- [Narrator] It's December 19th, 2010.
We're in East Rutherford, New Jersey,
where the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants are tied
at 31 in the closing seconds
and DeSean Jackson just muffed this punt.
Officially, every outcome is on the table
as these teams battle to control the division.
You might know what comes next,
but to remember how we got here,
or why we really shouldn't be here, let's rewind.
(tranquil music)
This image perfectly sums up the NFC East,
chaotic, sloppy, anything can happen.
That said, we aren't far removed
from when it felt like everything bounced Philly's way.
(dissonant music)
Statistically, the Eagles are the NFC's most successful team
of the last decade.
Eight playoff appearances,
five conference championship games,
just zero Lombardi trophies.
Philadelphia's currently at a crossroads,
trying to thread the needle between past and present.
That's made for some tough recent moves.
In the span of 13 months,
Philadelphia said goodbye to three of its cornerstones.
Brians Westbrook and Dawkins, plus Donovan McNabb,
had all been career Eagles and legendary franchise stars.
Dawkins left first.
The Eagles wanted to keep him,
just not at the price tag offered elsewhere.
Philadelphia released Westbrook
as the injuries piled up for the 30 year old running back.
Uncharacteristically, he fired off a parting shot
at the franchise.
Basically, he didn't know if management wanted to win
as badly as the players did.
Interesting words as Philly cobbled together
its new identity.
McNabb's departure included a bit more fanfare.
It had been rumored for a few years that a split loomed.
McNabb voiced concerns over the team around him,
specifically its lack of playmakers.
He also suggested that Eagles bring in
one specific playmaker, quarterback Michael Vick.
a month after his release from prison.
After another early exit in 2009,
plus a crowded quarterback room
drawing interest from other teams,
the Eagles moved on from the QB they drafted second overall
back in 1999.
Obviously football teams are made up
of more than three players,
but the Eagles without these guys felt weird.
At the same time,
a youth movement had already begun in Philadelphia.
Starting in 2008, they rebuilt their receiving core
with Top-50 picks DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin.
They joined a fifth-round gem, tight end Brent Celek,
then got some rejuvenated ground support in LeSean McCoy.
With Westbrook's replacement
and receiving talent that rivaled, if not surpassed,
anything McNabb had early in his career,
the Eagles turned the keys over not to Vick,
but to Kevin Kolb,
their inexperienced but talented 2007 second round pick,
who received some pretty optimistic comparisons.
With so much change and a tough division,
expectations for 2010 urged patience,
but the NFC East hates being predictable.
Kolb suffered a concussion in the first half of Week 1
and up stepped Vick.
The quarterback, much like the entire Eagles organization,
looked to prove that this modern iteration
still had plenty left in the tank.
Surrounded by Philadelphia's stockpile
of young offensive talent, everything clicked.
There were ups and downs, sure.
Vick's NFC Player of the Month was followed up
by a rib injury that knocked him out for a few weeks.
But in Week 10, this offense had its coming out party.
Visiting McNabb in Washington,
the much anticipated Monday night matchup ended quick.
An 88-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage.
A 35-0 lead just one play into the second quarter.
Six total touchdowns for Vick.
That offensive spectacle helped the Eagles vault
up the divisional standings.
They won five of their last six coming into today,
including one over the Giants,
which set the teams on a collision course
for the NFC East crown.
Philly's looking for their first division title
in four years,
their longest drought since Andy Reid took over.
And just as importantly,
they're trying to prove that their window hasn't closed.
That might be easier to prove
if they had the ball right here.
As for New York,
these gunners have a lot of hope resting on their shoulders
as they hurdle downfield.
The Giants are looking for some answers.
They aren't far removed
from an improbable Super Bowl victory
against the previously-undefeated Patriots
and they'd followed that up
with their best regular season since 2000.
But an immediate post-season exit at the hands of the Eagles
proceeded an even more disappointing 2009.
