The New York Giants won in convincing fashion, beating NFC East Rivals the Philadelphia Eagles 42-7. Yet they will not be heading to the playoffs because of the Chicago Bears’ victory over the Detroit Lions.

The Eagles started the game off with trickery, recovering an onside kick to gain possession. Five plays later, quarterback Michael Vick dropped back, threw the ball deep down the middle and was intercepted by Giants safety Stevie Brown. Brown’s interception was his eighth of the season.

Vick started in his first game since Week 10 because rookie quarterback Nick Foles was placed on injured reserve after suffering a hairline fracture of his hand.

Eli Manning and the Giants offense were on point early, scoring touchdowns on their first three possessions in the first quarter. Manning connected with Rueben Randle on a three yard pass to begin the scoring spree. On the following possession, Manning and Randle connected again on a 38 yard pass.

Rookie back David Wilson caught a 15 yard pass towards the end of the first quarter to give the Giants an early 21-0 lead.  Wilson finished the game with 15 carries for 75 yards.

The Eagles scored their one and only touchdown in the second quarter. Vick connected with wideout Jeremy Maclin on a seven yard pass. Vick finished the game completing 19 of 35 passes for 197 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

Ahmad Bradshaw carried the ball 16 times for 107 yards and punched in a one yard touchdown in the second quarter. This was Bradshaw’s fourth game, surpassing the 100 yard mark in a game. Seconds before the end of the first half, Manning connected with wideout Victor Cruz on a 24 yard pass to take a 35-7 lead into the half.

Fullback Henry Hynoski caught his first touchdown of the season and Eli’s fifth touchdown pass of the game in the fourth quarter to put the icing on the cake.

Manning finished the game completing 13 of 21 passes for 208 yards and five touchdowns. Manning’s 134.5 passer rating was a season best. His five touchdowns is a career best.

Both the Eagles and Giants will look to make offseason improvements with hopes of  making a playoff run next season.

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The Detroit Lions improved to 2-3, after defeating the Philadelphia Eagles 26-23 in overtime.

A key defensive pass interference against the Eagles put the Lions at the one-yard line with an opportunity to win the game. Stafford and the Lions were unable to score and settled for a 19 yard field by kicker Jason Hanson to force overtime.

The Eagles won the toss but were unable to move the ball forward. Quarterback Michael Vick was sacked twice for a total of -21 yards. On the ensuing punt, the Lions started their drive at midfield. Quarterback Matthew Stafford connected with Calvin Johnson for a 17 yard gain on 1st and 20 from Philadelphia’s 44 yard line to put the Lions in field goal range. Two plays later, Hanson nailed a 45 yard field goal for the win.

The Lions were led by Stafford, who completed 22-of-45 passes for 311 yards, one touchdown and one interception. This was Stafford’s 3rd game throwing for over 300 yards this season. Stafford punched in his second rushing touchdown of the year in the fourth quarter.

Calvin Johnson led the Lions with six receptions for 135 yards. Johnson, has compiled 100+ yards three times this season. However, he only has one touchdown and was held without a touchdown for a second consecutive week. Stafford’s lone touchdown pass was to wideout Nate Burleson for his second of the season in the fourth quarter. Burleson finished the game with four catches for 24 yards.

Young running back Mikel Leshoure led the Lions ground attack with 15 carries for 70 yards. Leshoure also caught three passes for 24 yards. Detroit has still yet to develop a consistent run game.

Michael Vick continues to struggle turning the ball over. Vick fumbled and had two interceptions and completed 28-of-46 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns. Vick also ran nine times for 59 yards.

Eagles fans held their breath in the 3rd quarter when running back LeSean McCoy left the game with an apparent lower leg injury. McCoy returned, and finished the game with 14 carries for 22 yards. McCoy also caught seven passes for 26 yards and a touchdown in the second quarter.

Jeremy Maclin led the Eagles receiving core with six receptions for 130 yards and a touchdown in the 4th quarter. This was Maclin’s first 100+ receiving game of the season. Receiver DeSean Jackson also caught five passes for 74 yards.

