Birds Fly 5-1 Into the Bye

Lesean McCoy and the Philadelphia Eagles had something to prove last evening on Sunday Night Football. In front of a national audience and their passionate home crowd the Eagles answered the call and proved why they are a formidable force in the NFC with a 27-0 whoopin of the New York Football Giants.

One of the seven sacks recorded
by the Eagles Sunday night

I would say I told you so, but I didn't see this happening at all. I thought the Eagles were the better team and I thought they were going to win, but I thought it was going to be a shootout, a 38-35 type of game. I did not see the Eagles sacking Eli Manning 7 times in one game. Or the Eagles blocking another punt (even though they didn't score it's still impressive that they've blocked a punt in 3 straight games). Or the Eagles recording their first shutout since 1996 when the Eagles coincidentally shutout the Giants 24-0. I didn't see any of that coming. Especially against a Giants team who in the 3 weeks prior to last evening's game scored a combined 105 points, and who were looking very impressive after an 0-2 start to the year. 

Yet, the Birds were able to come right out of the gate and have their way with the Giants. It seemed like anything the Eagles tried worked, and anything the Giants tried the Eagles were ready for. 

It was a good win for many reasons. First and foremost, any divisional win is a good win. Second, it was the New York Giants at the Linc. The Birds better take care of business in Philly against the scum of the Northeast. Third, it was an absolute shelling in a nationally televised game of a pretty decent team. Fourth, the Eagles enter the bye with a very, very respectable 5-1 record. And fifth, and maybe most importantly, McCoy finally ran the way we know he can run. He finished with 22 rushes for 149 yards, a clip of 6.8 yards per carry. Going into Sunday's game McCoy was averaging 2.9 YPC. The stat line is nice, but Shady just looked like Shady again Sunday night, making people miss, finding holes, and turning what seemed like nothing into chunks of yardage time and time again.

Now, I could get into the whole "they should be 6-0, they were only 1.5 yards away from a win against the 49ers, should've run the ball" argument, but I don't think it's necessary.

The loss to the 49ers in week 4 was a heart-breaker, there's no denying that. But it may have been necessary for the Eagles to get where they want to go. Sometimes a team needs to fail in order to realize its flaws. Sometimes winning close games gives a team a false sense of security that they can win even with flaws. The loss to the 49ers, though it pissed me off to no end, may have been just what the Eagles needed to right the ship. 

However, the Eagles have been showing something that is really special all season long. They have shown it in all 5 of their wins, and they have shown it in their 1 loss. A very special characteristic that is hard to put your finger on, its hard to label it, but it is there. 

What I am alluding to is their will to fight, the way they never back down. The way that when they are nowhere near the better football team on that given day, they still find themselves within 1.5 yards of a victory. The way that they can be down by a touchdown to the Colts in Indianapolis by 7 on Monday Night Football with 5 minutes left and intercept a pass in the red zone, and on the ensuing drive score a touchdown to tie the game. Then force a 3-and-out and kick a field goal as time expires to win the game. 

The Eagles have shown an incredible ability to either win or, in the case of the 49ers game, give themselves a chance to win every week, whether they are playing well, or playing poorly. There is something to that. There is something to a team that may not be better than the rest of the league, but makes plays when plays need to be made, and end up winning. This team, this year, has something special going. 

The Birds have a passionate fan base that wants to back this team with everything they have. Last evening's beatdown of the Giants, and the won't-quit attitude that they have shown through their first 6 games has given this city hope. Hope for something that we haven't felt since 2008, and caught a whiff of in 2009. Going into their bye the Eagles need to sit back, be proud of how they have played, but not content with where they are at. The road leading to where the Birds want to go takes them to Arizona in week 8.

Also, here's a little highlight video from flyeaglesfly.com