An Eagles-Redskins game tends to be an untidy bit of business. History seems to demand inelegance when these two teams meet. This one was no different.
But the Eagles won, 27-24.
That's two in a row. That's a 7-4 record. I'm not going to pretend to know what it means. I'm not going to pretend to understand starting a game at home in which you are a nine-point favorite with an on-sides kick -- an on-sides that failed, spectacularly, and led to an easy Washington touchdown. I'm not going to pretend to understand how the Eagles' defense, which was murdered on third down by a Washington team down to its second tight end and its third running back, is going to hold together for the rest of the season.
The only certainty is that Donovan McNabb brought them back from a fourth-quarter deficit for the second straight week, and that David Akers made a 32-yard field goal with 1:52 left to win it, and that the Eagles' defense held twice in the fourth quarter to preserve it.
Their record identifies them as a team with a chance. Their manner of achieving that record makes you wonder. But the league has never been about style points and it is not now.
A messy 7-4 is still 7-4.