Eagles defense a big hit

Here are some observations and ruminations about the Eagles' victory over the Redskins:

 LANDOVER, Md. - It took six games, but the Eagles defense had its first big hit of the season when cornerback Nnamdi Asomugha clobbered Redskins tight end Chris Cooley after Cooley caught a screen pass.

All season long, the defense has lacked the intimidation factor. But Asomugha brought it on that play. Cooley went to the locker room and returned to the game briefly before leaving for good with a hand injury.

Later, safety Kurt Coleman took a personal foul when he hit a defenseless receiver over the middle. It seemed like a clear-cut call, but it's one of those aggressive plays you'll take when looking at the big picture.

And the big picture coming in was that the Eagles 'D' was soft.

Sometimes you make your own luck. The Eagles seemed sharper and more focused in all areas Sunday, and the bad bounces that hurt them in previous weeks suddenly started going their way.

A tipped Michael Vick pass fell to Jeremy Maclin. Brent Celek batted a ball into the air and instead of seeing a Redskin intercept it, managed to stick with the play and make a catch himself.

Runners held on to the ball as they were tackled. It might be a bit of luck or just cyclic, as many Eagles said, but there's something to be said for focus, too, which seemed far more abundant Sunday than in previous weeks.

Nate Allen was one of the few glimmers of hope after last week's loss, and his strong play continued Sunday.

Allen had a second-quarter interception of Rex Grossman and nearly made another pick late in the first half. Less spectacularly, but perhaps as important, was the way Allen continued stepping up to make plays in the open field - or at least slow down runners and hold Washington gains to a minimum.

Those types of plays helped the Eagles limit the big gains that hurt them during their four-game skid. It also shows that last year's second draft pick is ready to contribute. With 2010 first-round choice Brandon Graham saying he expects to return from an injury after the bye, the much-maligned draft class of last year still has plenty to say about how they will be judged in Philadelphia.

With Allen's interception, the fourth of his career, and three from Coleman, the Eagles got interceptions from both safeties in the same game for the first time since Brian Dawkins and Quintin Mikell did in on Nov. 27, 2008, against Arizona.

You have to give Eagles defensive coordinator Juan Castillo and his unit the nod for their first-half performance.

The intensity was there and, more important, so was the execution. Aided by the narrowing of the wide nine on obvious run downs, the Eagles kept Redskins runners in check at the start.

And when the offense put the Eagles ahead, Washington had to call on quarterback Rex Grossman. Grossman wasn't up to the challenge. His first half numbers were, well, gross: 6-of-14 passing for 64 yards, no touchdowns, two interceptions, and a 17.3 passer rating.

Vick made a great run in the third quarter when he dashed 31 yards around left end on a third and 10.

But after he wisely ran out of bounds near the Washington bench to avoid a big hit, he made the mistake of kicking a loose ball that nearly hit a nearby Redskins cheerleader.

After he did it, he held his hand over his heart to show he was sorry. Then, after the game, he issued a formal apology.

"It was very inappropriate to kick the ball. Sorry about that. I apologize to the cheerleaders," Vick said. "That was a very bad gesture, and I came out and let my emotions get the best of me."