The Lions will be back in action next Monday, October 22 in a pivotal division rivalry game against the Chicago Bears. As for the 3-3 Eagles, they will be welcoming the undefeated Atlanta Falcons to Lincoln Financial Field.

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A bad tempered affair at Lincoln Financial Field between the Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens ended in a hard fought 24-23 victory for the home side. An explosive passing game from the Eagles was too much for the Baltimore defense to contain, as their offense failed to keep up their form from their Week 1 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals.

Given Michael Vick’s poor performance the previous week against the Cleveland Browns, most people were expecting LeSean McCoy to be used extensively on Philadelphia’s opening drive. Head Coach Andy Reid had different plans, however, and Vick looked in tremendous form early on, finding receivers in space and marching the Eagles down the field. He finally came undone when he had to escape the pocket due to pressure and fired a pass into the hands of safety Bernard Pollard in the end zone.

The Eagles were able to open the scoring shortly after, when Trent Cole stripped the ball from Joe Flacco on the quarterbacks own 15-yard line and regained possession for Philadelphia. This time the Eagles decided to run the football and McCoy went over untouched from one yard out.

Baltimore hit back quickly though, as their new no-huddle offense had the Philadelphia defense on the back foot, with the Eagles unable to substitute their defensive personnel as much as they would like. The drive culminated in a rare rushing touchdown for fullback Vonta Leach after some impressive blocking from his offensive line.

The Ravens took the lead early in the second quarter following another effective drive involving large doses of running back Ray Rice, and Flacco found Jacoby Jones, who ran an excellent route to beat cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha for a 21-yard pass. Rookie kicker Justin Tucker later extended the Baltimore’s lead, knocking over a kick from 56 yards, which ties him for a franchise record as well as bettering any successful kick he made in College Football, leaving the score at 17-7 to Baltimore at the half.

The third quarter saw a Vick-inspired comeback for the Eagles,  as Philadelphia quickly leveled the score at 17-17. Jeremy Maclin was found by Vick in the end zone after the quarterback rolled out of the pocket and showed great composure to still hit the waiting Maclin, and a field goal shortly after tied the game.

The Ravens offense struggled consistently throughout the third and fourth quarters, but two further field goals from Tucker put Baltimore back into the lead as time began to become an issue in the game.

Almost in identical fashion to his performance last week at Cleveland, Vick once again led his team downfield with just under two minutes left in the game, rushed for a 1-yard touchdown himself and give Philadelphia a lead that they would not surrender on Baltimore’s final drive of the game.

It was a game of two halves from the Baltimore offense, who looked in great shape during the first half in their no-huddle offense, but were poor in the second half, failing to utilize their fast paced offense. Flacco’s development towards becoming an elite quarterback certainly took a step backwards in the second half, and the Ravens had to rely on Rice to consistently earn them yards in both the rushing and passing games.

Philadelphia showed flashes of brilliance in the passing game, but Reid will be worried with the amount of turnovers they have committed in their opening two games. A very banged up offensive line will also be a worry as he hopes to hear good news on injuries to both King Dunlap and Jason Kelce.

Baltimore will now face the prospect of avenging their AFC Championship loss to the New England Patriots next week, whilst the Eagles will make the long trip to Arizona to play the Cardinals.

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The Cleveland Browns kicked off an important season in their ongoing process of building a playoff caliber team by entertaining Michael Vick and the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday afternoon. A ferocious defensive effort from the visiting Eagles saw them pick up a hard fought 17-16 victory, which will be all the more heartbreaking for Cleveland fans considering how close they came to upsetting the odds and recording the win themselves.

The Browns got off to a good start in the match as Phil Dawson connected with a 43-yard field goal, before Craig Robertson picked off Vick in the Eagles next drive. Despite having taken the advantage early on in the game, neither Brandon Weeden nor Trent Richardson were able to make a significant impact in the first half. Weeden threw two interceptions in the second quarter, while Richardson was only able to put up 25 yards from 11 carries in the first half, mainly due to the uncompromising defense of DeMeco Ryans.

