Eagles Dominate in 27-0 Win Over Giants

Asked about the Giants' trash-talking during the week, Jeremy Maclin replied: "27-0. Thank you."

The Philadelphia Eagles answered the Giants with a dominant performance from start to finish on offense, defense and special teams in a 27-0 win Sunday night.

Nick Foles threw two touchdown passes and LeSean McCoy had a season-high 149 yards rushing to help the Eagles earn their first shutout in 18 years.

"We played great in all three phases," coach Chip Kelly said. "We're pleased; we're not satisfied. Still a lot of things we can do better."

A rough night for the Giants (3-3) became worse when wide receiver Victor Cruz tore the patellar tendon his right knee while leaping for a pass on fourth down from the Eagles 3 in the third quarter. Cruz, a 2012 Pro Bowl pick, was crying and holding his hands to his face as he was carted off the field with an injury that's expected to end his season.

"Huge loss," Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. "It wasn't a good situation, a grim scene."

Wearing all-black uniforms for the first time in franchise history, the Eagles (5-1) stayed tied with Dallas (5-1) for the lead in the NFC East. They hadn't shut out an opponent since a 24-0 win over the Giants on Dec. 1, 1996, at old Veterans Stadium.

Foles had 248 yards passing, Darren Sproles ran for a score and the offense had a rare strong start.

The defense harassed and pressured Eli Manning often, sacking him six times and preventing New York's upstart offense from getting on track. The Giants had won three in a row, scoring more than 30 points in each victory.

"It's a good reminder that you just can't show up on the field and have things go well for you automatically," Manning said. "We got outplayed, outperformed."

The Eagles entered with 11 offensive touchdowns and seven from their defense and special teams. But Foles and Co. didn't need much help in this one.

Foles tossed a 15-yard scoring pass to Zach Ertz for Philadelphia's first offensive TD in the first quarter this season. Ertz made a diving catch, dragging his feet to stay in bounds.

Foles hit a wide-open James Casey for a 26-yard TD pass to make it 17-0 in the second quarter. Sproles had a 15-yard TD run to put the Eagles ahead 27-0. He left the game with a left knee injury and didn't return.

Some things we learned in Philadelphia's convincing win over the Giants:

SHADY'S BACK: McCoy had more yards rushing in the first quarter than he had in full games against Washington and San Francisco. McCoy, an All-Pro last year, had struggled this season, averaging 2.9 yards per carry. Critics said he lost a step, that he wasn't the same the player who led the NFL with a franchise-record 1,607 yards rushing in 2013. But McCoy had a breakout game against a team he has more career yards rushing against than any other.

"I never lost confidence in myself; you guys did and the people out there did," McCoy said.

SACK ATTACK: Manning was sacked only seven times in the first five games before Connor Barwin (three), Vinny Curry (two) and Trent Cole (one) took him down. Brandon Graham and Brandon Bair sacked Ryan Nassib to make it eight for the defense.

Defensive coordinator Billy Davis said he disguised coverages more than usual to show Manning a different look. It worked.

"Billy called a great game because he obviously was confused," Barwin said.

SLOPPY GIANTS: New York had 10 penalties, including a holding call on Will Beatty that nullified a 15-yard TD pass to Larry Donnell on the drive that ended with Cruz being injured.

"Penalties always hurt you, take away field position and kill your momentum," rookie running back Andre Williams said. "They hurt us a lot."

TOUGH UP FRONT: The Eagles' offensive line had its best game, pushing the Giants off the ball and opening up running lanes for McCoy. On the opposite side, the defensive line was outstanding.

"To be honest, Philly was the more physical team," Giants defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul said. "They beat us up front."

TURNOVER PRONE: Foles leads the NFL with 10 turnovers (seven interceptions, three fumbles) after posting one of the best statistical seasons in league history last year when he threw 29 TD passes, including playoffs, and only two picks.

"I will correct those," Foles said. "I will fix it. You want to keep being aggressive. I made a couple dumb mistakes with the football. I can fix those things. They're not over my head."

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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