THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

PHILADELPHIA -- Brian Dawkins has played in all kinds of defences, seen every scheme and watched all the big stops in all the big games in 13 years with the Philadelphia Eagles.

What the Eagles did this season in defensive co-ordinator Jim Johnson's system left the Pro Bowl safety dazzled like few other times in his career. The Big Green defence just may be the best in the Andy Reid era, especially when it comes to stopping the run.

Dawkins and Asante Samuel may get the attention and accolades, but Philadelphia's run-stuffing success starts with the two men in the middle: defensive tackles Broderick Bunkley and Mike Patterson.

"This is the best run-stopping defence that I've played on since I've been here, by far," Dawkins said "That allows the whole other part of the defence to flow, when we stop the run."

Ask Vikings All-Pro running back Adrian Peterson what it's like to try and find a hole against the Eagles. Peterson led the NFL with 1,760 yards rushing this season, then was limited to only 83 yards on 20 carries last week. His numbers look even worse if one 40-yard run was tossed out.

"I don't give enough credit to Bunk and Patterson for the job that they do inside," Reid said. "I thought they had an exceptional game and they'll need to continue that for a couple of good runners that we are playing this week."

Trying to stop Peterson was tough enough for the Eagles. Trying to shut down New York's 1,000-yard rushers in Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward could be the difference between elimination or the NFC championship game. Toss in Ahmad Bradshaw and the Giants boast a backfield nearly as good as all the other ones in the NFC combined. Ward and Jacobs become only the fourth pair of halfbacks on the same team to rush for 1,000 yards apiece in the same season.

"You always want to control the running game," Patterson said. "If they have a good running game, then they can do pretty much anything. That's one of the first things of this defence is control the running game."

No doubt about that, especially checking the box score of the two games these NFC East rivals played this season. The Eagles were outgained on the ground 219-106 in New York's 36-31 win on Nov. 9. When the Eagles evened the series with a 20-14 win on Dec. 7, they ran for 140 yards to New York's 88.

The Giants, however, played the second half of the second game without Jacobs after he aggravated an injury to his left knee.

Jacobs, who missed the regular-season finale, has pronounced himself ready to go. Even if Jacobs' knee injury flared up and he missed some action on Sunday, Patterson said the Giants were still a dangerous running team.

"It makes a little bit of difference, but they've still got a good running back there," Patterson said. "They've got Ward, he's a shifty running back, so it's hard going against him. You just can't count things out just because he's going out of the game."

The Eagles were fourth in the NFL this season against the run, allowing 92.2 yards per game. They were third overall in yards per game, third against the pass and fourth in points allowed -- numbers that blow away the final stats of the 2004 team that helped the Eagles to the Super Bowl. No wonder Dawkins is quick to offer high praise for a group that hasn't allowed more than 14 points in the last five games (4-1).

Dawkins called this year's defence one of the top two he's played on.

"This is definitely a defence that can cause a havoc," Dawkins said.

So much of that havoc starts on the inside. Bunkley is the power guy, Patterson always seems to be positioned in the right spot. They've worked on the details, know how to hit their run gaps and Patterson said the two have been successful of late because how well they feed off each other's energy.

Stop the Giants running game and the Eagles just might have Bunkley and Patterson to thank for their fifth trip this decade to the NFC title game.

"Those guys are playing tremendous ball inside, they really are," Dawkins said. "The penetration that they get, being able to defeat one-on-one blocks on a consistent basis, the penetration that they get in the middle, it affords the linebackers to flow a lot faster and then we come down and assist them."