One number tells you all you need to know about the role of the fullback in the Eagles' running game under Andy Reid.

The number is 59, which is the total number of rushing attempts by Eagles fullbacks in Reid's first 10 seasons as the team's head coach.

"I knew what I was walking into when I signed [as a free agent in March]," said Leonard Weaver. "I expected to come in and run-block for the most part. Maybe catch the ball a little bit. Maybe run a little bit. But mostly run-block."

That's pretty much what Weaver did in the Eagles' first six games. Caught the ball a little bit (seven catches). Ran the ball a little bit (just four rushing attempts). But mostly served as a lead-blocker for running backs Brian Westbrook and rookie LeSean McCoy.

But with Westbrook unable to play against the Giants because of the lingering effects from the knocked-cold concussion he suffered in last week's win over the Redskins, Reid and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg decided to use Weaver a little differently.

With rookie running back LeSean McCoy still trying to master the art of pass-protection and blitz pickup, Reid and Mornhinweg replaced the kid with Weaver in a lot of their three-wide-receiver, one-back sets. Even more significantly, though, they let their 6-foot, 250-pound fullback share the ball-carrying load with McCoy against the Giants.

Weaver rushed for a career-high 75 yards on eight carries in the Eagles' 40-17 win. Kick-started the victory with a 41-yard touchdown run just a minute-and-a-half into the game.

"We really weren't sure about Brian this week,'' Reid said. "As the week went on, one day he was feeling pretty good, but then he'd wake up and he wasn't feeling good. So we got Weaver ready just in case. We thought we could mix it up a little bit [with Weaver and McCoy] if Brian wasn't able to go."

They mixed it up very well. McCoy had his best game since his 20-carry, 84-yard Week 3 rushing effort against Kansas City, gashing the Giants for 82 yards on 11 carries. Sixty-six of those 82 yards came on an early fourth-quarter touchdown run that capped off the Eagles' biggest offensive assault of the season.

"I was proud of both Leonard and LeSean and not [just] for their running, but for their blocking," Mornhinweg said. "They did a heck of a job, both of them.

"Leonard has skill running with the football. We probably should've used him a little bit more before this."

Weaver's eight rushing attempts were just five fewer than the most carries in a season by a fullback in the Reid era (13 by Cecil Martin in 2000).

"It was a shock at first," said Weaver, who had 63 rushing attempts the last two seasons with Seattle. "But it felt good to know that Andy Reid and Marty trust me enough to give it to me.

"I got an opportunity to show what I can do. But I don't know that things are going to change dramatically. If they want me to carry [the ball], I'll carry it. If they want me to block, I'll block. Whatever they want me to do, I'll do."

McCoy had struggled, since the Kansas City game. He had averaged just 2.56 yards per carry in the last three games. But a bigger concern for Reid and Mornhinweg was how he would hold up as a blocker against the Giants' vicious pass-rush.

Which is why they decided to use Weaver a lot in many of their one-back sets. Five of Weaver's runs came in three-wide receiver, one-back, one-tight end formations. The other three, including his 41-yard touchdown run and a 17-yard run in the third quarter, came in two-wide receiver, one-back, two-tight end sets.

"[The touchdown run] was designed to go to the right and we switched it to the left,'' Weaver said. "[Left guard Todd] Herremans and [center Jamaal] Jackson opened a big hole and I got a great block downfield from [wide receiver Jeremy] Maclin. It was just off to the races."

The Eagles finished with 180 rushing yards, which was their highest total since racking up 185 in their Week 1 win over Carolina.

"When you lose a guy as dynamic as Brian, you have to share the wealth, and that put a lot of pressure on McCoy as a rookie to fill his shoes," said quarterback Donovan McNabb. "That's just not fair to him and just not fair to the offense."

With Westbrook expected back for next week's game against the Cowboys, Weaver likely will return to his primary job as a lead-blocker.