Posted on 12/06/2004 9:03:15 AM PST by Libertarian4Bush
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- Donovan McNabb usually puts up these numbers playing video games.
McNabb threw a career-high five touchdown passes in the first half and finished with a team-record 464 yards passing, leading the Philadelphia Eagles to a 47-17 victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.
Brian Westbrook had 11 catches for 156 yards and three TDs and Terrell Owens caught eight passes for 161 yards and one score. McNabb set a team record by completing his first 14 passes and finished 32-of-43.
"Statistically, it felt like playing a video game," McNabb said. "We were clicking on all cylinders. We spread the ball around. Everyone contributed. We sent that message out that week in and week out we come ready to play."
Meanwhile, Brett Favre threw two interceptions that led to Philadelphia's first two scores. His streak of games with a TD pass was snapped at 37, second in NFL history to Johnny Unitas' 47 straight.
The four-time NFC East champion Eagles (11-1) matched the best start in team history. They have won nine games by a double-digit margin and hold a two-game lead over Atlanta for first place in the conference.
Since losing to Pittsburgh 27-3 last month, the Eagles have won four in a row by at least 20 points, outscoring their opponents 151-50.
"I don't think there's any defense that can stop us," Westbrook said. "We can only stop ourselves with penalties and mistakes."
The Packers (7-5) snapped a six-game winning streak, but remained tied with Minnesota for first place in the NFC North.
"We can throw this one in the recycle bin," Favre said. "We didn't play very well. We didn't give much of an effort."
A rematch of a thrilling playoff game 11 months ago, this one never lived up to its hype. The Eagles scored four TDs in the second quarter, led 35-3 at halftime and rested most of their starters with 8:18 left.
The Packers were 72 seconds away from going to the NFC championship game last January, before the Eagles converted a fourth-and-26, tied the game in regulation and won in overtime. Philadelphia then lost the NFC title game for the third straight year, while Green Bay fired its defensive coordinator and agonized over the loss throughout the offseason.
For one quarter, this game was competitive.
McNabb lost a fumble inside Green Bay's 25 on Philadelphia's opening possession, but Favre was intercepted by Brian Dawkins on the ensuing drive.
Three plays later, McNabb and Owens connected on a 41-yard catch-and-run TD. Owens caught the ball at the 26, streaked down the left sideline, broke one tackle and leaped into the end zone for his 14th touchdown, breaking the team's single-season record.
"I just thank God for Donovan. It's special. I can't put into words what he means to me," Owens said.
Favre drove the Packers to Philadelphia's 15 early in the second quarter, but was intercepted by Sheldon Brown at the 7. McNabb then led the Eagles 93 yards, tossing a 9-yard pass to Westbrook for a 14-0 lead.
McNabb threw a 41-yard TD pass to Westbrook on Philadelphia's next drive, giving the Eagles a 21-0 lead. McNabb executed a perfect play-fake to fullback Josh Parry, who has no carries this season, and hit a wide-open Westbrook in the flat.
McNabb's 6-yard pass to L.J. Smith gave the Eagles a 28-0 lead, and his 12-yard toss to Westbrook made it 35-0 in the second quarter.
David Akers kicked four field goals in the second half.
Packers backup quarterback Craig Nall threw TD passes of 1 yard to William Henderson and 17 yards to Javon Walker in the fourth quarter.
Favre finished 14-of-29 for 131 yards. Running back Ahman Green wasn't a factor in his first game after sitting out with bruised ribs last week.
Eagles coach Andy Reid broke Greasy Neale's franchise record with his 67th win in his sixth season in Philadelphia.
"We're certainly not as bad as we looked," Packers coach Mike Sherman said. "We're a lot better than we played."
Game notes The 1949 Eagles finished 11-1, before winning the NFL championship. They started 11-1 in 1980, finished 12-4 and lost the Super Bowl. ... Green Bay hasn't won in Philadelphia since 1962, losing seven straight. ... McNabb has a career-high 28 TDs passes this season. ... Owens became the first Eagles player to reach 1,000 yards receiving since Irving Fryar in 1997. He broke the team record with his seventh 100-yard game. ... Favre's record streak of starts moved to 220, counting playoffs, and is almost 100 more than Ron Jaworski's previous NFL quarterback mark of 123. ... Favre has thrown seven picks in his last five games
Oh yeah. SOME Eagles fans act on FR like they do in the stands - certainly not all of them, but there are a few here... It's sad, too.
Ah well, I normally ry to be classy when dealing with sports issues, but I think in February when some otehr team besides the Eagles wins the Super Bowl, I may just rub it in a little bit.
I'm done being nice about it ;0)
The NFC, as a whole, completely sucks this year.
