Eagles crush Giants, move to top of the NFC East

(AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

If only this Eagles team showed up every week! After two straight weeks of playing down to their opponents, the Eagles got up for the Giants and then some, crushing their rivals 40-17 in a game that was never in question. The win helped move the Eagles past the Giants and into a first place tie with the Cowboys in the NFC East.

This one was all Eagles from the start as the Birds took only 3 plays to score on their opening drive when Leonard Weaver ran it in from 41 yards out. Just a few plays later, the Eagles struck again after they picked off Eli Manning when Brent Celek caught a touchdown pass. Just like that, 4 minutes into the game, the Eagles were up 13-0 and they never looked back.

Offensively for the Eagles, it was the typical "spread the ball around" passing attack Andy Reid likes to employ, as 8 different receivers caught passes, including Donovan McNabb himself, who caught one of his own passes that was deflected back to him. DeSean Jackson, coming off his huge Monday Night performance, had another big play in him today, this time catching a 54 yard touchdown pass. Not to be outdone, Jeremy Maclin also had a TD.

The Eagles also ran the ball better than they had in recent weeks as both Leonard Weaver and LeSean McCoy finished with over 70 yards of rushing and a touchdown. Not having Brian Westbrook made little difference to the Eagles rushing attack; the "thunder and lightning" of Weaver and McCoy was quite effective, finishing with 8.3 yards per carry.

The defense for the Eagles also played one of their best games of the season, forcing Eli Manning to make bad throws all game long. The Birds finished with 2 sacks, forced a fumble and had two interceptions. We all know what happens to Eli when the calendar turns to November and the weather starts to get a little colder and the Eagles took advantage of his poor play all game long.

Suddenly, the Eagles Week 9 match-up against the Cowboys is for first place in the NFC East. Dallas rolled all over the Seahawks this week as they continued their hot play but the Eagles know that if they play the way they did against the Giants, they should easily handle the Cowboys. With the Eagles, it's never a question about talent, they have plenty as they displayed today. It's a question of motivation, and they are always motivated for these big games against their division rivals. When they get up for a game, there are few teams better in the league. When they simply show up expecting to win, things can get ugly.

In all, a great win for the Eagles over the Giants. Let's hope that trend continues tonight as the Phillies look to beat a different New York team.