That efficiency in airing out the football, built on trust in his two biggest weapons, Malik Nabers and Isaiah Likely, has given the Giants an average of 5.6 explosive plays per game, ranking 17th in the league entering Week 9.

Philadelphia’s defense, which has sent five or more pass rushers on 27.5% of the 298 dropbacks it has faced, has seen the aggressive approach largely backfire. The effort to help their dismal secondary contain key targets has led to 6.5 explosive plays per contest (24th), with a large share of those plays coming on the ground.

It’s a perfect storm that could guide McCarthy and the Giants, especially on the ground, where they’ve made 39 rushes of 10 or more yards yet only three carries of 20 or more yards, two of which came in Week 7 as Cam Skattebo and Devin Singletary combined for 72 yards on consecutive attempts to punch in the game-winning touchdown in overtime against the Houston Texans.

The Giants will certainly need those big punches to stack points onto an Eagles squad that finds ways to stiffen up its defense inside the 20-yard line, and to lift the 13-year curse that has followed them on every trip to the City of Brotherly Love.

All the confidence is on Big Blue’s side as the Eagles continue sliding down the NFC East standings on a six-game losing streak, and McCarthy has been oozing it since taking over two weeks ago.

Another solid outing could cement the Giants’ hold on the division and only increase the good vibes that have the Eagles taking their rivals seriously in this meeting.