Exactly my point. The NFC is horrible this year, and a really good AFC team is going to lose out because of it.
Fly Eagles Fly on the road to victory!!!!!
LMAO off at the overrated Brett Favre buttkissing appearing in the sportsmedia and sadly, among Freepers.
Rush Limbaugh was an idiot and Brett Favre is the overrated one, not McNabb!!
It should be noted that Brian Westbrook cracked his ribs against the Browns, missed the next game against Baltimore entirely and didn't start against the Steelers (he got only 6 carries in the game while still nursing the rib injury).
The Eagles are a completely different team when Westbrook is healthy. Just ask the Packers.
When Rush made his comments, they were accurate. McNabb was somewhat over-rated and was in the middle of the worse stretch of football since he entered the league.
Since the controversy, Donovan's been nothing short of sensational. Rush has said as much himself.
I agree, the Eagles will live or die based on their running game. McNabb, more than most QBs, really does need to have the threat of a running game to be more effective. If a defense can shut down the Eagles running game, they are much more vulnerable, and I think inevitably in the playoffs, a defense will shut down their running game.
The Steelers, Patriots, and Chargers all have this capability -- the Jaguars and Ravens do too, to a lesser extent. The Colts wouldn't be able to do that, though it robably would make for the highest scoring Super Bowl ever.
The strenght of schedule part of the schedule isn't that big a deal. It's just 2 out of the 16 games, for the Jets that's San Diego and Houston both wins, but San Diego is good. I know people like to make a big deal out of that, but 14 of a team's games are against the same teams as everybody else in their division. Now the AFC East drew the NFC West which is probably the most disarrayed division this year.
But unlike NFC teams this year the Jets do face good competition, two games against New England ensures that. I'm not one to say that because of the schedule they're doomed, but it must be pointed out that a large part of the NFC's long dominance of the Super Bowl can be attributed to AFC teams just not facing that level of competition in the regular season. I think at least 5 of those games could have been won by the AFC team had their season actually challened them and allowed them to develop better.
There's a lot of stuff that can cause skewed records, especially in this "any given Sunday" league we have today. Just look at the boxscores for Jacksonville this year, any one of their games could have gone the other way, they're really 4 plays from being 10-2 this year, or 6 plays from being 0-12.
But that's what makes sports fun.
Good points.. My wife is convinced her beloved Bills will get in this year..the schedule seems to favor them. And the NFC..well, I think we might go to the 5th tiebreaking factor here..
The Bills are in the hunt, but I don't think 10-6 is going to cut it. And Pitt really needs to win out unless the Pats drop one, so 9-7 is more likely.
Last year it almost went to the coin toss (10th tie-breaker), there was a scenario going into the last week that would have forced that. Crazy stuff.
Shutting down the Eagle running attack was a lot easier to do when a defense could single-cover the Eagle wide receivers. I'm not a big Terrell Owens fan, but I have to give him his due, nobody can cover this guy all day without a lot of help.
The Packers did essentially shut down the Eagles' running game ysterday. What they didn't do was shut down Brian Westbrook.
Remember, this is a pass-first team that lost it's co-starter at RB in training camp (Buckhalter), then went on to lose its top three guards (Andrews, Mayberry and Hicks) and arguably the best blocking fullback in the league (Jon Ritchie). They haven't been relying heavily on the run this year. What they have been getting is terrific production out of Westbrook as a receiver.
So, stopping "the run" isn't so much the goal when playing the Eagles as is stopping "the running back". And that's easier said than done.
Exactly. Now you split TO out to one side with Westbrook as the Slot Receiver. What do you do? Yesterday the Pack was attempting to guard Westbrook with either a Linebacker or a Safety. We saw the results.
So far, McNabb hasn't shown that he can win the big ones.
You watch, the libs will be pulling overtly and extra hard for the Eagles at playoff time, just so they can use the performance to reignite the Rush controversy. Liberals specialize in kicking a guy harder when he's having some problems. It's how they show their compassion.
But IF the Eagles win, it will be as much because of all teh other players, like that child T.O., than because of McNabb.
"Well, considering he did it voluntarily, and wasn't dragged kicking and screaming to rehab or court-ordered into rehab because of criminal probes.."
I agree. Brett Favre is head and shoulders above Rush Limbaugh.
yeah, because any player who can't win it all by himself must be overrated. about 20 years ago, a guy named julius erving played ball here. as great as he was, it took moses malone to push the team over the top. didn't make the Doc any less great.
yeah, because any player who can't win it all by himself must be overrated. about 20 years ago, a guy named julius erving played ball here. as great as he was, it took moses malone to push the team over the top. didn't make the Doc any less great.
I wonder what Rush Limbaugh has to say?
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