The boos at the start were loud. The fans had spoken and they were not in any mood to welcome back Saquon Barkley.
The jeers thereafter on a spring-like Sunday afternoon were even louder and directed not at the erstwhile Giants running back but at their own team, their own shabby, downtrodden offense and their own sagging quarterback.
The fans had spoken again.
They had seen enough of this nonsense.
Once again, the Giants saved their worst for their paying customers.
Their defense came out strong and spirited but was pretty much out there alone.
Daniel Jones was swamped from start to finish in another unproductive, listless and inept MetLife Stadium showing that got him benched.
Barkley, as an opponent, had a grand old time, churning and burning for 176 yards (on only 17 rushing attempts) and one touchdown.
As usual, the Giants took a dive against the Eagles, losing 28-3 to continue their descent deeper into the depths of the NFC East.
It was so bad that with 11:26 remaining, head coach Brian Daboll sat Jones and replaced him with backup Drew Lock.
Jones completed 14 of 21 passes for 99 yards and was under fire, getting sacked seven times behind a shaky offensive line playing its first game this season without left tackle Andrew Thomas, who is out for the season following foot surgery.
“We had 100 yards,’’ Daboll said. “I was trying to create some type of juice and maybe make a few plays and swing the momentum a little bit. But that didn’t happen.’’
No, it didn’t happen.
Daboll said this was a one-time deal.
“Daniel will be the quarterback going forward,’’ he said.
Getting yanked from the game did not sit well with Jones, who was clearly irritated by the move.
“Yeah, it was frustrating,’’ Jones said. “You want to be out there playing with your teammates and fighting to score points and move the ball. So, I was frustrated, but not my decision.
“Didn’t like it, obviously.’’
Jones has now failed to throw a touchdown pass in six consecutive home games and the Giants have a total of 10 points in the past two games.
That he was sent to the sideline on the same day Barkley returned to torch his former team is some sad Giants symmetry.
Barkley got the last laugh in this one.
He wanted to remain a Giant for Life but the franchise that selected him No. 2 overall in 2018 would not match his contract demands.
The Giants had him bottled up — 17 yards on his first seven rushing attempts — before he did what he often does: erupt.
Early in the second quarter, Barkley raced around the left side for 55 yards.
He finished what he started with a 3-yard scoring run to put the Eagles up 7-0.
Barkley added a 41-yard jaunt in the third quarter and then helped propel Jalen Hurts into the end zone on a tush-push to make it 28-3 early in the fourth quarter.
He needed to trade blue for green to have some fun in this Jersey Turnpike affair.
“To be honest, I’m so happy this game is over,’’ Barkley said. “I don’t think I should get, besides today, any more questions about the Giants, but like I’ve always said, I’m thankful for the organization. They’re the team that drafted me. I’ve still got nothing but love and respect for the guys over there.’’
The beat goes on for the Giants (2-5), and so do the beatdowns. They have now lost six of the last seven games in this one-sided rivalry and the inequity runs even deeper: 14 losses in the last 17 games and 28 losses in the last 34 games.
The Giants are now 0-3 in the division and 0-4 at home.
“All the way around, not just the quarterback, the coaching, everything, just wasn’t good enough,’’ Daboll said.
Hurts in the second quarter hit A.J. Brown for a 41-yard scoring connection — Brown got a step on cornerback Nick McCloud on a fourth-down play — to make it 14-0.
The closest the Giants got to a touchdown was Jones’ 10-yard strike to Theo Johnson in the end zone late in the second quarter.
The rookie tight end was called for offensive pass interference, though, and the Giants settled for Greg Joseph’s 38-yard field goal.
The decision to insert third-year offensive lineman Josh Ezeudu in as the starting left tackle in place of Thomas proved to be unsatisfactory.
Ezeudu gave up two first-quarter sacks.
The Eagles came into the game with 11 sacks in their first five games, but they overwhelmed the Giants up front in what easily was the worst showing all season for the offensive line.
On defense, the Giants were able to get to Hurts, sacking him four times in the first half.
Gradually, though, Barkley wore out the defense of the team he used to play for and the Eagles, with the greatest of ease, did what they are accustomed to doing against the team they own.
“No one was happy about the result,’’ Daboll said. “I think we have a strong group. You need to have a strong group in this league. There’s a lot of ups and downs. Unfortunately, we’ve had more downs.’’
Many more downs, but not many as down as this one.
