The New York Giants had held membership in the NFL's most
exclusive and distinguished club for the better part of the last three
seasons. But three straight losses, two of which were of the lopsided variety,
have abruptly altered the perception as to whether the team still holds a
place among the league's elite.
The Giants' once-lofty status took a further hit with this past Sunday's 40-17
shellacking by the rival Philadelphia Eagles, a sobering setback that followed
a lackluster performance in a home loss to Arizona and a 48-27 defeat at
unbeaten New Orleans in Week 6. It's the first three-game losing streak for
New York, which followed up a Super Bowl title in 2007 with a 12-win campaign
last season, since a four-game slide from November 12-December 3, 2006, and
knocked the G-Men out of first place in the competitive NFC East.
New York, now 5-3 at the season's midway point, trails both the Eagles and
Dallas by a half-game for the division's top spot.
While it's a tough chore for any team to overtake a formidable foe on the road
in a divisional matchup, the fact that the Giants weren't competitive from the
opening whistle in a such an important game certainly raised some eyebrows.
Big Blue fell behind the determined Eagles by a 13-0 score less than four
minutes into the contest, and trailed 30-7 at the end of a first half in which
Philadelphia scored on five of six possessions and piled up 262 total yards.
A suddenly-leaky New York defense wound up surrendering 391 yards on the
afternoon, including 180 on the ground, and was burned for three touchdowns of
over 40 yards or more.
Another shaky showing by Eli Manning contributed to the demise as well, with
the slumping quarterback connecting on only 20-of-39 passes and throwing a
pair of first-half interceptions that were turned into touchdowns.
"You can look at all the stats you want, but that's not the story of the
game," said Giants head coach Tom Coughlin. "The story of the game is the
fundamentals. It's tackling. When you have 21 rushes for 175 yards, I mean, we
didn't tackle well. We didn't cover kicks well. We gave them the ball at
midfield on our kickoff team. We again threw interceptions. That's not the
kind of football we teach, and that's not what we're all about."
Manning, who has repeatedly insisted he hasn't been affected by an injury to
his right heel that the former No. 1 overall pick suffered in an October 4
victory at Kansas City, has now thrown six picks and completed under 50 percent
of his attempts during the three losses.
QUICK HITS: Tight end Kevin Boss, who topped New York with six touchdown
catches last season, had his first of this year when he snared an 18-yard pass
from Manning in the second quarter...Wideout Mario Manningham, the Giants'
second-leading receiver, was inactive for the Philadelphia game after injuring
his shoulder in practice on Thursday...The Giants had won eight of their past
10 regular-season clashes with NFC East teams prior to Sunday's loss.
NEXT UP: The Giants will try to right the ship when the San Diego Chargers
head to the Meadowlands this Sunday for an interconference battle. The
Chargers have won two straight following a 2-3 start and posted a 24-16 win
over the dysfunctional Oakland Raiders over the weekend. The game will pit
Manning against San Diego signal-caller Philip Rivers, the two players traded
for one another shortly after being taken first and fourth overall,
respectively, in the 2004 draft.
PHILADELPHIA: The Eagles' 23-point win over the hated Giants, their largest
margin of victory in the longtime series since 1996, was made even more
impressive considering the team prevailed without one of its most important
offensive contributors.
Running back Brian Westbrook, a documented Giant-killer in the past, was held
out of Sunday's tilt after suffering a serious concussion in Philadelphia's
Week 7 win at Washington, but the two-time Pro Bowl participant's absence was
hardly conspicuous thanks to the efforts of two valued reserves.
Rookie LeSean McCoy started in Westbrook's place and delivered 82 yards on 11
rushes, with the majority coming on an explosive 66-yard touchdown burst in
the fourth quarter. Fullback Leonard Weaver, who had carried the ball just
four times in the Eagles' first six games, set the tone for the pivotal win
with a 41-yard scoring run on the opening drive and finished with a career-
best 75 yards on just eight totes.
Philadelphia amassed 180 rushing yards for the day, more than twice what the
team had averaged over its last five outings.
"Obviously, when one guy goes down, the rest of the unit has to step up," said
rookie wide receiver Jeremy Maclin. "I think LeSean and Weav did an excellent
job running the ball. When we get Westbrook back, we have another guy to use
to make plays."
The effective running game also benefited quarterback Donovan McNabb, with the
veteran triggerman completing a sharp 17-of-23 passes for 240 yards and three
touchdowns against the Giants.
The Eagles are hopeful that Westbrook will be back in the fold for this
weekend's showdown with the Dallas Cowboys, who presently share first place
with Philadelphia in the NFC East at 5-2. Head coach Andy Reid stated in his
Monday press conference that he anticipates having his primary backfield
threat on the practice field on Wednesday.
"He's not going to do contact, which is not unusual for what we do as a team
out there," said Reid. "We'll just see how he feels. He'll go through a normal
practice if he can do it."
QUICK HITS: McNabb finished Sunday's game with a 146.7 quarterback rating, and
the Eagles are 42-1 all-time when his number exceeds 100...Philadelphia
intercepted New York quarterback Eli Manning two times, giving the team 14
picks through its first seven tests of 2009. The Eagles had just 15
interceptions all of last season...Kicker David Akers' club-record streak of
171 straight successful extra point attempts came to an end when his first-
quarter try was blocked by the Giants' Fred Robbins...Offseason pickup Sean
Jones made his first start of the year at free safety and compiled six tackles
in the win.
