Spadaro: 6 takeaways from a Giant win to close out the 2024 regular season

In their 17th game of the 2024 regular season, the Eagles played mostly reserves on a cold, windy day at Lincoln Financial Field, giving most starters the weekend off. It worked as planned. Those players who have worked so hard throughout the year took the majority of the reps and came away with a 20-13 win over the New York Giants, who played their starters.

The Eagles finished the regular season with a 14-3 record, tying their club record for most victories in a season. Now it’s on to the postseason next weekend against the Green Bay Packers at Lincoln Financial Field.

1. Tanner McKee impresses at QB

In his NFL starting debut, second-year man Tanner McKee looked good.

He operated the offense efficiently, got in and out of the huddle quickly, and worked with a group that he didn’t have much time with like it was no problem. McKee threw with great timing and accuracy. He worked the pocket nicely. On a first-quarter touchdown drive, McKee showed his range – rolling right on a completion to tight end Dallas Goedert (16 yards), had a straight dropback and completion to Goedert (17 yards), and then rolled left and squared his shoulders down the field on a 15-yard touchdown pass to Ainias Smith, who hauled in his first catch and touchdown all on the same play.

“Looking internally, I felt like I showed I have confidence in myself to go out, operate and run the offense,” McKee said after the game. “I feel like for me it just showed that my preparation’s been working. My preparation has helped me just get to how the offense was run today. Obviously, there’s a ton of things we can change. We’re going to go back and watch film and there’s a lot of things, different checks or progressions or something that I did wrong. Obviously for me, it was a growing opportunity, which was great, so I’m happy to get my feet wet a little bit. It was my first start and just going to grow, watch the film and learn from the experience.”

McKee finished the game 27-of-41 for 269 yards with two touchdowns and a 100.6 passer rating. He looked every bit the poised prospect the Eagles know he is. The future is bright for Tanner McKee.

2. Dallas Goedert knocks the rust off

This was a very good day for Dallas Goedert, who had his practice window opened during the week, was activated from Injured Reserve on Saturday, and played for much of the first half. Targeted six times, Goedert had four receptions for 55 yards and looked great. Now it’s on to the playoffs for Goedert, who missed four games late in the regular season with a knee injury. The Eagles will benefit greatly from having Goedert in the lineup at tight end.

3. WR Jahan Dotson featured, and produces

There haven’t been many targets for wide receiver Jahan Dotson with A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith on the field, so it was great for him on Sunday to be a primary target for McKee. Dotson responded with seven catches for 94 yards on 10 targets. He and McKee were on the same page the entire game and they both worked the field nicely. Dotson is who the Eagles traded for, but it’s just that his opportunities are limited with the stars the Eagles have at wide receiver as well as Goedert at tight end. The game for Dotson on Sunday was a nice confidence-builder for him.

“I left some plays out there I want to get back, obviously. But, you know, not everything’s perfect. So, it was a good performance, but definitely something to build on,” Dotson said.

“Just really relying on people around me. I know the type of player I am. I know I can make plays whenever my opportunity is called upon. I know I’m I’m ready for it. I’m able to make plays. So, just staying patient has been a thing that I’ve learned coming up through time college, I had to stay patient and wait my turn. This year, I’m doing the same thing. So it is not nothing new to me. You got to stay true to yourself and keep working on your craft. That’s what I do every single day. I got a lot of great guys around me to help me keep getting better. It’s easy for me, whenever my opportunity is called upon to go get it.”