Westbrook's big day helps Eagles defeat Falcons, 27-14

UNTIL YESTERDAY, injuries seemed to have locked away Brian Westbrook's most dazzling, dominant "A" game, holding it hostage somewhere, perhaps bound and gagged and stuffed into a trunk alongside Ryan Howard's swing.

They both broke out.

Westbrook's career-best 167 yards rushing, on 22 carries, and his six catches for 42 more yards propelled the Eagles past the Atlanta Falcons, 27-14, with late help from referee Jerome Boger's shaky-looking officiating crew.

The All-Pro version of Westbrook, who is finally more or less healthy, showed up at Lincoln Financial Field just in time for the Eagles to extend their record in the week following the bye to 10-0 under Andy Reid, who achieved his 100th career victory.

On the game's pivotal sequence, Boger ruled that Falcons returner Adam Jennings touched a Sav Rocca punt before trying to back away from it. The ball then was plucked in stride by the Eagles' Akeem Jordan, who steamed into the end zone; alas, "muffs" cannot be advanced. On replays, though Jennings' moving right hand was blurred; it seemed very unlikely he had touched the ball. But NFL rules created a sort of perfect storm for the Falcons - with 2 minutes and 22 seconds remaining in the game, they were outside the final-2-minutes framework for automatic review. And Atlanta coach Mike Smith had used his final two timeouts during the previous sequence, trying to save clock, so he was not allowed to challenge. (And yes, you could second-guess Smith's decision to take that last timeout on fourth down, with his team set to get the ball back before the 2-minute warning regardless.)

The Eagles got the ball at the Falcons' 37. Two plays later, Westbrook danced through a desperate Atlanta blitz gamble for the touchdown that set the final score. Atlanta had driven for a touchdown, clawing within 20-14, on its previous drive; had the Falcons gotten the ball back with more than 2 minutes left, in decent field position, we might be throwing around phrases like "memorable debacle" this morning instead of phrases like "fortunate break."

"He thought he saw the ball touch the return man's hands, so that's the call that was made," Smith said afterward. He added that, "I don't think you can say there is one play in a football game that makes the difference."

"I'm not going to say I don't feel fortunate," Reid said. "But saying that means that the officials weren't right, and I'm not going to say that. I thought it was a good call."

Jordan said he saw Jennings "coming up to field the ball, the ball bouncing and hitting his hand."

Asked if he absolutely knew the ball hit Jennings, or if he grabbed it just in case it had, Jordan said: "I was grabbing it in case."

Jennings said he didn't feel he touched the ball.

"The official saw something different on the play," Jennings said. "I respect the call the official made."

Anyway, that whole debate is more a matter for the Atlanta-area papers this morning. The Eagles are 4-3, and have won successive games for the first time this season, both this and the San Francisco victory just before the bye coming within the NFC. They finally have their top weapon working smoothly and definitely are doing some things right, offensively and defensively, though they made yesterday's game much closer than it needed to be by once again being unable to convert short-yardage situations at critical times.

Reid referenced "plenty of good things, but plenty of things we can work on."

Westbrook noted that "even in wins, there's things you can get better at." He was denied on a second-and-goal run from the Falcons' 2, then on the overused shovel pass from the 1, on the sequence before the Falcons clicked for their final touchdown. Westbrook seemed to have reached the ball over the goal line before his body touched the ground on the second-down run, but he said Boger told him he was ruled down.

Had the Eagles added a touchdown there, instead of an 18-yard David Akers field goal, the home team wouldn't have needed a lucky call to hold on. The same can be said for the pitch to the left on which Westbrook was ruled to have been stopped for no gain, on third and 1 from the Eagles' 26, the play just before the muffed punt. (Replays there seemed to show Westbrook might have gotten a bad spot, though Reid said the analysis he got from upstairs didn't lead him to challenge.)

The Eagles ran for 192 yards, including 25 yards worth of spry, clutch scampers from McNabb, who fought through temporarily blurred vision caused by a Keith Brooking finger-poke in the eye. They threw for 253, while shutting down Michael Turner (17 carries, 58 yards), who came into the game as the NFL's third-leading rusher. Though Falcons rookie quarterback Matt Ryan, from Penn Charter High, was valiant in his first NFL return to his hometown (23-for-44, 277 yards, two TDs), Eagles safety Brian Dawkins noted that the Birds took Ryan out of his comfort zone by stuffing the run, forcing Ryan to make some throws he'd like to have back. Those would include a pair of picks, the second in the end zone by Lito Sheppard just as the Falcons seemed poised to score a third-quarter touchdown.

"Their offense is predicated on the run, and we made 'em kind of one-dimensional," Dawkins said. He added that since Ryan is a rookie, some of the things the Falcons do in the passing game are predictable right now, allowing savvy veterans to jump routes, as Asante Samuel did for the first interception yesterday.

"Once they unload the playbook on [Ryan], he's going to be a good one," Dawkins said.

Dawkins was glad to finally see Westbrook break loose, as was everyone in the winning locker room.

"I know how frustrating it's been for him, being injured," Dawkins said. Westbrook has missed time with ankle and rib injuries, playing only one game - the Oct. 5 loss to Washington, in which he fractured ribs on the first series - since Sept. 21.

"That's who he is and who I've always depended on him to be," Dawkins said of Westbrook, whose 209 yards from scrimmage were the third-highest total of his career. Westbrook became the third Eagles rusher to surpass 5,000 yards, behind Wilbert Montgomery (6,538) and Steve Van Buren (5,860). In the franchise record books, he trails only that same duo in rushing touchdowns, with 33, and in career 100-yard games, with 18.

"I felt really good. I'm blessed to be back. It feels good to be back," Westbrook said. He underscored the importance of getting on a roll, going to Seattle and winning next week before coming home to face the 6-1 Giants.

"He was ready," center Jamaal Jackson said of Westbrook, who made that clear before the game, teammates said.

"Brian Westbrook, he's one of those guys, he's just, 'Do your job.' That's all he's going to say," Jackson said. "He's going to get fired up saying it, saying some words I can't say on TV, but when you need some fire kicked into you, he's the guy to give it to you."

The Eagles had no rhythm early and trailed 7-0 in the second quarter, but they clicked into gear and were up 10-7 by the half and 17-7 after their first drive of the third quarter. Westbrook scored that touchdown on an amazing 16-yard run, on which he ducked a Lawyer Milloy tackle, then ran away from Domonique Foxworth and Michael Boley.

McNabb was high and wide early on but seemed to settle down after getting poked in the eye. (Let's not ponder cause and effect too long there.)

"I feel like I went a couple rounds," said McNabb (19-for-34, 253 yards), who wore sunglasses to his postgame news conference.

The Eagles didn't get much pressure on Ryan early - the one time they did, Trent Cole drew a roughing call on what seemed to be a textbook hit, just as Ryan released the ball - but that changed as the Falcons' deficit grew, and after Atlanta backup left tackle Todd Weiner joined normal starter Sam Baker on the sideline with a knee injury, leaving Ryan's blindside in the care of Quinn Ojinnaka.

Bottom line: The Eagles were lucky late, but the Falcons had some calls go their way earlier. It was hard to make the case they were robbed of a victory. The Eagles played well enough to keep hope alive, not well enough to send any messages to any of the teams in front of them.

"We took care of business today," Reid said, and that seemed as apt an assessment as any. *