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After losing their first game of the season to the Denver Broncos last week, the Philadelphia Eagles looked to get back on track Thursday night vs. the New York Giants. Those plans, however, were thwarted, as N.Y. beat Philly handily 34-17. Now, suddenly, the Eagles are on a two-game losing skid, while the Giants have won two of their last three.

The Giants’ upset victory left us with more questions than answers as we enter the middle stretch of the season. Here’s what we’ve got:

Are the Giants on the way up? It sure looks like it. After starting 0-3, the team decided to bench quarterback Russell Wilson for rookie Jaxson Dart, and that has proved to be the right decision. Dart has looked very good during his limited time as starter — not perfect, but he’s getting the job done. Here are a few key stats from Travis May:

• “Jaxson Dart is averaging 221.7 total yards of offense per game through his first three starts and he’s found the end zone six total times in that span.
• “Despite lower volume passing, Dart now has a higher mark in adjusted yards per pass attempt (accounting for touchdowns and interceptions as well) than QBs like Trevor Lawrence, Geno Smith, Cam Ward, and Bryce Young.
• “His 7.8 yards per pass attempt against the Eagles on Thursday Night Football would rank him inside the top 10 among all NFL passers for the year (Josh Allen is averaging almost exactly 8 yards per toss this season).
• “His 4.7% touchdown rate in his three starts is already almost exactly at league average this season, and he’s just a rookie.”

Are the Giants going to the Super Bowl? Probably not, especially with wideout Malik Nabers out for the season. But following big wins over the Eagles and Los Angeles Chargers, it wouldn’t be out of the question to see the Giants push for a wild-card spot if they continue their hot streak. The caveat is that they have a tough schedule coming up, including the Eagles again in two weeks.

Are the Eagles in trouble? That’s two losses in a row, and it doesn’t help that cornerback Quinyon Mitchell left Thursday’s game with a hamstring injury. Now, with injuries, offensive issues and drama with WR A.J. Brown continuing to brew, it’s easy to wonder whether Philly is sliding a bit.

Well, let’s not forget that these are the defending Super Bowl champions. Plus, remember when they dropped two games early on last year and started the season 2-2? They went on to win 10 games in a row after that. It’s common for elite teams to go through a rough patch — coach Nick Sirianni said that himself:

“This is life in the NFL,” he said after the game. “You’re going to have some ups. You’re going to have some downs. We’ve been here before. Last year, we started off 4-2. Just a different way that we got there. So, there is no panic on us. It’s ‘Hey, get back up. Go back to work. And get better from it.’”

Is this year the end of the ‘Tush Push?’ It seems so. Each week, we get a high-definition look on our TV screens of the Eagles clearly lining up illegally and/or committing a false start on the Tush Push, and yet they almost always get away with it. Everyone is noticing, and many are calling it out, including players like Green Bay Packers edge Micah Parsons. The refs say it’s difficult to officiate in the moment. If that’s the case, there will probably be a push once again to ban the play completely, this time with more support.

Best games of Week 6: What we’re watching

There are some good matchups lined up for Week 6, which includes an early-morning London game and a doubleheader on Monday night. We’ll cover the Monday games in Monday’s newsletter. For now, we’ll go over some of the top matchups we’re looking forward to seeing this Sunday.

Early slate: Seattle Seahawks (3-2) at Jacksonville Jaguars (4-1): The Jags are running hot after their come-from-behind win over the Kansas City Chiefs last Monday. Now, folks are starting to believe the Liam Coen-led squad is legit. This next game won’t be cake, though — the Seahawks have a strong run defense, though their pass D leaves much to be desired after being torched by Bucs QB Baker Mayfield last week. That means this might be a Trevor Lawrence game for Jacksonville. The good news for Seattle is that Sam Darnold is playing very well, so this should be a good battle between two underrated QBs. Honorable mention: Los Angeles Rams (3-2) at Baltimore Ravens (1-4)

Afternoon slate: San Francisco 49ers (4-1) at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (4-1): This might be the best game of the weekend. The way the Niners have managed to be one of the best teams in football with major injuries across the board speaks to the team’s depth, as well as its coaching from HC Kyle Shanahan and defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, among others. Now the team may be getting back key pieces, albeit slowly, starting with WR Jauan Jennings this week. Meanwhile, the Bucs have won all four of their games by three or fewer points, meaning this one has a great chance to be close. Keep an eye on rookie WR Emeka Egbuka, who has over 100 yards receiving and a score in each of his last two games. Honorable mention: Cincinnati Bengals (2-3) at Green Bay Packers (2-1-1)

Sunday night: Detroit Lions (4-1) at Kansas City Chiefs (2-3): It’s tough to see the Chiefs starting out 2-4, yet it’s also tough to see them beating a Lions squad that’s absolutely rolling right now. After a slow start in Week 1, Detroit’s offense has dropped at least 34 points in each of its last four games, while WR Amon-Ra St. Brown leads the NFL in receiving touchdowns with six. The Chiefs’ offense has been playing well now that Xavier Worthy is back in the mix, and should get even better once Rashee Rice returns in Week 7. For this one, though, K.C. will have to roll without Rice, but don’t sleep on WR Tyquan Thornton who has a 30+ yard catch in four of five matchups this season. This game is looking like it could be a high-scorer.

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