Why, that's almost as unimaginative as kicking the ball deep to start a game.
Just 3 weeks ago, the Eagles' offensive coordinator justified a pass-saturated loss to the Chargers by pointing out that the Eagles had fallen behind 14-0 . . . with more than three quarters to play.
It was not panic, he said afterward.
It was pragmatism.
The Eagles trailed by eight points yesterday with fewer than 12 minutes to play, after one of the few balls Donovan McNabb threw badly was intercepted by Washington cornerback Justin Tryon and later converted into a field goal. They trailed, 24-16, and had thrown the ball on seven of their nine third-quarter plays, failing to get a single first down.
And when McNabb's third-down pass from his 13 was picked early in the fourth quarter? Tell me you weren't bracing for another week of "Who leaves town first?"
Jason Avant got a lot of credit for saving that game yesterday and he should. Those were two ridiculous catches he made on the ensuing fourth-quarter drive, a drive that started with six consecutive passes. The Eagles moved from their 10 to Washington's 24, mostly via Avant's catches, but this, too, was queasily familiar. Getting to the red zone via the air has been a staple in both wins and losses.
Scoring once there has often been the difference between the two, and the source of civic angst over playcalling and clock-management.
On third-and-2 from the Redskins' 16, LeSean McCoy slid up the middle for 3 yards. Weaver bounced down to the 1-yard line on the very next play, tripped up just before he could extend into the end zone.
Eldra Buckley was stopped from the 1 on the next play. Washington was flagged for 12 men on the field. Buckley took another shot and didn't get in. Then McNabb floated it out of the end zone.
