What happened?
Down by 11 in the fourth quarter, Donovan McNabb led his second straight late game comeback, this time moving the Eagles past the Washington Redskins.
The Good:
Donovan McNabb finished the game completing 21 of 35 passes for 260 yards and a touchdown, as well as an interception.
LeSean McCoy looked good, rushing the ball 17 times for 76 yards and bringing in four catches for 25 yards.
Jason Avant was the key in the fourth quarter, and he finished the game with five catches for 94 yards.
Asante Samuel picked off Jason Campbell twice, setting up two field goals by David Akers.
Leonard Weaver only carried the ball six times, but he managed to get 44 yards on those six carries.
David Akers went four for four in field goal tries on the day, including the game winner late in the fourth quarter.
The Bad:
DeSean Jackson only caught two passes for 41 yards and a touchdown, and left the game in the third quarter with a concussion.
The Eagles committed seven penalties for 60 yards.
The Ugly:
The Eagles made it to the red zone four times during the game...and only scored one touchdown.
At one point, Washington managed to convert eight of 12 third down attempts. They finished the game with eight conversions on 17 tries.
The Breakdown:
For the second straight week in a row, the Eagles were trailing late in the fourth quarter, and for the second straight week, Donovan McNabb led the Eagles on a late fourth quarter drive to push the Eagles into the win column. This week, it took not one, but two late drives, including a 90 yard drive that tied the game and a 66 yard drive that led to a game winning field goal by David Akers. For all of those people that have complained about how McNabb has played in the clutch, these last two weeks have been a breath of fresh air.
I'm not going to lie, McNabb didn't look great for most of the second half. Before the 90 yard touchdown drive, the Eagles had managed a grand total of 25 yards on four drives, and McNabb had thrown an interception on the previous drive. The defense had also been shaky in the second half, allowing the Redskins to convert third down after third down and score 14 straight points to build up an 11 point lead. However, when the chips were down, the Eagles managed to get it done again. McNabb completed three of five passes on the 90 yard drive, including two long passes to Jason Avant that put the Eagles into scoring position. He also completed the two point conversion pass to LeSean McCoy that tied the game and took the wind out of Washington's sails.
The final scoring drive of the game was a nice mix of run and pass, with McNabb only needing to throw two passes for 41 yards. The running game was solid as LeSean McCoy and Leonard Weaver managed to beat up the Redskins for 20 yards on the drive and helped eat up a lot of clock in the late part of the fourth quarter. It was refreshing to see back to back scoring drives in the fourth quarter, even if it was just against the Redskins. The Eagles needed this win, and while it wasn't the best played game in the world, they got it.
While the Eagles did manage to come away from today with a win, the defense wasn't as good as they could be. Jason Campbell was decent today, even with two interceptions by Asante Samuel. He was able to make plays with his legs, as well as his arm, and there were times when linebackers and the secondary looked out of place and lost on plays. The Redskins converted eight of their first 12 attempts at third down, and the defense struggled with several penalties as well. The pressure that rattled Campbell in the first game this year wasn't nearly as strong, and Trent Cole managed the only sack of the game, and that came on the last play of the first half. Just like the offense, though, the defense came up big when they needed to, stopping the Redskins on the drive following the Eagles' touchdown, and then finishing the Redskins on fourth down following the game winning field goal.
There is at least one game against Washington each year where the Eagles manage to lay an egg. I'm not sure why, but it happens every single year. That game happened today, only this year, the Eagles managed to come away with a win. It didn't look good at the start, with Andy Reid deciding to open the game with an onside kick, but the Eagles managed to save Andy from that bad decision. Yes, the Redskins were missing Albert Haynesworth, Clinton Portis, DeAngelo Hall and Chris Cooley, but the Eagles didn't have Stuart Bradley, Brian Westbrook, a solid offensive line and they lost DeSean Jackson with a concussion before they turned the game around. The bottom line is, when the chips were down today, the Eagles made the plays that they had to, and came away with a win. They've got three division wins so far, with the Giants and Cowboys still left. Right now, a 7-4 record is good enough for a spot in the playoffs, which is all I want.
Next week should be fun, as the Eagles head to Atlanta to take on the Falcons. Not only does the game have playoff implications, but a certain backup quarterback for the Eagles used to start for the Falcons...I wonder who that could be?
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