The New York Giants – “Faint By Numbers”

It is hard to fathom that a team whose quarterback threw 4 TD passes on nearly 300 passing yards with a QB Rating of 105.6 could be on the losing end of a battle. Welcome to NY Giants football. This is not the first major meltdown that Giants fans have witnessed and it certainly won’t be the last. Luckily, they are few and far between.

It was the biggest game of the season for both the New York Giants and the Philadelphia Eagles. The game did not play out as most pundits had predicted. The general consensus for the second divisional matchup between the only playoff contenders in the NFC East was that it would be a hard hitting, defensive showdown between both teams. They were only half right. The BIG BLUE machine was running on diesel fuel for 55 minutes of the game, only to run out of gas for a destiny changing 5 minutes. We’ve got the game by the numbers. Let’s go to the stat board.

Those who tuned in or attended the game know that the first half was all Giants. The defense shut Michael Vick and the Eagles rushing game down completely. The New York Giants had a 50% red zone efficiency, 60% third down conversion rate, 188 passing yards, 52 rushing yards for a total of 22 yards of total offense. Eli Manning threw 3 touchdowns. Lawrence Tynes made one successful 25 yard field goal.

The Eagles had one shot at the end zone. Their red zone efficiency was 0%. They were 1-5 on third downs (20%), had 33 passing yards, 56 yards rushing and recorded 74 yards of total offense. The Eagles were forced to settle to one David Akers 34 yard field goal.

It wasn’t until halfway through the fourth quarter that Philadelphia truly came alive. They managed to score the only points in the third quarter, making the score 31-10. Down by three touchdowns, the Eagles rallied to win the game in one of the most remarkable come backs in recent memory. The stakes were high and the NFC East title was on the line. The game is now in the history books but will haunt the New York Giants for years to come. Here is a look at the Giants and Eagles top 5 offense and defensive leaders.

___It took a total of 5:11 to change the outcome of this game. That is how long the Philadelphia Eagles had possession of the ball in the 4th quarter. The New York Giants went scoreless in the third quarter. You can break this game down in any way that you want. You can try to put the blame on one player, one coach or attribute the end result to Michael Vick. There are many “what if’s” and “if only’s” that surround this game. In the end, there is only the reality, the Giants lost. Their playoff hopes are still alive and things could always be worse. We could be the Carolina Panthers. Breathe in. Breathe out. Move on.

**Eli Manning Photo by John O’Boyle/Star Ledger**