PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Nick Foles threw two touchdown passes, Darren Sproles ran for a score and the Philadelphia Eagles led the New York Giants 27-0 after three quarters Sunday night.
A rough night for the Giants (3-2) became worse when wide receiver Victor Cruz tore the patella tendon his right knee while leaping for a pass on fourth down from the Eagles 3. Cruz, a 2012 Pro Bowl pick, was crying and holding his hands to his face as he was carted off the field with an injury that’s expected to end his season.
Foles had 231 yards passing, LeSean McCoy had a season-high 139 yards rushing and the offense clicked from the start for Philadelphia (4-1).
The defense harassed and pressured Eli Manning often, sacking him five times in the first half and preventing New York’s upstart offense from getting on track. The Giants have won three in a row, scoring more than 30 points in each victory.
The Eagles entered with 11 offensive touchdowns and seven from their defense and special teams. But Foles and Co. didn’t need much help in this one.
Foles tossed a 15-yard scoring pass to Zach Ertz for Philadelphia’s first offensive TD in the first quarter this season. Ertz made a diving catch, dragging his feet to stay in bounds.
Foles hit a wide-open James Casey for a 26-yard TD pass to make it 17-0 in the second quarter. Casey had only one catch this season and hadn’t scored a TD since 2012 with the Texans, but the Giants bit on a play-action fake and left the third-string tight end open running down the middle.
Sproles had a 15-yard TD run to put the Eagles ahead 27-0. He left the game with a left knee injury and his return was questionable.
Foles was intercepted by Antrel Rolle inside the red zone on a poor pass off his back foot late in the second quarter. He threw another pick to Zack Bowman in the third quarter, but the Giants’ ensuing drive ended with the incomplete pass on which Cruz was injured.
McCoy had more yards rushing in the first quarter than he had in full games against Washington and San Francisco. McCoy, an All-Pro last year, had struggled this season, averaging 2.9 yards per carry. But he has more career yards rushing against the Giants than any NFL team.
The Giants were without Rashad Jennings, who entered the week as the NFL’s fifth-leading rusher. Rookie Andre Williams started for Jennings, out with a sprained left knee.
Eagles linebacker Mychal Kendricks missed his fourth straight game because of a calf injury. But linebacker DeMeco Ryans started despite being limited in practices by a groin injury.
Cody Parkey kicked field goals of 31 and 45 yards. The rookie is 12 of 13 with a pair of 51-yarders this season.
Manning was sacked only seven times in the first five games before Connor Barwin and Vinny Curry each got him twice and Trent Cole took him down once.
Wearing all-black uniforms for the first time in franchise history, the Eagles looked to stay tied with Dallas (5-1) for the lead in the NFC East.
—
AP NFL websites: www.pro32.ap.org and www.twitter.com/AP-NFL
—
Follow Rob Maaddi on Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP-RobMaaddi
Eagles lead Giants 27-0 after 3 quarters
By Shah