Ashley Fox | Eagles really missed Westbrook

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - At some point tonight against the New York Giants, wasn't someone affiliated with the Eagles' offense going to do something? Make a catch? Break a run? Help poor Winston Justice, who looked as if he'd never pulled on a helmet?

The answer, given the 16-3 final in the Giants' favor, was no. And why not? Because the Eagles' star, their raison d'etre, was on the sideline, outfitted in sweatpants, a pair of T-shirts and a green hat.

The man the Eagles most needed to be in shoulder pads and a jersey was limited to a cheerleading role, thanks to an abdominal strain. Brian Westbrook was helpless, and the Eagles needed help. Lots of help.

If you didn't believe it before yesterday, believe it now. Westbrook is the most valuable player on this team. He is more valuable than the quarterback, more valuable than the safety, more valuable than any of those wide receivers coach Andy Reid obviously convinced himself would be better than Donté Stallworth.

Westbrook is the team. Without him, the Eagles looked lost, hopeless and hapless. Without him, they had no shot against one of the worst defenses in the league. Without him, they couldn't move the ball, couldn't get into the red zone, couldn't put together anything that resembled a sustained drive.

Sure, there were lots of problems. In his first NFL start, Justice was way overmatched, constantly getting abused by Osi Umenyiora, Mathias Kiwanuka, and whomever else the Giants sent his way. It's hard to win when your offensive line gives up an NFL-record 12 sacks, putting the quarterback in danger of getting injured.

David Akers missed a field goal. The Eagles committed 15 penalties for 132 yards. All the way around, there were problems associated with poor teams, teams that don't reach the playoffs, teams that don't win eight games.

The Eagles are 1-3, and the only way they will pull themselves out of it is if they get back their version of Jimmy Rollins. Westbrook drives this team. He hoists it on his back and says, "Come with me. I'll show you the way." Without him, the Eagles are lost. There is nowhere to go.

The good news is that Westbrook's abdominal strain should be healed by the next game, Oct. 14 against the New York Jets. Eagles management really had thought Westbrook would be able to play. He made the trip to North Jersey on Saturday afternoon, and the plan was for the trainers to work on him that night, then to work him out yesterday morning.

But by the time the Eagles got to their hotel, it was clear Westbrook was in too much pain. He had gotten worse as the week progressed, not better, and the treatment options weren't going to be sufficient. If he had played, it wouldn't have been for long. A series, maybe two. So the decision was made to sit him, and apparently he wasn't surprised.

Correll Buckhalter got the start. Buckhalter is a decent No. 2. He played as hard as he could, gaining 103 yards on 17 carries, with a team-high four catches for 35 yards - an effort that surely will get lost in the aftermath of a bitter divisional loss.

But Buckhalter isn't the elusive runner Westbrook is. Neither he nor Reno Mahe, who played a couple of downs in the backfield, can pass-protect like Westbrook. And Buckhalter isn't the sure-handed receiver Westbrook is.

Few players have Westbrook's diverse skill set. It isn't a rip on Buckhalter. It's a testament to how good No. 36 is.

As for the Eagles?

Boring. Inefficient. Beatable. Less than average.

And now, they are 1-3 heading into their bye week. Mercifully, the euphoria over the Phillies' first playoff appearance since 1993 will divert some attention away while the players scatter for locations unknown.

But this truth remains - the Eagles are flawed, and in a sizable hole in the NFC East. While the Cowboys haven't lost in four tries, the Eagles have three losses, including two to division opponents. It's early still, but at some point, you have to wonder whether the Eagles are the team that lost to the Giants by 13 points last night, or whether they are the team that put 56 points on the board against Detroit.

The guess here is somewhere in between, as long as Westbrook is available. And if he's not? It's going to be a long season.

After Umenyiora crushed Justice for his sixth sack of McNabb and the Giants' 12th overall, Westbrook walked onto the field as McNabb pulled himself off of it. He met McNabb as he gingerly walked off the field, and put his arm around the quarterback's waist, as if to say, "Sorry I wasn't there for you, big guy."

It was the most help McNabb had received all night.