EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.Steve Smith entered Sundays win over the Giants with five catches but no touchdowns.
Smith scored his first touchdown of the season late in the second quarter, an easy 14-yard reception that gave the Eagles a 10-0 lead.
It was a regular standard drag route, and I think they got lost in coverage because I caught it and nobody was around, Smith said.
It was the only catch of the game for Smith, who spent his first four NFL seasons with the Giants before signing with the Eagles this summer.
Oh man, its a great feeling, he said. Its the cherry on top of the winto be able to make a play and contributeand especially against my old team.
Riley Cooper entered Sundays game with nary a catch this season.
Cooper was Vince Youngs favorite target but had a see-saw game.
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In the first quarter, the second-year pro was flagged for offensive pass interference, negating a 14-yard reception by Jason Avant. In the third quarter, Young lobbed the ball to Coopermissing a wide open Chad Halland Aaron Ross picked it off.
That was all me, said Cooper, who filled in for an injured Jeremy Maclin. Vince put it up for me to make a play, and I looked backI didnt even see the ball because I guess it was caught in the light. So I didnt even know he threw it to me. If I would have known, and if I would have saw it, then I would have gone up and got it. Its just one of those things I was pissed about, but I was glad I could redeem myself.
That came late in the fourth quarter. Young found him in the middle of the end zone for an eight-yard score, which proved to be the game-winner.
I was the first read, Cooper said. It was just a slant from the inside. It was off coverage, and he was head up, and I just stuck him off the top and Vince put it right there.
He was targeted a team-high 12 times and finished with five catches for 75 yardsboth career-highs.
It definitely helped, Cooper said of the plethora of passes his way. I think he has a lot of confidence in me and Im glad he does. He kept coming to me. He kept putting the ball up for me to make a play and go up and get it, and that means a lot.
E-mail Andy Schwartz at aschwartz@comcastsportsnet.com.