Injuries and an inability to beat good teams
led to new York's first post-season miss since '04.
That said, entering this 2010 season,
the roster still closely resembled their Super Bowl team.
Despite 2009's doldrums,
Eli Manning reached 4,000 yards passing
for the first time in his career,
made possible thanks to his young trio of receivers,
including the other Steve Smith.
Their two-pronged battering ram
hampered by injuries a season ago looked ready
to again support Manning on the ground.
Most importantly, the veteran offensive line,
one of the biggest culprits for their '09 collapse,
had an off season to get healthy.
Based on their last few seasons,
experts struggled to peg how this team would fare,
but many expected them to take the division.
Some extra pressure to perform came by the way
of their brand new $1.7 billion stadium
opening up for this 2010 season.
Would amenities at the New Meadowlands
include a winning team?
Or would tax dollars just fund heartbreak?
Through their first 13 games,
we still waited on a definitive answer.
They jumped out to a comfortable NFC East lead,
but saw it dry up following back-to-back divisional losses.
Unlike a season ago,
they began to right the ship for the final stretch.
Three straight wins
ahead of showdown number two with Philly.
Both teams entered today with identical records,
but given how their first meeting went,
New York needs the win more.
Through the first three quarters, that absolutely showed.
Everything went the Giants' way.
Their defense allowed next to nothing
from Philly's high flying offense.
They forced picks and fumbles,
building on each Eagles mistake
to take a 24-3 halftime lead.
The defense didn't let Philadelphia into the end zone
until near the end of the third quarter,
and even that required a short field via turnover
for the Eagles offense to pull off.
Eli managed to give New York, and its home crowd,
all the breathing room you'd think they needed,
rebuilding the 21-point lead with 8:23 left.
Only once in NFL history had a team come back
after being down 21 with less time on the clock.
Basically, the Giants were cruising.
Oh wait, nope, that's right.
We are all tied up.
But before we get to how the Eagles kept this game alive,
it's worth remembering that when these teams play,
nothing should be a surprise.
Probably the rivalry's most noteworthy moment came in 1978.
With the Eagles visiting New York,
the Giants found themselves sitting on a 17-12 lead.
31 seconds, left ball in hand, and no timeouts for Philly.
New York just needed to run out the clock,
but Giant's quarterback Joe Pisarcik botched the hand off.
The ball hit the turf
and Eagle's corner Herm Edwards scooped it up,
returning it for six.
Giants fans know this moment as the Fumble.
For the rest of us,
it's the Miracle at the Meadowlands
Nearly a decade later to the day,
these teams again found themselves vying
to win the division.
Locked in overtime, the Eagles had their game winning
field goal attempt blocked, which just allowed
for this much more dramatic scene to unfold.
Defensive end Clyde Simmons lumbered into the end zone,
which helped Philly win the tiebreak
and eventually the division.
In 1999, again in overtime,
the Giants finally got the late game magic.
Michael Strahan picked off Eagles QB Doug Pederson
and took it back 44 yards
to steal the win in front of a packed Philadelphia crowd.
And as proof to the fact this rivalry has seen it all,
they've even had a miraculous late game punt return
swing the tide.
A second year Westbrook delivered that shocking nail
in New York's coffin back in '03.
Along with a flare for dramatics,
each of these moments came at the expense of the home team.
That history has likely flashed through the minds
of the New York crowd here today.
They watched with glee
as their team sat in the driver's seat up 31-10,
looking to take the division lead late in the season.
But after the defense had done their best
to keep the Eagles quiet, late in the fourth,
Michael Vick remembered how to be Michael Vick.
Philly's comeback attempt began with one quick score.
Given the weapons available,
a 65-yard touchdown to the tight end Celek
seemed least likely.
Even less likely was Philly converting
an onside kick right after.
But when the Giants seemingly never anticipated the attempt,
a perfect bounce comfortably sailed
where only the Eagles could recover.
