Game Preview
Philadelphia Eagles at New York Giants
sunday, january 11, 2009 - 1:00 pm
*Giants bracing for familiar foe*
Philadelphia (10-6-1) at NY Giants (12-4), 1:00 p.m. EST
EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Ticker) -- The New York Giants will be staring at a familiar opponent this weekend - and not just because it's a division rival.
When the Philadelphia Eagles invade Giants Stadium on Sunday for an NFC divisional round matchup, they will be looking to win the second of three straight road games to reach the Super Bowl - eerily similar to the path taken by New York last season.
Like the Giants of 2007, the Eagles played perhaps their best game in the season finale and carried the momentum into the postseason.
Philadelphia grinded out a 26-14 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in last weekend's wild-card round to earn a third matchup with their bitter NFC East rival this season.
The teams split the first two meetings this season, with each winning on the other's home field. New York won a 36-31 slugfest on November 9, but the Eagles avenged it four weeks later with a 20-14 victory that was not as close as the score indicated.
It also marked the lone home defeat of the season for New York, which was its first game following the accidental shooting and subsequent suspension of star wide receiver Plaxico Burress.
"I think they are about as dangerous as all four teams that are left in the playoffs," Giants linebacker Antonio Pierce said. "I think everybody has the same opportunity to win the game regardless of how hot you played in December and how well you played yesterday and Saturday. For us it is just about going out there and executing.
"We are playing a team that knows us very well and that we know very well."
Philadelphia has won five of its last six games, including a 44-6 shellacking of the Dallas Cowboys that enabled it to snatch the final playoff berth in the NFC.
"They may be the sixth seed, but they sure aren't playing like it," Giants defensive end Justin Tuck said. "We know them well, which is a good thing, but they know us well, too."
A resurgent defense has triggered the revival for Philadelphia, which has not allowed more than 14 points in each of the last five games.
Asante Samuel returned an interception 44 yards for a touchdown before Brian Westbrook turned out the lights on Minnesota by turning a short screen pass into a 71-yard touchdown.
"That's the biggest time, that's what it's all about, the postseason and trying to get that big win," said Samuel, who set a league postseason record with his fourth career pick for a touchdown.
Westbrook, who was held to 38 yards on 20 carries against the Vikings' top-ranked rushing defense, usually determines the outcome of a Giants-Eagles matchup.
New York held Westbrook to 26 yards on 13 carries in its win at Philadelphia, but in the rematch at the Meadowlands on December 9, the two-time Pro Bowler shredded the Giants' defense for 131 yards and a touchdown while catching six passes for 72 yards.
"He is a guy on everyone's list in terms of what you have to do to try to prevent him from getting the ball in the end zone," Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. "You saw Minnesota do a pretty good job against them in the run game, but he broke out with the 71-yard screen. He is an excellent pass receiver."
While the Giants lost three of their last four regular-season contests, the reigning Super Bowl champs won the game that counted - beating the Carolina Panthers, 34-28, in overtime in Week 16 to secure the No. 1 seed, home-field advantage throughout the playoffs and an extra week's rest.
New York hopes to have a healthy Brandon Jacobs back in the lineup. The 265-pound battering ram rushed for 1,089 yards and 15 touchdowns despite sitting out three of the final six games with separate knee injuries.
Jacobs rushed for 126 yards and two touchdowns when the Giants beat the Eagles. Eli Manning tossed two touchdown passes in that game but has not passed for more than 191 yards since Burress' suspension.
"We have been cast into a situation where we had the bye," Coughlin said. "You heard me say that I thought the bye was good for our team. I don't know that I would necessarily say that every year. In this case, I thought it was."
New York, which will be looking to become just the fourth top seed in the NFC to advance to Super Bowl, won 11 of its first 12 games and seven straight before the loss to the Eagles.