Quick, without thinking about your answer, what was your favorite Eagles game last season?
As long as you stayed until the end or didn't change the channel, you probably answered The Miracle at the New Meadowlands. Down 21 with little more than eight minutes to play, Michael Vick engineered perhaps the most incredible comeback in Birds history, capped by DeSean Jackson's 65-yard punt return touchdown as time expired. It was exciting, it was unbelievable... and now it's the NFL's game of the year.
With nothing much better to do these days while everybody waits for the the owners and players to get their heads out of their asses--and a bit of good news on that front, as the framework for a new CBA could arrive within two weeks--NFL.com's Elliot Harrison has been ranking the top 20 most memorable games of 2010, and we've arrived at number one.
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The "Miracle at New Meadowlands" featured a 21-point comeback, some superhuman Vick runs in a fight for the NFC East title and maybe the most memorable punt return in NFL history.
When deciding which game would ultimately be ranked as the top overall, I couldn't ignore the one glaring fact this Eagles-Giants game carried that the others didn't: Everyone remembers this game, and will for years to come.
It's difficult to argue with his rationale. Nobody is going to forget this finish any time soon, least of all Eagles fans. And looking back on it now, this was undoubtedly the high point of last season, a moment that brought a divided fanbase together, at least for one week.
As the season's best game though, I think it leaves a little something to be desired actually. It wasn't the best four quarters per se, just the best eight minutes, and that's something else entirely.
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The Eagles somehow pulling out a W masked just how miserable the rest of the day was. Vick looked terrible most of the afternoon, and the defense couldn't cover anything that moved. By the time the third quarter rolled around, I had set out to work on a scathing recap of some of the worst football we had witnessed all season up to that point. It wasn't until Riley Cooper recovered a surprise onside kick could we really start entertaining the notion of a comeback.
To put it another way, I wouldn't want to sit down and watch the entire thing over again.
It was certainly memorable though, and it's always fun to poke fun at the Giants, who have now dropped six consecutive meetings against the Eagles. Check out Harrison's breakdown of the action below, complete with video.
>> No. 1: Doesn't get better than 'Miracle at New Meadowlands' [NFL.com]