The year is 2033, and Eagles fans are jealously marveling at the longevity of the Giants’ Core Four.
Andrew Thomas, Evan Neal, Dexter Lawrence and Kayvon Thibodeaux are defying Father Time into their mid-30s by providing pillars for the sustained success of the Giants on the offensive and defensive lines — just like four players once did for the Eagles.
Those homegrown draft picks have been around New York so long that it sometimes feels like they once blocked for Eli Manning or sacked Donovan McNabb.
Flash back to the present.
The year is 2023, and the Giants need to close a big gap on the Eagles after losing all three meetings — including a blowout in the playoffs — the previous season.
“I think that starts up front, honestly,” said Thomas, who just signed a $117 million extension to protect quarterback Daniel Jones’ blind side through 2029. “If you watch a lot of Philly’s games last year, they dominated on both sides with their front.
“We close that gap being more dominant in the trenches [and] being able to protect D.J. to allow him to make the throws that he needs to. And, on the opposite side of the ball, our defenders putting pressure on the quarterback. I think that changes the outcomes of games.”
The Eagles began assembling what is now known as their Core Four in 2010, and defensive end Brandon Graham (18-4), defensive tackle Fletcher Cox (18-4), center Jason Kelce (16-5) and right tackle Lane Johnson (15-3) all have won at least 76 percent of games when on the field against the Giants.
If the point needs furthering, the Cowboys’ aging core of DeMarcus Lawrence (12-3), Zack Martin (13-3) and Tyron Smith (12-6) has a similar big-brother hold over the Giants.
Leonard Williams has been on the wrong side of a lot of those scores and “absolutely” feels that it is the responsibility of both lines to elevate the Giants to the top of the NFC East.
“Even outside the Eagles conversation, that’s something we go into practice saying, go into every meeting saying,” Williams said. “We always talk about the D-line being the engine of the team. Something our team prides itself in is winning up front on both sides of the ball.”
The Giants practiced in pads for the first time Tuesday, which coaches regard as significant because it offers the first true evaluation of linemen.
“The offensive and defensive lines, we believe that’s where it starts,” head coach Brian Daboll said on NFL Network. “We have to do a good job … controlling the line of scrimmage.”
After drafting Thibodeaux and Neal with top-10 picks in 2022, the Giants more recently extended the contracts of Thomas and Lawrence, and carried Williams’ largest non-quarterback salary-cap hit in the NFL ($32.2 million) into this season.
Could their core of bigs really be to the next 10 years what the Eagles’ Core Four has been?
“That’s a tough question,” Williams said. “I don’t want to say that they’re going to be like the Eagles … but I think a lot of those guys are still just starting to touch their prime or haven’t even gotten to their prime yet. I think they’re going to have long, great careers in this league.”
The Eagles aren’t exactly standing idle as Graham, Cox, Kelce and Johnson near retirement.
While the Giants drafted second-rounder John Michael Schmitz to the offensive line, and signed veterans Rakeem Nunez-Roches and A’Shawn Robinson to the defensive line, the Eagles counterpunched with two first-rounders on the defensive line (Jalen Carter and Nolan Smith) to up their total investment to five first- or second-rounders on the lines over the past three drafts.
Which young core develops faster could dictate the rivalry’s next 10 years.
“I think as a position group, you want to dominate every team,” Lawrence said, “but more importantly the teams within the division. Simply because that’s the way to the playoffs, and the playoffs gives us a chance to win the Super Bowl.”
Sure, the Eagles have the more accomplished young quarterback and more dynamic receivers, but Nunez-Roches has experience where the Giants want to go.
He won a Super Bowl with the Buccaneers, when a dominant defensive line stifled the run and harassed Patrick Mahomes into rendering the Chiefs’ two All-Pro weapons ineffective.
“The game is won up front: You saw that in the Super Bowl and you see that time and time [again] from successful teams,” Nunez-Roches said. “Trust me, there are some guys here that I’m just happy to help them because they’ve got it. I’m looking around like, ‘Woo-hoo.’
“Some of the things these guys do in practice is unbelievable, and I can’t wait until it correlates to a game and all comes together because I want to be out there celebrating.”
It starts with beating the Eagles at their own game.
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