Chris Myarick is about to discover who his true friends are and who are true Eagles fans.
A native of the Philadelphia suburbs born into a family of Eagles fans, Myarick’s first career NFL catch went for the decisive touchdown Sunday in the Giants’ 13-7 rivalry victory at MetLife Stadium. It was a storybook moment for a fourth-stringer signed off the practice squad this week because of shortage caused by injuries.
“It would’ve been just as sweet against any team,” Myarick said. “Being from Philly, I didn’t really put too much of that going into this game. [My friends] might be a little mad at me, but I’ll take our win, for sure.”
Myarick played at Cheltenham High School — about 17 miles away from Lincoln Financial Field — and walked on at Temple, which shares the Eagles’ home stadium. He went undrafted and bounced between the Dolphins’ active roster (three games) and practice squad over two seasons before joining the Giants’ practice squad in September.
With Kyle Rudolph and Kaden Smith unavailable, Myarick got the call to be Evan Engram’s backup over two newer practice-squad additions. So, it’s easy to understand why the Eagles defense was not expecting him to be the first read for quarterback Daniel Jones on first-and-goal from the 1-yard line early in the third quarter.
“Crazy play,” Myarick said. “Crazy for me, personally. Kind of a crazy experience.”
Myarick blocked the initial rush on a play-action pass before peeling off and dropping to his knees. Jones’ laser into the numbers slipped through Myarick’s hands, but he closed his knees to secure the ball just before it scraped the turf.
“Just hold onto it as hard as I can, make sure it doesn’t hit the ground,” Myarick said of his thinking in the moment. “It wasn’t the cleanest catch, but it still counts. So, I’ll take it.”
Myarick’s second career catch was important, too. He converted a second-and-6 with a 10-yard gain down to the 24-yard line, setting up a field goal to extend the Giants’ lead to six.
With a weeklong emphasis on getting the top playmakers more touches with Freddie Kitchens instead of the fired Jason Garrett at offensive coordinator, Myarick’s name wasn’t at the top of the list with Kenny Golladay’s and Saquon Barkley’s.
Barkley urged Myarick to spike the ball after his touchdown — and then tracked it down for his teammate to have a keepsake.
“That’s a play we’ve repped a lot in practice,” Jones said. “Myarick did a great job stepping in and making a play there. I think in certain situations, the ball on the 1-yard line, it’s kind of those types of plays that you prepare for and count on.”