The Eagles didn’t need to do anything overly special to defeat the Giants. More than anything, Sunday night’s win was about execution.
There were some mistakes throughout the game, but all three scoring plays worked to perfection thanks to due diligence in all aspects. Defensively, the Eagles made an impact again in the pass rush.
Those plays are the subjects of this week’s Big Play Breakdown.
This is a textbook football play executed perfectly. The route run by Ertz is a common corner route that draws single coverage. With three receivers on the left of Foles, the Giants secondary flocks to the opposite side of the field.
It is perfect coverage by Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. But Foles throw leads Ertz to the sideline where he extends and makes the catch falling to the ground. Ertz holds onto the ball for the Eagles first touchdown of the game on a crucial third-down play inside the redzone.
Foles 26-yard pass to James Casey - video
I’ve talked about it several times before here, but when the Eagles use play action in spots like this, it seldom fails. This is where a balanced offense really does damage. Darren Sproles is on the end of the fake handoff which draws in one member of the secondary, No. 38.
This play really formulates around three tight ends, and the focus is on Ertz. This keeps the secondary on its toes as they allow Casey to have space. The result is a lot of room to reel in a 26-yard touchdown pass.
Darren Sproles 15-yard touchdown run - video
Sproles speed takes effect on this play as he turns the corner on the sweep and hits another gear darting into the endzone. But the blocking from the offensive line really aided all three touchdowns for the Eagles. This is an offensive line that is missing Evan Mathis and Jason Kelce and had Lane Johnson back for just the second time this season. To play a game like this shows the progress of David Molk and Matt Tobin.
On this play, Molk is the star, darting around the line and into a Giants defender in front of Sproles that opens the final hole to the endzone. The blocking on the outside by Josh Huff and Riley Cooper is also very impressive and key to this touchdown run.
Connor Barwin’s three sacks - video
Barwin's three sacks on the night were just part of the pass rush's dominant game. They recorded eight sacks and many of them were about timing. There wasn't any designed blitzes that brought players to Eli Manning in a hurry. It was more of the secondary's good coverage that forced Manning to hold the ball for too long until a defender reached the quarterback.
On Barwin's first sack, this was the case, as he stripped the ball from behind on a 3rd and 1 play. In this play, Barwin's second sack, he spins off the offensively lineman providing coverage to get to Manning. It is easily Barwin's most impressive sack of the night.
Kevin Durso is a contributor for Eagledelphia. Follow him on Twitter @KDursoPhilsNet.
