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Sunday, November 1, 2009

What was the biggest touchdown play for the Eagles against the Giants?
Leonard Weaver’s 41-yard run.
DeSean Jackson’s 54-yard pass from Donovan McNabb.
Jeremy Maclin’s 23-yard pass from McNabb to end the half.
LeSean McCoy’s 66-yard run.

Against the Raiders and Redskins, Donovan McNabb was in a funk.

Out of rhythm, rushed in the pocket. He just looked uncomfortable overall.

But that all changed this afternoon in the Eagles' 40-17 win over the Giants.

McNabb looked as good as he has all season, completing 17 of 23 passes for 240 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.

Most of the damage came in the first half when he hit on 11 of 15 attempts for 201 yards and three scores. It was McNabb at his best - comfortable in the pocket, running when he needed to, spreading the ball around.

There were a couple plays in particular that stood out.

After the Giants got on the board to cut the Eagles' lead to 16-7 in the first quarter, McNabb found a wide open DeSean Jackson on a play that looked similar to last week's touchdown. This time, it was a 54-yard score on the first play of the drive as the Birds took a 23-7 lead and snatched any momentum the Giants were building.

Later in the second quarter, McNabb showed great trust in rookie wide receiver Jeremy Maclin, allowing him to fight for a ball in the air and make a spectacular 23-yard grab.

Eli Manning and McNabb are different quarterbacks. McNabb is more conservative. He's less of a threat to be picked off. But also less likely to hit on some big plays by allowing his weapons to go get the ball.

Manning is the opposite. He can be careless (see the last three weeks), but also gives his guys chances.

Interesting to see McNabb do that a little more today without throwing an interception.

Earlier in the first half, he found Brent Celek over the middle on a beautiful throw for a 17-yard touchdown. McNabb had hit Celek for a score seconds earlier on a nice pass, but that play was called back because of a Jason Peters penalty.

Other notes:

** Jason Avant, who's been quiet, got back in on the action with a third-down conversion in the first half that went for 28 yards.

** Unofficially, it seemed like Stacy Andrews saw the most playing time he's seen since losing the starting job. He and Nick Cole rotated at right guard throughout.

** Tight end Alex Smith had his first catch of the season.

** Michael Vick had just one carry, but it went for a first down.

** Brian Westbrook has been a Giants killer, but the Birds got great contributions from his replacements. In probably the biggest surprise of the game, Leonard Weaver broke a 41-yard touchdown run in the first quarter. Overall he had eight carries for 75 yards.

** LeSean McCoy was held in check for three quarters, but then broke a 66-yarder in the fourth. He finished with 11 carries for 82 yards.

Posted by Sheil Kapadia @ 4:07 PM  Permalink | 22 comments
22
Comments   
Posted 04:17 PM, 11/01/2009
kingsolomonsmind
Great team effort. Better blocking from the line made a huge difference and allowed McNabb to do his thing.
Posted 04:22 PM, 11/01/2009
CaptMorgan
Beautiful game, wouldn't you agree LoneWanker? I'm sure glad we have DMac and not Eli. This is what happens when you run the rock, Andy. A balanced attack will slow down a good pass rush and you do not become one-dimensional. Can't believe we have to relearn that lesson every year.
Posted 04:23 PM, 11/01/2009
snook65
Where's that idiot lonejackyl and the puke dude? GO EAGLES. McNabb played well today and the offense was rolling. The silence of the loser haters will be golden all week,
Posted 04:34 PM, 11/01/2009
cancer36
Hey lonewolf! here kitty kitty kitty!!! Hey...why you so quiet?? ROFLMAO!
Posted 04:47 PM, 11/01/2009
mjb
This wide receiver tandem has a chance at being the best the Birds have had.
Posted 05:04 PM, 11/01/2009
EdgK
There is nothing to say about the oakland game after talking about the offensive line. They blocked and the Eagles scored.
Posted 05:27 PM, 11/01/2009
philly499
This is the problem with most fans.....they just ....don't....understand this game. There will be losses, but it's days like these that put things into perspective when it comes to GOOD teams....like this Eagles team. Keep the faith...
Posted 05:31 PM, 11/01/2009
philly499
Total team effort.....exactly what we need going into the meat of the schedule.....things look better now....GO EAGLES!!
Posted 05:57 PM, 11/01/2009
lonewolf 11
I will admit that Eli is garbage. Donovan gets a lot of guff, but the guy is the best quarterback this city's ever seen and we're lucky to have him. Always good to see him having fun on the field and sidelines- usually means a double digit win for us.
Posted 06:44 PM, 11/01/2009
Seed
O-line lead the explosion... the 20 run vs 24 pass plays lead the explosion... McNabb was and will continue to be very valuable part of the team... to be fair Weaver started the route and McCoy sealed it.
Posted 08:00 PM, 11/01/2009
gordy
WOW. I love being wrong on this one, I thought we were going to get killed. The Defense played great too. I really like having Sean Jones at safety over macho (he doesn't cover well, but Macho is way worse, and he tackles like a little scared girl) Weaver was a great offseason move. I actually saw Stacy Andrews level someone, remember, it was a full moon!
Posted 08:02 PM, 11/01/2009
eeglenutt
Kudos to AR for committing to the run game, and in a huge way. Great job by the O-Line, and a huge coming out party for L Weaver. In the same way the Oakland loss was attributable to the entire team, a team effort gave us this win!
Posted 08:09 PM, 11/01/2009
swinger18
This is how awesome the eagles can be when Mcnabb is accurate. i just wish he could figure out how to be more consistent and play like this at crucial moments. Great job today.
Posted 08:33 PM, 11/01/2009
soulman386
McNabb deserves credit but he could be back in a funk next week. You just never know with him. The Eagles are a talented team. If they get solid, consistent play from their QB they'll contend for a championship year after year.
Posted 08:56 PM, 11/01/2009
philly499
McNabb, Brees, Brady, P. Manning, Favre.....they ALL need a good O-line to give them a chance to throw and execute. It's mandatory to have a good line, and today you saw what can happen when the O-line plays well. Nobody can beat us if we protect and block properly for the run game.....nobody.
About Moving the Chains
Sheil Kapadia is a sports producer for philly.com. His earliest memories as a sports fan include several trips to Veterans Stadium with his dad, most of which turned out disappointing results. He's here to discuss the NFL 365 days a year. E-mail him at skapadia@philly.com or by clicking here

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