Nick Sirianni Not Worried About Postseason Momentum or Giants Decision

After losing two in a row, the Eagles can't afford to rest their starters while New York has that luxury after being locked into the No. 6 seed

It should have been a feet-on-the-ottoman game, a kick-back-and-relax, stress-free Sunday.

It won’t be, and it’s not because that’s too many hyphens in one sentence.

It’s about the Eagles’ play these past two weeks and the bind they now find themselves in.

Instead of a routine 1 p.m. game in Week 18, the NFL announced they will tee it up against the New York Giants at 4:25 p.m., which is the same time Dallas will play the Commanders in Washington.

If the Eagles lose and Cowboys win, Dallas will win the NFC East and the division will have a repeat winner for the first time since 2003-2004 when the Eagles did it.

Nobody expected this turn of events.

It was supposed to be the Eagles resting their starters in Week 18, if not sooner. Not the New York Giants.

But here we are, with the Giants having the option of not playing anybody of significance when they visit an Eagles team that has lost two in a row and desperately needs a win.

The Giants are locked into the No. 6. They can’t budge.

The Eagles were in a similar position last year, with nothing to gain with a win in the regular-season finale. They were locked into the No. 7 seed.

So, the Eagles played their backups, got drilled, 51-26 to the Cowboys, then lost the next week in wildcard round.

Head coach Nick Sirianni said he isn’t worried about what the Giants to do with their starters, sit them, play them for a series or half, or go the distance with them.

“What went into last year for us (is) it’s as simple as this – that’s what we felt was best for us,” he said. “Obviously we didn’t win the next game but we felt that’s what was best for us as a football team with some of the bumps and bruises we were dealing with at that time to make sure we were healthy and fresh to go to Tampa. That’s what went down with our decision.”

Losers of two straight, albeit with backup quarterback Gardner Minshew, the Eagles can tumble to the No. 5 seed if they lose, and a few other tumblers click into place.

It’s a win the Eagles must have and means more now than just earning a bye and homefield throughout the NFC playoffs.

It’s a win they must have to keep this season from crashing and burning.

A three-game losing streak heading into the playoffs and having to play on wildcard weekend in Tampa Bay against Tom Brady would be certain doom, a one-and-done appearance for the second straight year.

Head coach Nick Sirianni was asked on Monday about momentum and how his team isn’t playing its best football at a point in the season where playing your best is mandatory for continued survival throughout January.

“I just want to make sure we’re improving as a football team,” he said. “I thought the defense played a really good game (Sunday), I thought the offense played a good game the week before. You never want to take dips in your improvement, you want to continue to go at an upward level. That’s what you’re trying to get out of this.

“Obviously, it’s the National Football League and that does happen here and there, but we just want to go out there and play a good game obviously, play to our abilities and coach to our abilities, but as far as momentum, I don’t really think about that stuff too much. I just want to go out and perform that day.

Ed Kracz is the publisher of SI.com’s Fan Nation Eagles Today and co-host of the Eagles Unfiltered Podcast. Check out the latest Eagles news at www.SI.com/NFL/Eagles or www.eaglesmaven.com and please follow him on Twitter: @kracze.