Sports At Phila. Front Page News; Eagles 23, Giants 11

Sports At Phila. Front Page News; Eagles 23, Giants 11

Eagles Stun Giants, Reach NFC Title Game

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J., Jan. 11 -- There were times this season when the New York Giants looked virtually unbeatable and the Philadelphia Eagles seemed to be stumbling and bumbling their way toward a rebuilding project that might not include Coach Andy Reid or quarterback Donovan McNabb.

But those were fading memories even before the teams met Sunday in a conference semifinal, and by day's end they were images to be discarded altogether. The Giants became former, not defending, Super Bowl champions. The Eagles secured a spot in their fifth NFC title game in the 10-year partnership of Reid and McNabb by beating the Giants, 23-11, in surprisingly routine fashion at Giants Stadium.

"This is something that is storybook," McNabb said. "You've been to now five NFC championships in 10 years for me. That kind of shows the trust and the coaching that we have with Andy. Everyone believes in one another and given the opportunity, we feel like we can take full advantage of it."

The NFC playoffs will conclude with a first-ever conference championship game without any of the top three seeds. The fourth-seeded Arizona Cardinals will host the sixth-seeded Eagles next Sunday, with Reid and McNabb seeking their second Super Bowl appearance together.

"There's not a lot of celebrating at the moment," Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie said in the locker room. "We've still got a lot of work to do in Arizona."

The Eagles sneaked into the playoffs only after getting help from other teams on the final day of the regular season, but they have hit their stride with postseason victories at Minnesota and here. They were in control most of the way Sunday. McNabb ran for a first-quarter touchdown and threw a touchdown pass to tight end Brent Celek on the opening play of the fourth quarter. David Akers connected on three field goals without a miss and the defense did most of the rest in what was, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, the first 23-11 game in NFL history.

The Giants ran for 138 yards, including 92 by tailback Brandon Jacobs. But they couldn't get in the end zone. Quarterback Eli Manning threw two interceptions, one of which set up an Eagles touchdown, in a 15-for-29, 169-yard passing performance. Pro Bowl place kicker John Carney missed 2 of 5 field goal attempts and the Giants, whose other points came on a safety, were stopped on fourth-and-one and fourth-and-two running plays in the fourth quarter.

"Guys were excited to play this game," center Shaun O'Hara said in the Giants' locker room. "Guys were looking forward to playing this game. It just didn't work out, and it's a tough pill to swallow. Shock would be an understatement."

The top-seeded Giants couldn't recapture last year's postseason magic and, after losing three of their final four games in the regular season, are headed home early.

"We accomplished a lot during the regular season," Giants Coach Tom Coughlin said. "But, of course, that doesn't carry a whole lot of weight into the postseason."

The Eagles won for the sixth time in seven games since Reid benched McNabb in the second half of a late-November loss at Baltimore. Their revitalization began with a 48-20 triumph over the Cardinals on Thanksgiving night in Philadelphia, a game in which McNabb threw four touchdown passes. McNabb threw two interceptions Sunday but has 11 touchdown passes and four interceptions during the 6-1 stretch.

"I think he trusts all the guys around him," Reid said. "He knows where they're going to be. He's playing confident football, not just throwing the football but also managing the game."

The Eagles sneaked into the playoffs only after getting help from other teams on the final day of the regular season, but they have hit their stride with postseason victories at Minnesota and here. They were in control most of the way Sunday. McNabb ran for a first-quarter touchdown and threw a touchdown pass to tight end Brent Celek on the opening play of the fourth quarter. David Akers connected on three field goals without a miss and the defense did most of the rest in what was, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, the first 23-11 game in NFL history.

The Giants ran for 138 yards, including 92 by tailback Brandon Jacobs. But they couldn't get in the end zone. Quarterback Eli Manning threw two interceptions, one of which set up an Eagles touchdown, in a 15-for-29, 169-yard passing performance. Pro Bowl place kicker John Carney missed 2 of 5 field goal attempts and the Giants, whose other points came on a safety, were stopped on fourth-and-one and fourth-and-two running plays in the fourth quarter.

"Guys were excited to play this game," center Shaun O'Hara said in the Giants' locker room. "Guys were looking forward to playing this game. It just didn't work out, and it's a tough pill to swallow. Shock would be an understatement."

The top-seeded Giants couldn't recapture last year's postseason magic and, after losing three of their final four games in the regular season, are headed home early.

"We accomplished a lot during the regular season," Giants Coach Tom Coughlin said. "But, of course, that doesn't carry a whole lot of weight into the postseason."

The Eagles won for the sixth time in seven games since Reid benched McNabb in the second half of a late-November loss at Baltimore. Their revitalization began with a 48-20 triumph over the Cardinals on Thanksgiving night in Philadelphia, a game in which McNabb threw four touchdown passes. McNabb threw two interceptions Sunday but has 11 touchdown passes and four interceptions during the 6-1 stretch.

"I think he trusts all the guys around him," Reid said. "He knows where they're going to be. He's playing confident football, not just throwing the football but also managing the game."

"I didn't say anything," McNabb said. "I'm having a great time in this run. It's something, as a veteran, I shouldn't have done. I got kind of caught up in the moment a little bit. I apologized to the team and the coaches, and it's over."

The Giants had some near misses in the game's early moments. Ahmad Bradshaw got loose on the opening kickoff but was shoved out of bounds by Akers after a 65-yard dash. Manning missed an open receiver, Steve Smith, on the first snap, and the Giants ended up having to settle for Carney's 22-yard field goal.

The next time the Giants had the ball, Manning overthrew a pass toward wideout Domenik Hixon and the ball sailed directly to Eagles cornerback Asante Samuel. He made the interception and weaved his way 25 yards to the Giants 2-yard line. McNabb scored from the 1 on a quarterback sneak.

"We moved the ball," Manning said. "We had opportunities. We had chances. We didn't make plays when we had the opportunity. . . . I threw an interception and gave them seven points. Things like that, you can't afford to do."

Offense was tough to come by. The Giants got to within 7-5 on a second-quarter safety in which defensive end Justin Tuck pressured McNabb into an intentional grounding penalty in his own end zone. Carney sent a 46-yard field goal try wide right but came back with a 34-yarder to put the Giants in front. McNabb drove the Eagles into position for a 25-yard field goal by Akers as time expired in the first half.

McNabb threw a tipped-ball interception on the opening series of the second half, with defensive tackle Fred Robbins grabbing the ball on the carom. But the Giants could convert that only into a 36-yard field goal by Carney. The Eagles answered with Akers's 35-yarder, and Carney yanked a 47-yard try wide left to end the Giants' next drive.

The lead grew to 20-11 in the opening seconds of the fourth quarter. McNabb flipped a one-yard pass to an open Celek for a touchdown, and the Eagles were on the verge of making their travel plans to Arizona. The Giants had their two short-yardage failures, and Akers connected from 20 yards to seal the outcome.

"I'm really not playing that much different," McNabb said. "It's just as a team, everyone has elevated their game to play better."