NFC East Fly By
Week 14
The Games
Eagles @ Redskins
Giants @ Panthers
Saints @ Cowboys
Eagles @ Redskins
In what was the first of three straight road games against
division opponents, the Eagles traveled into Washington to take on the disappointing Washington
Redskins. The Redskins dominated the Eagles on almost
all cylinders, especially offensively where they had 415 total yards of offense
compared to the Eagles’ 263. Most impressive was that 210 of those yards by the
Redskins came via the running game. The Redskins had their struggles as QB
Jason Campbell threw 2 INT, one of which was returned by Eagles SS Michael
Lewis for a TD. The Eagles lived by the big play on offense and defense when
they had a 21-3 lead and almost died by it when the Redskins rattled off 16
unanswered points to cut the Eagles lead to 2 points. However, in the final 5
minutes QB Jeff Garcia who had yet another strong game was able to successfully
run out the clock as the Eagles left Washington
with a victory. The Eagles improved to 7-6 and kept their playoff hopes alive
while Washington
dropped to 4-9. For more information please read the post game report.
Eagles 21
Redskins 19
Giants @ Panthers
This was a big game for both teams as both were 6-6 and
battling for a wild card spot. The Giants have been on a free-fall lately, as
losers of four straight games while the Panthers have problems of their own
following a Monday night loss in Philadelphia
against the Eagles. It was an all around weird game as the Giants played a
solid game for four quarters, something they haven’t done in a while. Even
weirder was that Panthers QB Chris Weinke attempted
61 passes in this game and the Panthers only managed 13 points. Meanwhile,
Giants QB Eli Manning put his recent struggles behind him and passed for three TDs to David Tyree, Jeremy Shockey,
and Plaxico Burress. The
loss dropped the Panthers to 6-7 and was their third loss in a row in what has
been a maddeningly frustrating season for them. The win improved the Giants to
7-6 and gives them some momentum as they head home to face the Eagles.
Giants 27
Panthers 13
Saints @ Cowboys
In this prime time matchup of soon
to be playoff teams, the 8-4 Saints battled the 8-4 Cowboys in Texas. Dallas has been riding the arm and the hype
of QB Tony Romo and looked to do the same in this
game. The Cowboys got off to a fast start when RB Julius Jones ran for a 77
yard TD. That’s about as good as things would get for the Cowboys as it was all
Saints after that. FB Mike Karney,
who had zero TDs before this game had three
touchdowns. Even more impressive was how the Saints came into Dallas and absolutely
manhandled the favored Cowboys riding the arm of Drew Brees,
the legs of Reggie Bush/Duce McCallister, and the
hands of Mike Karney, Reggie Bush, and Devery Henderson. Excellent playcalling
by coach Sean Payton and playmaking ability by the Saints came full circle as
the Saints absolutely embarrassed the Cowboys in what was Bill Parcells’ 300th game coaching in the NFL. The
Saints improved to 9-4 on the year and seem destined for their first playoff
berth since 2000. The Cowboys dropped to 8-5 but still hold a comfortable lead in
the NFC East.
Saints 42
Cowboys 17
What does it mean for
the Eagles?
All in all it was a pretty good week to be an Eagles fan.
Even though the Giants won, the Cowboys were absolutely manhandled and that’s
always a good thing when you’re an Eagles fan. In a way, the Giants victory is
actually a blessing in disguise. Instead of getting a Giants team that has lost
5 in a row playing with desperation, they’ll get a Giants team fresh off their
first victory in a while trying to build on a game which is harder than playing
with desperation. The Cowboys looked really awful against the Saints and Tony Romo may have been exposed in this one. It will be interesting
to see how the Falcons handle him on Saturday night and how the Eagles handle
him in their showdown on Christmas. Either way, Romo
time may be running out in Dallas,
but we shall see in the upcoming weeks. Washington
has proven this year that buying lots of talent in the off-season does not necessarily
translate into success as their loss guaranteed them a losing season. The
Eagles have two more games in the road trip from hell before they return home
on New Years Eve against the Atlanta Falcons. The Giants and Cowboys are two
very good, very tough opponents that will try to exploit the Eagles’
weaknesses. The Eagles’ playoff chances are very real, but so are those of the
G-men and the ‘Boys. These games will be tough and they will need their A-game
each week to stand a chance. All we can do is sit here, wait, and hope the
Eagles show up in the upcoming weeks.
Current Standings
W-L (Div.) Next Game
Cowboys 8-5
(2-3) @Atlanta
Giants 7-6 (3-1) Eagles
Eagles 7-6 (3-1) @Giants
Redskins
4-9 (1-4) @Saints