That left Vick with seven and a half minutes
to find two touchdowns.
He called his own number often,
covering 35 yards on one scamper
before punching it in from four yards out.
After Philly's D forced a punt, Vick again went to work.
33 yards on the ground, another 22 after that,
and with 90 seconds left, Vick found Maclin
for the game-tying score,
21 points in just over six minutes,
silencing the packed New Meadowlands.
The drive that followed might turn out
to be even more important though.
New York took over at their own 36 with all three timeouts.
1:10 remaining, New York had plenty of time
to get into field goal range for a game winner.
But on first down, incompletion.
Second down, incompletion.
They suddenly faced 3rd and 10
after just 10 seconds ticked off the clock.
When Philly sacked Manning on third down,
that insured at least one more play in regulation.
Had either of their first two pass attempts been complete
or they'd called a run, the clock could have hit zero.
Instead, we're here.
If there's any silver lining for New York,
surely a punt returner facing the wrong direction
chasing after the ball has little chance
at a miraculous return, right?
Well, let's talk about DeSean Jackson.
There are explosive players and then there's Jackson
D-Jax burst onto the scene his sophomore year at Cal.
He earned first team All-Pac-10 honors,
both as a receiver and punt returner.
He was named top returner in the nation
thanks to four punt return touchdowns.
That easily put him on the Eagles' radar,
who ahead of the 2008 draft needed some receiving help,
as well as a boost on special teams.
When Philly drafted Jackson in the second round,
his new QB recognized the talent,
but also figured no returner could fare well
if the guys around him weren't blocking.
While there's logic to that,
with Jackson it honestly might not matter.
In his first NFL game, Jackson showed that spark.
47 yards on his first career catch, a 60 yard punt return,
100+ receiving on the day,
and nearly matched that with returns.
Possibly better than advertised.
That said, in game number two,
he delivered a slightly more infamous moment.
On what should have been Jackson's first career touchdown,
after torching the Cowboys secondary,
he celebrated a couple inches early
and never got the ball across the goal line.
That big play potential swung both ways.
Later that rookie season against the Bears,
after finally notching his first professional touchdown,
he also fumbled on a punt return,
which set up the go ahead score for Chicago.
But hey, pobody's nerfect.
When a rookie makes rookie mistakes,
what matters is how they rebound
and in year number two, Jackson did more than rebound.
He tied the NFL record
for most 50+ yard touchdowns in a season.
That included a 72-yard return
and a 60-yard catch against the Giants
in a Week 14 shootout that helped Philly into the playoffs
and further derailed New York's season.
While he's continued to be electric in 2010,
today's game has been a bit of a dud for Jackson.
He was held without a catch
until the end of the third quarter and in the fourth,
on what should have been a huge play, fumbled the ball away.
The most painful part,
replay showed Jackson clearly had been touched
on his way down,
but Andy Reid never threw the challenge flag
and the Giants were set up with a short field,
where they retook their 21-point lead.
And now, when given a chance to really make an impact,
Jackson muffed the punt.
If the Giants can manage to take control of this ball,
it would squash Philadelphia's historic comeback.
New York could not just win this game,
but retake the division lead
in their quest to right the ship after disappointing a 2009.
For the Eagles, in a year already packed with storylines,
hope might be lost if they fumble away this chance.
They've made some tough decisions,
said some difficult goodbyes, but can still prove
that the team's window for contention hasn't closed.
And if there's anyone in the league
capable of making something out of nothing, it's this guy.
As the final seconds tick off the clock
at the new Meadowlands, welcome to a moment in history
- [Announcer] Jackson bobbles it
and now has to try and recover.
DeSean Jackson gets a block!
Are you kidding?
DeSean Jackson!
Still not in and now in for the touchdown, no flags!
(quiet electronic music)
- [Narrator] Hey, thanks for watching this episode
of Rewinder, presented by Honda.
If you want more, well, we've got more.
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