Giants snap skid against Eagles, win 29-16

PHILADELPHIA -- Brandon Jacobs has a message for the Eagles: "Keep dreamin'."

The Giants running back was a big part of one of the biggest wins in recent Giants history. Though it doesn't have the clout of the near-mythical championship win over the Patriots, it certainly was the first time since Super Bowl XLII that the Giants came into a game as heavy underdogs and emerged with a rousing victory.

This time it was a 29-16 win Sundayover the stacked Eagles, the team that won the truncated offseason with its key acquisitions and seemed destined to cruise to a division title. But for the time being, the Giants have the satisfaction of sticking it to their nemesis down the turnpike.

The Dream Team no doubt had a restless slumber Sunday night after Eli Manning threw four touchdown passes, erasing a 16-14 deficit with a 28-yarder to Victor Cruz and an 18-yarder to Ahmad Bradshaw in the fourth quarter. "We definitely shut them up," said Jacobs, who caught a 40-yard touchdown pass and scored a two-point conversion. "There's no question about that. We walked off the field as the winners, by a nice margin."

It was the first time since 2008 that the Giants beat the Eagles, ending a losing streak of six straight to their rivals.

It was that sixth loss, the one last year when a three-touchdown lead disappeared in just over seven minutes, that started creeping into the minds of every Giants fan as the team's 14-0 lead eroded and the Eagles took a 16-14 lead late in the third quarter.

But the Giants themselves were not reflecting on December's meltdown.

"When they took the lead, I would bet that no one in this locker room even thought about last year," guard Chris Snee said. "It's a new season; we have new guys and a new mindset. It wasn't like 'Oh ----, they took the lead back.' It was 'Let's go do something about it.' You gotta love that mentality right now."

It helped that the Eagles (1-2) took the lead in such disappointing fashion that their fans booed them for it.

Trailing 14-13, the Eagles had first-and-goal at the 2, and after a 1-yard run and an offside against Deon Grant that went half the distance to the goal line, they had second-and-goal just inches from the end zone. Linebacker Michael Boley dived over the pile to stuff Michael Vick on a second-down sneak. On third down, Rocky Bernard burrowed underneath the pile to stop fullback Owen Schmitt. The Eagles settled for a 16-14 lead.

"I just tried to shoot off and get some penetration," Bernard said. "All I could see was legs and just tried to grab what I could and hope someone came along."

That someone was Linval Joseph, who cleaned up the third-down run for a 1-yard loss.

The Giants (2-1) took a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on Manning's two TDs to unlikely receivers. First he hit Jacobs on a play-action pass, drawing Casey Matthews up to stop the run and then floating a soft screen pass to the big running back, who made a nimble over-the-head grab. Then on third-and-2, Manning connected with Cruz for a 74-yard score.

He threw a pass to Cruz on a short route to the left for about 9 yards. Safety Kurt Coleman whiffed on a tackle, then chased Cruz and knocked cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha out of the play when Cruz used a stutter move at the Eagles' 40.

An 11-yard TD run by LeSean McCoy was sandwiched by two field goals, including one as the halftime clock expired, as the Eagles closed to within a point. Alex Henery's third-quarter field goal gave Philly its first lead of the game. But not for long.

The Giants' defense came up with another big stop, this time at their own 43. The Eagles tried to convert fourth-and-1 but McCoy was hit in the backfield by Grant. He escaped the tackle, but Boley stopped him for a 3-yard loss.

The Giants responded with a 46-yard drive that included a 2-yard run by Jacobs on third-and-2 and was capped by Cruz's second TD. Jacobs' two-point run made it 22-16.

With Vick on the sideline with a broken right hand, backup Mike Kafka threw a deep ball on his first snap and Aaron Ross came down with his second interception of the game. That led to a 56-yard drive by the Giants, which ended when Manning hit Bradshaw on a screen pass and the running back took it into the end zone for an 18-yard TD and the final score of the game.

Tom Coughlin was understated after the game, noting how important it was to win in the division and focusing on how early in the season it is. The players followed suit. It's still a long season left for them. But it got a little less longer after Sunday.

"Huge win for us, huge for our confidence," Snee said. "I think the confidence in this locker room just went a lot higher, and it can only go up from here."