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Play of the game
Quarterback Donovan McNabb's third-and-20 completion to Jason Avant early in the third quarter was the turning point. It kept alive a 12-play drive that resulted in a David Akers field goal that gave the Eagles the lead for good.
A lot of things happened on the play. For instance, center Jamaal Jackson probably could have been called for holding defensive end Justin Tuck, who was rushing inside. Tuck still managed to get his right arm on McNabb, but the Eagles QB escaped that initial pressure.
A second later, defensive Mathias Kiwanuka was trying to drag down McNabb from behind, but Jackson got just enough of him to allow the quarterback to step up in the pocket and throw across his body to a wide-open Avant, who caught the ball at the 27 and cut inside for 9 more yards and a first down.
Lost in the chaos was a spectacular blitz pickup by Correll Buckhalter, who flattened safety Michael Johnson.
Parker's impact
Eagles defensive end Juqua Parker has just a half sack in the Eagles' last 11 games, and his playing time has been reduced because Chris Clemons now enters the game in passing situations. He also yielded time on first and second downs Sunday to Victor Abiamiri.Parker, however, had a huge impact against the Giants. He had pressure in Eli Manning's face on the quarterback's errant first-quarter throw that was intercepted by Asante Samuel, and he set up the Eagles' second fourth-down stop of the fourth quarter with a great play on third and 2. Parker spun off a block by wide receiver Dominik Hixon and took down Derrick Ward for no gain on third down.
Great play by Cole
You can't find an Eagles game this season that hasn't included a major impact play by defensive end Trent Cole, and many times it has not even been a sack.His best play against the Giants was in pass coverage. On a third-and-9 play late in the third quarter, Cole dropped off the defensive line at the snap and into coverage. Manning tried to dump the ball to Ward, and Cole immediately hit the running back and jarred the ball loose for an incompletion.
Had Ward picked up just 3 extra yards, kicker John Carney's field-goal attempt might not have missed right, and the Giants would have taken a 14-13 lead.
L.J.'s big play
Fan favorite L.J. Smith hasn't had a great season, and we all know he's going to be playing elsewhere next year, but he did make some major contributions in the Eagles' two wins over the Giants.In Sunday's win, he made a tough 6-yard catch late in the third quarter on the Eagles' only lengthy touchdown drive. It became a 21-yard gain when middle linebacker Antonio Pierce was flagged for a face-mask penalty.
Huge stop
The Eagles' defense's best work may have come on the Giants' first possession of the second half. Without either safety Quintin Mikell or cornerback Asante Samuel, the defense was able to hold the Giants to a field goal on a drive that started at the Eagles' 33-yard line. Safety Sean Considine forced the field-goal attempt with good coverage on tight end Kevin Boss on a third-and-5 play.Speaking of Considine, he deserves a lot of credit for his work on special teams. His hit on Giants punt returner Domenik Hixon at the end of the first quarter might have been the best one of the game.
Super Bowl MVP?
Eli Manning won the Super Bowl MVP last February, but he was the LVP for the Giants on Sunday. He just couldn't handle throwing in the wind on his home field. The Cardinals' Kurt Warner will be a much tougher test Sunday.
Déjà vu in reverse?
It's remarkable how similar the start of the Giants' final game at their soon-to-be-demolished stadium was to the Eagles' final game at Veterans Stadium.Remember how Brian Mitchell returned the opening kickoff 70 yards against Tampa Bay? Remember how Duce Staley scored two plays later? Remember how the Eagles seemed to have all the momentum?
Giants fans must have felt that way, too, when Ahmad Bradshaw returned the opening kickoff 65 yards, thanks in large part to running back Ward's flattening block on Eagles cornerback Lito Sheppard.
The electricity in Giants Stadium seemed very much like it was in the Vet six years ago, and the place would have been even louder if not for a touchdown-saving tackle by Eagles kicker David Akers. But the momentum eventually swung the other way, and the visiting team left with the huge victory.
The safety
The Giants' defense had eight men in the box and rushed six guys on the second-quarter play that resulted in an intentional-grounding penalty in the end zone on McNabb. Tuck quickly got around ailing tackle Jon Runyan, which was a big problem. Another problem was that McNabb didn't have a check-down receiver on the play because fullback Dan Klecko and Brian Westbrook were in pass-protection mode.
- Bob Brookover
