Philadelphia Eagles 27, NY Giants 17: A Monday Morning Analysis

The Philadelphia Eagles defeated the visiting NY Giants 27-17 to claim first place in the NFC East last night.

The divisional showdown offered up enough twists and turns to satisfy even a neutral fan, and a much-needed "W" to please (is that ever the right word?) Eagles Nation.  So, what does it all mean, in a football sense, of course?

NFC East

The Birds, riding a three-game win streak, are all alone in first place with a 7-3 record, followed by the Giants (6-4), losers of two straight.  With only six games remaining, this figures to be a two-horse race, with the Redskins (5-5) and Cowboys (3-7) resigned to playing spoilers. The Eagles are now in the driver's seat, and of course, will take control if they win the Dec. 19 rematch at Giants Stadium.

The NFC

Looking at the conference standings, 7-3 seems to be a popular record now shared by the Eagles, Saints, Bears, Packers and the very surprising Bucs.  Only the Falcons, a team the Eagles beat decisively at home, have a better mark at 8-2, with the Eagles holding the tiebreaker if they finish with the same record.

Clearly, the Eagles can do themselves a big favor by winning in Chicago on Sunday.

My best guesstimate is that if the Eagles split their remaining six games and get to 10-6, they get in the playoffs. Winning four (especially if one of those four comes against the Giants) should get them the division, and taking five should get them a first-round bye.

The NFC West will not field a wild-card team, so it appears that seven teams are fighting for the remaining five spots, with the Redskins still barely alive as an eighth candidate.

In whatever order, the Packers, Saints, Eagles, Falcons and Giants appear to be serious candidates to make the Super Bowl.  A semi-rhetorical question: Has the conference and league ever been this wide open?

Offense

The Eagles offense was not at its sharpest last night, although it was bound to come back to Earth after its incendiary brilliance in Washington last Monday night. Plus, they were playing a better defense.

It was weird to see the ultra-reliable Jason Avant drop a sure touchdown on a gimme throw to his breadbasket.  And even DeSean Jackson dropped a catchable, if more difficult, throw from Michael Vick.

Vick had flashes of brilliance, and still found a way to win when he wasn't having a great day by his new, lofty standards.

Bright spots?  The O-line, especially Jason Peters (who despite his Pro Bowl selection last year has not played well in green), is coming together and played well against a very tough Giants D-line.

LeSean McCoy is the real deal...the real McCoy?  He is a terrific open-field runner and receiver who also runs it pretty hard inside when needed.  He may very well notch a Pro Bowl appearance in this, only his second year.

In fact, would it shock anyone, if three or all four of the four-headed monster of Vick, Jackson, McCoy and splendid second-year receiver Jeremy Maclin make the Pro Bowl this year?

Defense

Given the opponent and the stakes, the Eagles defense played its best game of the season last night.  Eli Manning was held to 147 yards passing on 33 attempts, for an anemic 4.5 yards per attempt.  They also picked him off three times—two of them with the game in the balance.

They did this while holding the explosive tandem of Ahmad Bradshaw and Brandon Jacobs to 39 yards on 17 carries—or a paltry 2.3 yards per carry.

The Birds' D is coming together, and credit must go to coordinator Sean McDermott, and to some of the new starters, like Antonio Dixon (replacing Brodrick Bunkley) who has made a huge difference in stopping the run.  Dmitri Patterson looks like a big improvement over Ellis Hobbs at the cornerback opposite Asante Samuel.  The unfortunately-named Moise Fokou is playing much better this year, and this unit has become pretty good.

As for Samuel—who I thought played poorly and selfishly despite his nine picks last year—he is truly having a Pro Bowl year, making big plays without giving many up in return.

Intangibles

The Eagles are still a young team, but they are starting to grow a lot of confidence as a unit.

Parity is such in the 2010 NFL that very little may divide the No. 1 seed in the NFC from the last team to get squeezed out of the playoffs. 

Like him or not, Andy Reid has a great November-December record over the years, and knows how to get a team into the playoffs and beyond.  Well, a little beyond.

Like him or not, Michael Vick is playing great ball, and has a very talented cast of weapons around him. 

Add these elements to a ball-hawking defense that is gelling, and the Eagles are certainly one of the three or four NFC teams that has an inside track to reach the Super Bowl.