The Cleveland defense was keeping the Browns in the game during the first half, with Vick under constant pressure and unable to connect regularly with the likes of DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin. The Philadelphia offensive line did, however, manage to give their quarterback good protection late in the second quarter. Vick stayed in the pocket and found Maclin in the end zone for an 18-yard touchdown pass which, along with an earlier field goal, gave the Eagles a 10-3 lead at the half.

Both quarterbacks struggled in the third quarter, with Vick throwing two further interceptions and Weeden adding another to his own tally. The Browns were able to add two further field goals in the late third and early fourth quarter, thanks to interceptions by the Cleveland secondary, narrowing the Philadelphia lead to just one point.

Things went from bad to worse for Vick then, however, as D’Qwell Jackson picked off his pass on the Eagles 27-yard line and returned it for a touchdown, giving the Browns a six point lead with just over 10 minutes left to play in the final quarter.

A long drive late in the quarter by the Eagles resulted in a first and goal on the three yard line at the two minute warning. After a run by Bryce Brown, which culminated in a one yard loss, Vick threw a touchdown pass to tight end Clay Harbor. The extra point was good and Philadelphia once more regained the lead, leaving Weeden a difficult task with just over a minute left to play.

Unfortunately for Weeden and the Browns, any attempt to rescue the game was cut short as the quarterback was intercepted by Kurt Coleman, and the Eagles were able to safely see out the game.

This will be a game for rookies Weeden (12/35, 118 yards, 0 TDs, 4 INT) and Richardson (19 carries, 39 yards) to forget, as their personal performances do not do justice to how close and competitive this game was. Although Richardson’s performance could be attributed to his recent lack of practice due to injury, all but the most optimistic of Cleveland fans will be casting wary glances in the direction of Weeden, the franchise’s 17^th starting quarterback since 1999.

The Eagles weren’t without their own problems, specifically the pressure exerted on Vick by the opposing defense, and the offensive line will have to work hard to rectify this issue. Vick himself wasn’t terrible (29/56, 317 yards, 2 TDs, 4 INT) but the four interceptions he threw are a worry for Head Coach Andy Reid.

Both teams face challenging matches next week, with the Browns visiting divisional rivals the Cincinnati Bengals, while Philadelphia hosts the Baltimore Ravens. The Browns and Eagles will have to take much better care of the ball in those games if they are to stand any chance of beating two teams who both made it to the playoffs last season.

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The Philadelphia Eagles controlled the game on Sunday through offensive and defensive standouts, defeating the Dallas Cowboys 7-34. The Eagles’ defense was able to stop any opportunities the Cowboys had in the rushing game; Dallas made ten rushing attempts for a total of 85 yards.

This was mostly due to the efforts made by Eagles defense Jamar Chaney and Asante Samuel, who made a total of 10 tackles throughout the game on the Dallas offense. The Eagles used their rushing attack effectively throughout the game to move the ball up field for scoring chances; Lesean McCoy ran for a total of 185 yards on 30 attempts for two touchdowns.

Quarterback Michael Vick also carried the ball on several runs, going for a total of 50 yards on seven attempts. The passing game was where Dallas fell short during the game. Quarterback Tony Romo threw for 203 yards on 18 completed catches, along with throwing for one touchdown and one interception.

Receiver Laurent Robinson made the touchdown catch, getting 103 yards in the game off of 5 receptions. Vick helped carry the team on to victory, throwing 28 passes all together for a total of 279 yards and two touchdowns. Receivers Brent Celek and Jeremy Maclin both caught touchdown passes, adding up for a total of 148 yards off of ten receptions.

Kicker Alex Henery also provided points for the Philadelphia victory, kicking two field goals and four extra points for a total of 10 points in the game. The Philadelphia Eagles (3-4) face off at home against the Chicago Bears on Monday, November 7th, while the Dallas Cowboys (3-4) travel back home to welcome the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday.

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