10 observations: Eagles- Steelers
Before we get to my 10 observations, a few notes:
First off,
columnist Ashley Fox will be on for
» READ MORE: a live chat Monday at noon
where she'll take your questions about the Eagles' 15-6 win.
Also, don't forget to
» READ MORE: grade the Eagles
. I'll have the results in a blog post some time Monday.
And finally, be sure to check out
» READ MORE: philly.com's Eagles section
. The fine folks from
and
will have complete coverage from the game, including news on the team's injuries.
Now the observations. As always, feel free to chime in with your own:
1. Here's what happened when
dropped back to pass in the second quarter: sack, sack, 7-yard completion, sack, sack, sack, interception, 8-yard completion, sack, 6-yard gain, incompletion. Of the 11 times he dropped back, Roethlisberger was sacked six times and threw an interception. The story of this game was easy to identify -- the Eagles' defense pressuring Big Ben all game. In all, nine sacks for the Birds.
2.
did his part in helping the Eagles hang on. He pinned the Steelers inside their own 10-yard line twice in the fourth quarter. And on his only other attempt in the quarter, he booted a 64-yard beauty. The Eagles' defense obviously did its part, but it sure helps when Roethlisberger and company were feeling the pressure of being near their own end zone.
3. The optimist says:
4. The pessimist says:
5. How about the run defense? The Eagles limited Pittsburgh to 33 rushing yards on 19 attempts, a 1.7 average.
had averaged 4.6 yards per carry and 121.5 yards in the first two games. In Week 2, the Eagles held Dallas to 68 yards and 2.8 yards per carry. And in Week 1, the Rams managed just 36 yards and 2.4 yards per carry.
6. Rich Hofmann said it far better than I ever could
» READ MORE: in his post-game blog
, but every Eagles fan is feeling great for
today. What a play to seal the game and force a Roethlisberger fumble in the fourth quarter.
7. I wish I would have written down the time, but there was a point in the second half (maybe around 6:30 p.m.?) when this could have turned out to be a disastrous Sunday for Philadelphia sports fans. My Dad and I set up two TVs so we could keep an eye on the Phils while I hosted the Eagles chat. There was a point where the Phillies were clinging to a one-run lead in the seventh inning and the Marlins had the bases loaded. Around that same time, the Eagles' offense continued to struggle, and most were thinking it was only a matter of time until the Steelers got the one big score they needed. Fortunately,
got out of the jam for the Phils, and the Birds' defense had enough for the Eagles to come out on top.
8. Last week the Eagles’ defense allowed five plays of 20 yards or more. This week? Just one. And it came late in the fourth quarter on a 21-yard completion from
to
.
9.
went nuts about it, and I have to agree with him. With about a minute left in the fourth quarter, the Steelers had a fourth-and-10 at the Eagles’ 22-yard line. They were down by nine points, meaning they needed a field goal and touchdown to win. Rather than kick the field goal, go for the onside kick and then try for the touchdown, the Steelers went for it on fourth down. I don’t get it. You know you need two scores anyway. Why not get the three points and then take your chances?
had to have been asked about this after the game, I’m sure.
10. My favorite part of the live blog (other than several readers encouraging me to drink to deal with the stress of watching both the Phils and the Eagles) was this comment from Dan when the Eagles’ offense took over after the Roethlisberger fumble:
Dan was obviously referencing last week's fumble between McNabb and Westbrook against the Cowboys. Literally the next play after his comment, the Eagles ran a real end around to
. He gained 1 yard before running out of bounds and stopping the clock. Amazing timing.