If asked what the worst loss of this year was, I doubt there's an Eagles fan alive that wouldn't say the home collapse against the Giants. It was a gut wrenching loss that started what looked like a very promising season off on a sour note. It was especially tough considering it was our division rival and that the 4th quarter collapse was so bad. A rare Westbrook fumble that led to points, A Burress fumble that ended up a TD, a stupid penalty that led to the tying FG... So many improbable things had to occur for that collapse to happen. It really took until the Dallas win to get over it.
Sure, the beating the Eagles put on the Giants in their house late in the year certainly gave us a measure of revenge... but only a chance to do it over is going to truly wash the bad taste of that loss out of our collective mouths. The football gods have seen fit to give that do-over. This time with the stakes much higher.
The Eagles have their one shot at redemption this Sunday. Until I see the this team defeat the Giants at home again, I'll still have that sick feeling I've had near the end of almost game this year where I think "Well, it might not be over just yet..." It's actually gotten quite ridiculous. In the game a few weeks ago, I believe the Eagles were up 2 touchdowns against the Giants with less than 2 minutes left and I still didn't feel at ease until that final second ticked off the clock.
This team really has restored my confidence in many ways. The 5 game win streak to end the season, the 3 straight division road wins all made me feel like this team can beat anyone... but I need this one win to feel completely whole this year. Redemption time is this Sunday, let's beat those Giants and make that early season loss a distant memory.