PHILADELPHIA (AP) -Donovan McNabb and the Eagles know all about the expectations the Giants had entering this season.
When McNabb, Terrell Owens and coach Andy Reid led Philadelphia to an NFC East title and a tough three-point loss to New England in the Super Bowl in 2005, the Eagles had the look of a perennial title contender. They had stars at the skill positions and winning the division always went through hostile and hungry Philadelphia.
Because of injuries and a contract dispute, the Eagles went from Super Bowl to bust, and all their success crumbled a season later.
Fast forward three years and the Giants rule the NFL. Eli Manning helped win them a Super Bowl – yup, against those same Patriots- and New York wanted to establish its supremacy early over Philadelphia, Washington and Dallas this year in the NFC East.
Where the Eagles flopped in their post-Super Bowl season, the Giants have only gotten better.
The Giants (7-1) are ready for their championship encore.
“People say you don’t want to change much after a Super Bowl,” Reid said. “I think a little change in there kind of helps you. They’ve had a little bit and it makes everybody pick it up and kind of gets their attention.”
The Giants have changed and handled their adversity way better than the Eagles did when they finished 6-10 in ’05.
Michael Strahan retired in June and defensive end Justin Tuck has ably replaced the seven-time Pro Bowl selection. Osi Umenyiora – who sacked McNabb six times in a game last season – was lost for the season with a knee injury in August. Instead of the injury crippling the Giants’ defense, Mathias Kiwanuka simply made the move from linebacker back to defensive end and the Giants are third overall in the league in total defense.
This year’s Giants are a resilient bunch, one reason why they already have opened some daylight with a two-game lead in the division over the Eagles (5-3) and 1 1/2 over the Redskins.
If the Eagles are going to make their move in the division and show they are back as a legitimate playoff team, beating the Giants is a necessary step.
“This week is important because it gives us an opportunity to move up in the standings,” McNabb said. “Also, it adds more confidence to what we want to get done around here.”
they could still get right back into the NFC playoff picture once injured quarterback Tony Romo returns to the lineup.
All New York needs to do is keep winning and none of that will really matter.
This is New York’s third tough game in a row. The Giants won at Pittsburgh, beat Dallas last week and now play in prime time at notoriously rowdy Philadelphia.
“It will be a hostile crowd,” said Manning, the Super Bowl MVP. “It will be loud, but we know what it’s like to play down there. We have always played pretty well down there and made plays when we needed to at times.”
The Giants have won five of the last seven times these teams met, including the playoffs. Reid is only 4-5 vs. New York since Tom Coughlin was hired in 2004. The two teams have won seven of eight NFC East titles this decade, making it a good bet that whoever wins the series will control the division.
McNabb put the Giants-Eagles rivalry at “the top of my list.”
He also expects the Eagles to win.
“I view us as the favorite,” he said. “Any player will say that. It’s no slight to them. It’s no slight to anyone. You have to go into the game with confidence and you have to go into the game feeling like, if you do your job individually and play at a high level, you can win the game.”
e popular choice, which certainly didn’t matter last week when Manning threw three TDs against the Cowboys in a 35-14 victory.
“People probably thought that Dallas was the best team in the division when they beat us,” McNabb said.
Seven of New York’s final eight opponents have winning records. Minnesota, which is the final regular-season game of the season, has a 4-4 mark.
Coughlin broke from a habit of giving the Giants off the Monday after a win and brought them all in. He wanted the players focused on beating the Eagles and all but putting the division away instead of being satisfied with posting the best record in the NFC.
The Eagles take a three-game winning streak into Sunday night and know this is their chance to show the Giants and the rest of the division they plan on sticking around.
“It’s not another game for us,” said running back Brian Westbrook. “It’s an opportunity for us to go out there and prove something again. Just like every other game, but it has a little bit something extra to it.”
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