Returning home has never felt so good as the Eagles prepare for their Christmas Day game against the New York Giants, the first of two straight games at Lincoln Financial Field. It was a long and tough trip to Seattle, an early return on Tuesday morning, and recovery after the loss to the Seahawks.
There has been great energy and anticipation as the Eagles see the Giants for the first time this season. The locker room has been buzzing ...
Milton Williams: Moving in the right direction
The Eagles have played their defensive tackle rotation right this season and third-year man Milton Williams has been in the middle of the action with his best performance of his three-year career.
"It's helped keep me fresh and we're all competing," he said. "We're all competing and bringing out the best in each other. Keep pushing. Every day you work hard and you see the results of all that work. It has been good work, tough work."
The defensive line is preparing for running back Saquon Barkley, the key piece in the Giants' offensive puzzle. Barkley has had a big season on the ground and he is always a threat catching the football and he is a lot to handle.
"Just follow your keys and you'll be OK," Williams said. "I feel like we have a good plan in place and it is our job to go out and execute what the coaches want. Do that and we're going to be fine."
A.J. Brown: Balancing football and family
The Eagles' standout wide receiver says the week "has been locked in and focused" and that has "been doing everything I can to make this my best week ever."
A win on Monday would sure help that.
"We need that taste back," Brown said. "Losing in Seattle was rough for us and it stung, but sometimes you need that to find out about the guys around you, about what they are made of. And what I've seen is that this is a team that has gotten back to work. That's all you can do."
Brown has some young children and he will make sure to dote on them on Monday morning before heading to Lincoln Financial Field for the game against New York.
"Early morning with them and I will be locked in," he said. "I will get to the stadium in plenty of time, all ready to go. We're all putting the work in, hoping it all comes together for us on Monday. Those couple of hours with the kids on Christmas, I'll be with them all the way. The moment I walk out the door, it's all football."
Jordan Mailata: Wearing the lunchpail and hard hat
"I'm following the process like I do every week," left tackle Jordan Mailata said. "That doesn't change no matter what we did the week before. Stay to what you've done to reach this point."
That said, Mailata discussed, it has been an exhausting long stretch for the Eagles – hard-fought games, a lot of travel, and some tough outcomes.
"We have to stick to executing our assignments and we've been making too many mistakes, collectively," Mailata said. "These last three games, we just haven't played at the level, the standard, that we demand. We have to get back to that, and to do that we have to execute and finish our assignments. That is what we're working toward."
Darius Slay: Defense has a new side, and I'll be back soon
Matt Patricia is calling the plays for the Eagles' defense and he looks forward to adding his personality to what the Eagles are doing. Cornerback Darius Slay was in Detroit when Patricia was the head coach there so he knows Patricia well and he thinks the Eagles will benefit from Patricia calling the defense.
"Great coach, great mind," Slay said. "We'll play fast and get after it, have some good coverages. I'm excited about it."
Slay is recovering from knee surgery, having played through pain as the Eagles went through the toughest part of their schedule. It was important for Slay to be there for that chunk of the season.
"I had to be out there, and now I'm going to be good, I'll be great," he said. "Gonna get back for my guys and see where this defense goes, what it can be."
