Oct 5, 2008 11:49 pm US/Eastern
Redskins Too Much For Eagles Defense In 23-17 Loss
PHILADELPHIA (AP) ―
Another road win against a division opponent has the
Washington Redskins in perfect position to make a run at the NFC East.
Clinton Portis ran for
145 yards and one touchdown, wide receiver Antwaan Randle El threw a TD pass
and the Redskins beat the Philadelphia Eagles 23-17 on Sunday.
Washington (4-1) has made it through the
first five games under new coach Jim Zorn better than anyone expected. The
Redskins went to Dallas
last week and handed the Cowboys their first loss, 26-24. They've now played all three division rivals
on the road and their next three opponents—Cleveland,
Detroit and St. Louis—entered this week with a combined
record of 1-10.
The Eagles (2-3) are
dangerously close to having to look ahead to next season. They were the only
NFC East team to miss the playoffs in 2007, finishing last for the second time
in three years. With Donovan McNabb healthy coming into this season, they were
hoping to make a run at the Super Bowl. Instead, they're buried in last place
again.
DeSean Jackson had a
68-yard punt return for a score, but the Eagles couldn't generate much on
offense. Brian Westbrook, back after missing a game with an ankle injury, had
just 84 total yards.
Meanwhile, Portis piled
up the yards against the league's best run defense. The Eagles had allowed just
53.8 per game on the ground.
Shaun Suisham kicked
three field goals beyond 40 yards, helping the Redskins overcome a 14-0
deficit. Jason Campbell threw for 176 yards and Washington's offense didn't commit a turnover
for the fifth straight game.
About the only reason
for fans to cheer came at the end of the game, when the Phillies beat the
Milwaukee Brewers to advance to the National League championship series.
Portis ran in from the
4 to give the Redskins a 23-14 lead early in the fourth quarter. Washington started the
drive at the Eagles 43 after a 28-yard punt return by Randle El and a personal
foul penalty on Tank Daniels at the end of the play.
The Eagles went nearly
30 minutes without getting a first down and had four straight three-and-outs
until finally putting together a long drive. However, they couldn't punch it in
after reaching the 2. Westbrook was stopped for no gain and then lost 3 yards,
forcing the Eagles to settle for a 23-yard field goal by David Akers that cut
it to 23-17.
Philadelphia
had problems at the goal line in a 24-20 loss at Chicago last week. The Bears stopped the
Eagles on three straight runs from the 1 late in the fourth quarter to preserve
the victory.
Washington took its first lead at 16-14 on
Randle El's 18-yard TD pass to Chris Cooley early in the third quarter.
Randle El caught a
16-yard pass on third-and-9 to keep the drive going. Portis followed with a 21-yard
run to the Eagles 37. Two plays later, Randle El took an end-around handoff,
stopped just shy of the line of scrimmage and tossed a perfect pass to a
wide-open Cooley for the score.
It was the first TD
allowed by the Eagles at home in four games, dating to last season. A former
quarterback at Indiana, Randle El has four career TD passes, including two with
the Redskins.
Down 14-0, the Redskins
chipped away behind Suisham's accurate leg. His 41-yarder put Washington on the board, and he nailed a 48-yarder
to make it 14-6 after a 15-play drive that lasted 8:19. Then he was perfect from 50 yards to get the
Redskins within 14-9 at the end of the first half.
The Eagles drove 80
yards after receiving the opening kick to take a 7-0 lead. Westbrook gained 17
yards on a screen pass on the first play and ran in from the 9 to cap the
12-play drive. McNabb converted three third-down passes to keep it going.
After the Redskins went
three-and-out, Jackson
broke one. The rookie stepped up in traffic, ran to the near side and stopped. Jackson
reversed direction, cut upfield and outraced everyone down the left sideline to
give Philadelphia
a 14-0 lead.
Jackson
returned six punts for scores during a standout career at California. He had a 60-yard return to set
up a field goal in the season opener against St. Louis.
(© 2008 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
