The new T.O.-McNabb era got off to a flying start as Donovan McNabb connected with Terrell Owens for 8 passes and 68 yards, including 3 of them for touchdowns. As big of day as Terrell had in his first game as an Eagle, McNabb was that much better. He finished the day with a QB rating of 137.5, completing 26 of 36 passes (a 72.2% completion rate) all the while throwing no INT’s and 4 TD passes. McNabb has helped the Eagles offense convert 7 of 13 third downs. That’s better than 50%. His counterpart in Kurt Warner was only able to convert 4 of 12 third downs and finished the game with a QB rating of 79.9. Rookie Eli Manning, who on his first NFL play handed off the ball to Tiki Barber, also eventually replaced him. Barber ran it all the way for a 72-yard touchdown run. It was too little, too late for the New York football team. The TD run happened in garbage time play. Up to his TD run, Barber only had 53 yards rushing. His running mate Ron Dayne, who finished the game with 45 yards on 13 rushes. QB Kurt Warner threw for only 203 yards passing, but was also sacked 4 times. McNabb was only sacked twice. Even Michael Strahan was quiet as he only had 2 tackles and 1 sack. Eagles safety Brian Dawkins led both teams with 5 tackles. But perhaps the best tackle was the game’s first sack when Hugh Douglas tackled Warner from behind in the second quarter as he bull-rushed from the left side and caused a 5-yard loss on the play. The fans sure did not forget the chant as they yelled HHUUGGHHHH! The best hit was on Eli Manning as he was welcomed to the NFL by Darwin Walker who almost knocked him into tomorrow as he tried to avoid another tackle from Eagles linebacker Dhani Jones. Though Jeremiah Trotter had the heaviest and dirtiest hit as he really layed one on Giants punter Jeff Feagles.

With all the off-season moves: adding Kearse, Owens and Dhani Jones; resigning Trotter, Douglas and Levens; trading Welbourn and Whiting, you’d just wanted to see the Eagles come out and play well on opening day. Last year, they were thumped by Tampa Bay. In 2002, they lost to the Tennessee Titans. And back in 2001, the Birds lost in OT at home to the St. Louis Rams. You have to go back to that pickle juice game against the Cowboys down in the Big “D” on September 3 of 2000, when the Eagles started the game with an onside kick. They went on to crush Dallas 41-14. That’s a 0-3 record over the last three years. This year would be different. There were no tricks, only shear force and desire. Even the start of the game could not stop the eventual onslaught. The Giants started out 1-2-3 punt. The Eagles began the game with what looked like 2 first downs and were driving inside of New York territory. The Giants coach Tom Coughlin challenged the second apparent first down, as it appeared Donovan McNabb crossed the line of scrimmage as he completed an 8-yard pass to Owens. The Giants won the challenge and forced the Eagles to punt after the 5-yard penalty and loss of down. With a couple of lucky breaks, including two penalties and one non-penalty call, Ron Dayne scored the games first points as ran it in from 3 yards out. The Giants rolled 66 yards on 7 plays and were in the lead at 7-0. Philadelphia would strike back twice before the quarter ended. Both touchdowns were passes from McNabb to Terrell Owens. The second TD was setup by a bomb to Todd Pinkston for a 53-yard gain down to the 3-yard line. The Eagles were up 14-7 going into the second quarter.

At the start of the 2nd quarter, the Giants were moving the ball until their drive stalled at the 37-yard line. The Eagles took over from their 20 and drove the length of the field on 11 plays and eating up 6:44 of the clock. The drive culminated with a nice diving catch by LJ Smith in the end zone. The teams traded FG’s to finish the half with Philly in command at 24-10. The Eagles offense left off the second as they played in the first half. The first drive ended with a missed 53-yard FG attempt by David Akers. But the second time the Eagles had possession; McNabb put the final stake into the Giants when he completed an 8-yard pass to Owens as nobody was covering him. The Eagles dominated the Giants in every aspect of the game: on defense, on offense and special teams. Donovan McNabb threw for over 300 yards with an phenomenal 9.2 yards per catch. Did I forget to mention Brian Westbrook? Westbrook finished the day with 161 combined yards, 119 of them on the ground on 17 carries (a 7.0 average per carry). Let’s hope he stays healthy, but at least “Big Red” Andy Reid resigned Dorsey Levens as a backup. Next up are those Minnesota Vikings and the Randy Moss show. And I’ll be there!!