Eagles come up short against Giants

A TEAM THAT tried to win through tricky plays and confusing blitzes met up last night with a team that really had the goods, and just lined up and played.

Most Eagles fans probably don't need much help affixing the proper labels there, following the New York Giants' 36-31 smash-mouth victory over the host Eagles, who were the weaker team along both lines of scrimmage, though they fought hard and made enough big plays to stay in it until the very end.

The Birds are 5-4, 0-3 in the NFC East, and they have lost the battle along the lines in both their home divisional games. In this respect, the 8-1 Giants, 3-0 in the East, were a more dominant version of the Redskins, who did much the same thing back on Oct. 5.

The chances of a wild-card playoff berth remain in play, even if the division title seems an outlandish hope. But unless the Eagles are going to find better blockers and tacklers between now and January, that prospect is unlikely to generate a whole bunch of excitement.

"Anything's possible," said Eagles coach Andy Reid, whose team followed a 4-year trend of losing a close game, and losing in prime time, where it has now dropped eight in a row.

Yes, the Birds could have had better luck with challenges last night - in particular, there was one that New York won (Eli Manning's amazing onside back heel) and one the Eagles lost (Brandon Jacobs' fumble at the goal line, that was ruled a touchdown, whether it was or not). Either of those could have gone the other way.

"I can't sit here and question anything," said Reid, who seemed to believe both plays were tough calls.

But really, this game was not about challenges. It was about 219 rushing yards to 106, a 2-to-1 time-of-possession edge until the Eagles' final drive, and Donovan McNabb once again being the Eagles' only effective weapon, running and throwing, just as he was 7 or 8 years ago.

Finally, it was about third-and-3 and fourth-and-1, inside the 2-minute warning, nearing midfield, turning the ball over to the Giants on downs, because two identical-looking right-side runs by Brian Westbrook ended with Westbrook being swarmed by white jerseys, short of the sticks.