Whether the Giants ever had a real interest in Nick Foles, they at least stoked a bit of fear into the Eagles.

As executive vice president of football operations Howie Roseman and owner Jeffrey Lurie debated how to move forward with Foles earlier in the offseason — whether to franchise tag and trade him or let him walk in free agency to a team out of their control — the Eagles’ front office was concerned its Super Bowl-winning quarterback could come back to haunt them.

“We were also, to be honest about it, hoping that he would not end up with the Giants or the Redskins,” Lurie told reporters Tuesday at the NFL owners meetings.

It soon became clear, though, that Foles was likely headed to the Jaguars, which is what he did after the Eagles chose not to tag him. After growing into legend status in Philadelphia, he signed in Jacksonville on a four-year, $88 million deal for his first legitimate chance to lead a team from the start and not just as an injury fill-in.

“We were very confident he was going to play for Jacksonville,” Lurie said. “… It was hard. We went through every alternative we could think of as an organization on how to proceed here. Really, in the end, I think, Nick really did want to have a team to take control of and be the guy.”

As for the Giants, the search for Eli Manning’s eventual successor continues, likely to be accomplished through the draft or a possible trade for Josh Rosen.