--The Eagles are not happy with the league for scheduling their game against the Saints on Saturday night. Of the eight teams that will be playing this weekend, the Eagles are the only one being asked to play on short rest. Their first-round game against the New York Giants was on Sunday. Last week's other Sunday winner, the New England Patriots, isn't playing until Sunday. The Eagles were told by league officials that the reason their game was put in the Saturday night slot was because they didn't want the Chicago Bears to play consecutive home games at night in a cold-weather city and an outdoor stadium. The Bears played their final regular-season game against Green Bay at night, then had a first-round bye. Coach Andy Reid no doubt will use the league snub as motivation against the Saints. "We're not too worried about the short week," Reid said. "Those things happen, and we've been in that situation before. You just don't worry about that. There aren't a lot of teams playing right now. You work your tail off and then go down there and give it your best shot."

--One of the hardest things defensive coordinator Jim Johnson has had to do this season was bench Pro Bowl strong safety Mike Lewis. He replaced Lewis after the Eagles' Week 6 loss to the New Orleans Saints, in which he got beat on a double-move by Joe Horn for a game-tying 48-yard touchdown catch. A week earlier, he also got beat on a double move by the Cowboys' Terry Glenn late in the game and had to commit a pass interference penalty to prevent a touchdown. Johnson replaced Lewis with second-year man Sean Considine. "Mike is a great safety, but Sean all of a sudden just fit more of what we were doing, the coverage we were playing," he said, referring to the two-deep coverage the Eagles have used a lot this season. "It was a hard thing to do. Mike's a great kid. He's a great team player. He's never said anything about it, but I know it was disappointing. We just were playing more two-deep and that ... Mike's more of a strong safety in the box. He's one of the better ones in the box." Johnson suggested Lewis was having confidence problems at the time of his demotion. Lewis said that's not true, even though his tentative play in coverage clearly showed that. "As a DB, you're going to give up some plays. Things are going to happen in the game. You've got to put those things behind you as quickly as possible. A lot has been said about me losing confidence. That wasn't the case. It's just one of those things. It happens."

--The Giants' defense wasn't the only thing Brian Westbrook had to overcome last week when he rushed for a career-high 141 yards. He also had to overcome a bad case of the runs, which had him making frequent trips to the bathroom during the game. "He's done that all year, and when Donovan (McNabb) got hurt, he took it up even another notch," coach Andy Reid said. "I know there were times Sunday when he was hurting, and it was all he could do to stay out there and focus in on what he had to do. He doesn't say much, but he's a tough nut."

--Right tackle Jon Runyan, who has had one of the best seasons of his career, was the guy Westbrook ran behind Sunday in the Eagles' game-winning drive, which ended with a 38-yard field goal by David Akers with no time left on the clock. The 33-year-old Runyan clearly deserved to make the Pro Bowl this season, but he's not particularly popular among the league's defensive players, He showed why earlier in the game when he leveled Giants defensive tackle Barry Cofield with a hit after the whistle. Asked for his thoughts on failing to make the Pro Bowl yet again, Runyan said it was "comical."

QUOTE TO NOTE
"We're not too worried about the short week. We've been in that situation before. You don't worry about it. You take care of the noise. You put a little time and effort and concentration into that and we'll do that. And you go out and play." -- Eagles coach Andy Reid on playing the Saints in New Orleans on a short week.

BY THE NUMBERS
The Eagles have given up first-possession scores in 9 of their 17 games this season, including 5 of their 6 losses.

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