Matchup Preview: Philadelphia vs New York Giants

The Situation:  Who is going to win the NFC East?  It’s a two team race and it may be decided on Sunday at 1:00.  The Eagles go to New York to see if their high powered offense is potent enough to overcome the pressure brought up front by the Giants defensive line.  The Eagles are 9-4 coming off a hard fought Sunday night victory over a resurgent Dallas team that played without injured QB Tony Romo and star rookie receiver Dez Bryant.  But, Eagle receiver DeSean Jackson did play and had an amazing 4 receptions for 210 yards.

The Giants had an interesting situation, full of drama, that came to a head on Monday evening.  They, also 9-4, defeated the Minnesota Vikings in a 21-3 blowout where both Brandon Jacobs (14-116) and Ahmad Bradshaw (11-103) ran for over a 100 yards each for only the second time in Giants history.  The side stories were Brett Favre’s 297 game consecutive starts streak (which began in 1992) came to an end and becasue of a hole in the Metrodome the game had to be played at Ford Field on Monday instead of Sunday.  Being that the Eagles get an extra day of rest, theat may end up being a slight advantage.

In Week 11, Philadelphia beat New York 27-17.  The leading rusher in the game was LeSean “Shady” McCoy who had 14 carries for 111 yards.  The Giants running backs only produced 17 carries for 39 yards.  Jeremey Maclin was the leading receiver in the game with 9 receptions for 120 yards.  Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham combined for nine receptions, but both are probable for the game on Sunday and didn’t play the whole game against the Vikings.  Giants receiver Steve Smith was placed on I.R. and will miss the rest of the season.

I purposely haven’t mentioned the QBs yet in this game.  Let’s be honest, they’re both great players but one is playing better than the other.  Even though Vick has slowed down from his MVP numbers which he started the season off with, he has still thrown for 17 TDs with only 4 interceptions and has a QB passer rating of 104.  In comparison, Eli has 24 TDs and 19 interceptions in 3 more games this year.  Again, Manning has been without his top three receivers in Smith, Manningham, and Nicks at different points throughout the season.  Advantage Vick and the Eagles with the quarterback efficiency.

Justin Tuck led the Giants defensive line with three sacks the first time these two teams played.  Asante Samuel had 2 interceptions for the Eagles defense.  But, both Ellis Hobbs and Asante Samuel have been out and Dmitri Patterson has stepped up in their abscense at the corner position.  But, that Giants defensive line hasn’t missed a beat all season and has herassed QBs all around the league.  Vick knows he will have to play more of a cerebral game against this Giants defense and that he won’t just be able to run all around the field without any oposition.

The Outcome:  My predicition is that whoever wins this game, wins the division.  The Eagles will be going for the season sweep in this matchup and the Giants might quote commentator Lee Corso and say, “Not so fast.”  The Giants depleted receiving core will be a huge factor in this game and Eli like his brother Peyton, who is also dealing with offensive injury, will be forced to throw into situations that may cause turnovers.

I belive the Eagles will capitilize and play off these turnovers to control the time of posession with their efficient passing game.  But, if the Giants are able to control the time of posession and hold on to the ball they have an excellent chance of winning.  The Giants running game must produce at least 150 yards. They had no chance at winning the last game with less than 30 yards out of their two running backs.

Between DeSean Jackson, Jeremy Maclin, Michael Vick, and McCoy this team has too many weapons.  Don’t get me wrong, the Giants do have a defense that has the capability of slowing down that offensive juggernaut.  But, what do you want to stop Vick running or Vick throwing?  Will you try to eliminate LeSean McCoy and let the receivers beat you?  I think both teams will make the playoffs, but the Eagles win this one 28-24.