Eagles Overwhelm Panthers, But Suffer a Bad Break in the End

On a day that the Eagles defense looked like a throw back to the terrorizing Buddy Ryan units led by Reggie White, the buzz was dampened when Donovan McNabb writhed in pain with a cracked rib. The defense in midnight green collected turnovers like they were beads at Mardi Gras, turning an early deficit into a dominating 38-10 win by early in the second half.

McNabb was injured in the third quarter when he was speared in the back after he fell to the end zone turf at the end of a 3-yard touchdown scramble that stretched their lead to 28 points. Although no penalty was assessed, replays showed that the hit by Damione Lewis was late and could have been avoided. Ironically, the play occurred in the exact spot where the Eagles had been given a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for a moderate display of joy after a Brent Celek touchdown catch about an hour earlier. The NFL may need to re-examine its priorities.

The day started with a Panthers drive that lasted more than 8 minutes and culminated with an 11-yard DeAngelo Williams touchdown run. The stadium was rocking and it appeared that the Eagles were going to have a tough challenge in the season opener. For the Panthers, it quickly started to unravel from there and you could sense both the players and crowd going flat. Jake Delhomme was mercifully pulled in the third quarter after committing five turnovers, while being subjected to relentless pressure after the opening drive.

Conversely, on the Eagles side, the defense forced a flurry of turnovers, keyed by their fierce pass rush. On the day, they collected 5 interceptions, 2 fumble recoveries and a touchdown by Victor Abiamiri. Trent Cole (who forced the fumble that resulted in the touchdown) and Darren Howard led the pass rush, repeatedly disrupting Panther quarterbacks and setting up opportunities for the secondary.

Another game turning play occurred early in the second quarter when DeSean Jackson retreated to his own 15 yard line to field a punt, and then weaved through Panther defenders and raced up the left sideline for an 85-yard touchdown. This, along with Abiamiri's score, killed the buzz in the stadium and seemed to put the Panthers back on their heels the rest of the game. Many fans left at half time and throughout the third quarter as it seemed quite evident that the Eagles were not going to relinquish control of the game.

The dominating play of the defense and special teams allowed the Eagles offense to focus on ball control and taking time off the clock. They only accumulated 85 yards passing on the day, but tallied 185 yards on the ground. Brian Westbrook appeared healthy, showing elusiveness and quickness as he broke runs to the outside. LeSean McCoy also ran well in his rookie debut and should get even better as he watches Westbrook turn runs north and south. A less noticed, but important aspect of the game, was the strong play of Winston Justice, who handled Julius Peppers all day and provided strong lead blocking on running plays.

It remains to be seen what will happen with McNabb and the Eagles quarterback situation overall. With home games against the Saints and Chiefs, and then a week four bye, it is conceivable that the team will try to allow McNabb to heal over that time. Kevin Kolb will likely get the start next Sunday, but with Michael Vick eligible the following week, various scenarios could play out. It could be the beginning of quarterback controversies, or possibly the opposite, solidifying McNabb as the starter and leader.

Phillies End August By Extending Lead to 8 Games

Joe Blanton and Jairr Jurrjens engaged in a pitching duel last evening at Citizen's Bank Park. In the end, the Phillies defense and Carlos Ruiz's big night at the plate (3-3 with 2 doubles) allowed them to prevail 3-2.

The Braves jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the 1st inning when Martin Prado homered to left. After that, both pitchers exchanged zeroes until Chase Utley tied the score in the bottom of the 4th with a line shot into the right field stands. The score remained tied at 1 until the 7th inning when Ruiz doubled home Raul Ibanez and Pedro Feliz after a throwing error by Chipper Jones put them in scoring position.

Atlanta mounted a threat in the 8th off Ryan Madson, who came on in relief of Blanton. Madson plunked Matt Diaz with a pitch, before singles by Prado and Jones made it 3-2. Charlie Manuel summoned Scott Eyre to try to work out of the two on, no out mess. Eyre induced Brian McCann to hit a sharp grounder to Utley, who flipped to Jimmy Rollins for the force at second. Rollins then reeled around and fired to Feliz to cut down Prado. Eyre completed the escape by getting Garrett Anderson to ground out.

Brad Lidge made his way in from the pen in hope of earning his second save of the series. Like Friday night, he threw a 1-2-3 inning, recording the last out on a strikeout. Overall, it was a solid win that highlighted how the Phillies superior defense wins games.

Phillies Hand Game to Braves, But Show Some Positive Signs

Yesterday, the Phillies handed a game to the Atlanta Braves that they almost surely should have won. This type of loss is especially stinging considering that simple execution on a number of occasions was likely the difference between victory and defeat. A couple glimmers of hope appeared, though, that might translate into success down the road.

After playing stellar defense that saved several runs over the first two games of the series to that point, the top defensive team in the National League let down at the most inopportune moment. Protecting a 1 run lead that should have been wider if not for squandering earlier run scoring opportunities, the Phillies fielding collapsed. With Brad Lidge on the mound in an attempt to record back-to-back saves, Chase Utley whiffed on a groundball that was ruled a hit, but a play that he makes 99 out of 100 times. Lidge himself compunded the situation by first bobbling a bunt (on which he may have potentially been able to cut down the runner at second), then throwing the ball into right field. It went in the books as a double error, allowed the tying run to score and put the winning run on third with no outs. After walking the next two batters (intentionally and semi-intentially) and striking out Ryan Church, Omar Infante bounced a weak chopper into left field for the game winner.

This was particularly painful considering that the Phillies were 1 for 12 with runners in scoring position, twice stranded runners on third with no outs and plated only one run in the 7th on a homer and two doubles. The inability to drive a flyball to the outfield or simply put balls into play kept them from providing a greater margin of error to their bullpen- and it cost them the game.

Amidst the frustration of losing, however, were a few positive signs. Until the last inning collapse, the defense continued to prove that it is integral to the team's success as Shane Victorino, Jayson Werth, Utley, Jimmy Rollins and Pedro Feliz made plays that kept runs off the board. Raul Ibanez showed signs of returning to his pre-injury form by ripping a couple doubles, the latter falling a few feet short of leaving the park. Cole Hamels battled to hold the Braves to 2 runs on 3 hits despite still not regaining his command. Lastly, although he took the loss and blew his 8th save of the season, Lidge looked more like the 2008 version. He had very good velocity and sharper break on his slider. Overall, he struck out Church with the bases loaded and the Braves did not hit the ball hard.

Lets hope these signs turn into trends, the frustrating loss is a catalyst to better execution in scratching out runs and Lidge sees the glass half full. Yesterday's game goes in the ledger as a loss, but building on the positive could lead to a good run.