NEXT UP: The Eagles will have an opportunity to garner sole possession of
first place in the division when the Cowboys invade Lincoln Financial Field
this Sunday. Dallas will likely be seeking a measure of revenge as well after
being handed a humiliating 44-6 defeat by the Eagles in Philadelphia in the
2008 regular-season finale, a loss that knocked the Cowboys out of the playoff
mix.
DALLAS: The Cowboys will be coming into Sunday's marquee matchup with the
Eagles on a roll of their own, having won three consecutive contests following
a so-so 2-2 start.
If Dallas was indeed looking ahead to its upcoming visit to Philadelphia, it
sure wasn't evident in last Sunday's encounter with the Seattle Seahawks. For
a second straight week, the Cowboys received strong contributions out of all
three phases in a resounding 38-17 victory that further illustrated the team's
potential staying power in the NFC race.
Quarterback Tony Romo kept up his outstanding midseason play by throwing for
256 yards and three touchdowns, while Dallas' high-pressure defense produced
three sacks and forced a pair of turnovers as well as consistently controlling
the line of scrimmage.
Patrick Crayton added a back-breaking 82-yard punt return touchdown late in
the third quarter, one week after the recently-demoted wideout came through
with a 73-yard score in the same situation that sealed a 37-21 triumph over
2008 playoff participant Atlanta.
One can argue that Romo is enjoying the best three-week stretch of his highly-
scrutinized four-year tenure as the Cowboys' starter under center. During that
span, the 29-year-old has thrown for 918 yards and eight touchdowns and zero
interceptions while completing nearly 63 percent of his attempts.
Ten different Dallas players caught a pass from Romo in Sunday's victory, with
wide receivers Miles Austin, Sam Hurd and Roy Williams each hauling in scoring
strikes.
"He's able to spread the ball to anyone, and [the receivers] all seem to make
plays when they get the ball or do their job well," Cowboys head coach Wade
Phillips said of Romo after the game.
Crayton, named the NFC's Special Teams Player of the Week for his output
against the Falcons, became the first Cowboy with a punt return touchdown in
back-to-back games since the legendary Bob Hayes accomplished the feat in
1968. The sixth-year pro is currently leading the NFL with an average of 16.6
yards per runback.
QUICK HITS: Austin led Dallas with 61 receiving yards on five catches in
Sunday's win and has five touchdown grabs during the three-game winning
streak...Veteran Allen Rossum, signed on October 13 to be the Cowboys' return
man, was inactive against the Seahawks after injuring his hamstring in the
Atlanta game...All-Pro outside linebacker DeMarcus Ware had one of Dallas'
three sacks on Sunday and now has five quarterback takedowns over his past
three tilts...Inside linebacker Keith Brooking also had a sack in the win and
ended with a team-best 11 tackles (8 solo).
NEXT UP: The Cowboys won't only be shooting for their first four-game winning
streak since 2007 when they take the field for this Sunday's grudge match with
the Eagles, they'll be looking to improve upon what's been a poor body of work
in the City of Brotherly Love this decade. Dallas has lost seven of its nine
games versus the Eagles in Philadelphia since 2000 and is 5-13 overall in the
series over that time period.
WASHINGTON: For a change, the Washington Redskins actually received some
positive news during a much-needed bye week that followed a 27-17 home loss to
Philadelphia on October 26.
Tight end Chris Cooley suffered what was initially feared to be a season-
ending fractured right ankle in that game, but further evaluation revealed the
injury to less serious than first believed. The sure-handed two-time Pro
Bowler underwent successful surgery last Wednesday, and it's conceivable that
Cooley could be back in action for Washington's rematch with the Eagles on
November 29.
Although the Redskins will miss their receptions leader for at least three
games, Cooley's absence does provide an opportunity for promising second-year
man Fred Davis to prove himself. The 2008 second-round pick made the most of
his chance for an increased role against the Eagles, recording personal-bests
of eight catches and 68 yards along with his first career touchdown.
"Fred is super talented and he has real speed," said head coach Jim Zorn on his
weekly television show this past weekend. "His pass protection must improve and
his route running must improve for him to have more than eight catches. And he
knows it."
As expected, Washington did place standout left tackle Chris Samuels on
injured reserve last week due to a spinal condition that will probably force
the six-time Pro Bowl selection into retirement. A pair of key special
teamers, linebacker H.B. Blades and cornerback Byron Westbrook, also won't be
available for this Sunday's game at Atlanta after both had arthroscopic knee
procedures during the bye.
While the Redskins won't be making any major lineup changes in preparation for
the Falcons, Zorn did confirm on Monday that wide receiver Antwaan Randle El
will be replaced as the club's main punt returner by cornerback DeAngelo Hall.
Randle El is averaging a measly 5.2 yards per return and has fumbled twice in
Washington's seven games this season.
Hall, a former Falcon, briefly returned punts in 2005 and 2007 during his time
in Atlanta and averaged 9.5 yards on 13 total chances.
NEXT UP: The Redskins will be out to stop a three-game losing streak when they
visit a Falcons' squad that has dropped two in a row after a 4-1 start.
Washington will be making its first trip to the Georgia Dome since a 33-31
loss there on September 14, 2003.
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