Eagles fall to Steelers, 16-14
PITTSBURGH -- A cold rain fell intermittently on Heinz Field. It was the second half of Eagles vs. Steelers, and the Eagles were trying to overcome another first half of mistakes.
Eagles fall to Steelers, 16-14
Rich Hofmann, Daily News Sports Columnist
PITTSBURGH -- A cold rain fell intermittently on Heinz Field. It was the second half of Eagles vs. Steelers, and the Eagles were trying to overcome another first half of mistakes.
It was a game where Michael Vick could not hold on to the ball, again. And where they couldn’t sack the quarterback, and where they trailed at the half, again. The deficit this time was 10-0, but that was just a detail. It is as if the first act of the script is written in ink now. There is nothing the Eagles can seem to do about it.
And this time, they could not overcome.
Vick led the Eagles on two second-half touchdown drives and the Eagles took a 14-13 lead in the fourth quarter. But in the end, the defense could not hold. A Shaun Suisham field goal from 34 yards with only zeroes left on the clock gave the Steelers the victory, 16-14.
Two Vick fumbles in the first half -- one of them just a yard away from scoring a touchdown -- doomed the Eagles to another afternoon of climbing out of a crater. Neither resulted in points for the Steelers, but one robbed the Eagles of points and the other just perpetuated a worrisome syndrome. It is a ridiculous way to try to make a living in the NFL, and the fact that they have been so good at it so far this season does not alter that truth.
It is too hard.
It cannot continue.
All of that said, the Eagles do make things thrilling. Down at the half, they kept coming. They scored their first touchdown with 6:32 left in the third quarter on a 15-yard touchdown pass to LeSean McCoy, a short throw that featured a devastating cutback move by McCoy that paralyzed Steelers linebacker Larry Foote.
Then, after a Steelers field goal, the Eagles put together a 17-play, 79-yard touchdown drive that ate up 8 minutes, 18 seconds. Along the way, they converted two fourth-down plays -- a gutsy fourth-and-1 from their own 31-yard line, when McCoy only gained the necessary acreage with a second effort, and another fourth-and-1 from the Steelers’ 47, when McCoy just slammed into the line for 2 yards.
The touchdown play was a 2-yard pass to tight end Brent Celek. Buried at halftime, the Eagles led by 14-13 with 6:33 left in the fourth quarter. Once again, their defense would either hold or not -- last week against the Giants’ Eli Manning, this week against the Steelers’ Ben Roethlisberger.
This time, it could not hold. They could not sack Big Ben, and the Steelers’ quarterback hung in and made just enough plays to pull out the game. But he is a good player, and he is going to make some plays. This is not a defensive issue.
This is about fumbles. It is about another slow start. When will it end? If you know the answer to that question, you know how the Eagles’ season is going to turn out.
- "Take care of business next week, go in the bye week 4-2..."
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PLEASE!! There is NO SUCH THING as a given with this team. I, for one, am still NOT sold on Castillo OR Vick. Moronweg leaves plenty to be desired in the play-calling department. Asomugha is over rated. Reid is loyal to a fault, and Limp-Wrist Lurie will NEVER make a change unless Reid himself decides to quit which I don't expect because this job funds his (considerable) hamburger stash.
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— essell - "There is NO SUCH THING as a given with this team,"
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Really, Einstein? Did you think that up all by yourself? I, for one, don't wanna hear some whiny little baby troll my post about what they're sold on or not sold on. How about this? I am sold that they will win next against the Lions, go into to the bye 4-2, get it together, win the game against the Falcons and will be 5-2 at that time.
Now go in cry your drink elsewhere...
- What was the key to the loss? Michael Vick. To paraphrase Mike Singletary,"Can't win with him. Can't do it".— essell
- Not a Vick hater. We need to see another QB. Can't keep leaving points on the field with redzone turnovers. Maybe Foles can perform better. He may be able to see the field unlike Vick. We'll never know unless he is tried.— Servo
- Sayonara Vick,Juan,Marty and Andy! There's the cure...— Onsidekick
b— Professor1982- Also...their Qb is not that good....even a boob could do well passing if they had time. I blame their success in the pass game on not giving enough pressure to their QB.— 5thstrretpast
- THE EAGLES ARE NOT JUST A GOOD FOOTBALL TEAM . OFFENSIVELY THEY ARE ZERO. THE COACH DOESN'T HAVE A GOOD GAME PLAN.— jkazongo
- the other team knows what we are going to do...Shady is still Mr. Magic. — 5thstrretpast
- Reid is a moron, worst time manager ever— EaglesinFL
- Is it me...but that announcer Joe Buck...does he have something against Philly teams? Every time he is our announcer....he trashes the Philly teams, Eagles and the Phillies. I wish Fox would replace him too...maybe Bobby April could work up there better than he does on the field.— 5thstrretpast
- Quarterback is a moron !— candidly
- When the league thinks you are a fumbler, you become a fumbler... as defenders go after the ball on every play. Shame is that Vick is throwing the ball well. Amazing how Rapesberger is both sturdy and nimble in the pocket.— bobcitydoc
- Vick is a mental midget— shawnmac
- A couple of observations from todays game.First,Vicks turnovers were huge,once again he just makes to many mistakes and compromises his teams chances of winning.As I have said since the begining of the season.This team will never reach there goal with Vick at quarterback.You can not give points away in the NFL.Espesially against a tough opponent.Secondly,was very dissapointed with the defense today.We got run over by a team ranked 30 in rush offense.On the final drive Eagles showed a complete lack of emotion and desire.They had the Steelers 1st and 20 from the 10 yard line and simply allowed them to go right down the feild very easily.Dont seem to have a leader on the defensive side of the football.I wonder if Dawkins can still play.This team is very fortunate that they are not 0-5.Next hope for a championship is the sixers.— spanish7
