Upon Further Review: Eagles' Maclin brilliant in defeat

GLENDALE, Ariz. - Jeremy Maclin was breathless after his breathless performance.

"I'm tired, man. I'm tired. Very tired," the Eagles receiver said. "I'm also disappointed we didn't get the job done."

Maclin set a career high with 187 receiving yards on 12 receptions and caught two passes for touchdowns, including a 54-yard, third-quarter bomb. His 32 career touchdown catches tied him with DeSean Jackson and Ben Hawkins for eighth in Eagles history.

What may have been most impressive about Maclin's performance was how he returned from a collision with Cardinals cornerback Patrick Peterson, who was knocked out of the game with a concussion. Maclin went to the locker room in the second quarter to get checked for head and ear injuries, but came back not longer after. He also returned punts with Darren Sproles out and returned one 18 yards before he was pushed out of bounds and did a swan dive into a table covered in cups full of Gatorade.

It was the type of outing that surely added cash to Maclin's next contract (perhaps an in-season extension?), but all he said he cared about was not winning the game.

There had been a lot of discussion about Larry Fitzgerald's decreased involvement in the Cardinals offense in the first six games. But he broke out big time against the Eagles, and his biggest play came just after the half. Fitzgerald ran a short route out of the slot against the Malcolm Jenkins, who was playing man coverage. But the Cardinals had Tedd Ginn take out the safety with what could arguably be called an illegal pick. It wasn't whistled, however, and Fitzgerald was off to the races and couldn't be caught.

The 80-yard touchdown was his 11th career score against the Eagles in eight games, including the playoffs. Fitzgerald finished the game with seven catches for 160 yards.

A few weeks ago, Josh Huff expressed his frustrations with not being activated on game days. Chip Kelly heard the complaint, and Huff was in the lineup the following game. It's unclear if the coach called him up as a result of the gripe, but Huff could find himself back on the sideline if he keeps turning the ball over.

The Eagles were driving early in the second quarter, and on first down at the Arizona 19, Nick Foles dumped a pass to Huff. The receiver did a fine job running upfield for 12 yards, but he was stripped from behind by Cardinals defensive tackle Frostee Rucker, and safety Deone Bucannon recovered at the 2-yard line.

"That's just something I've got to learn from," Huff said. "I'm over it now."

It didn't count as a red-zone conversion, but the Eagles flawlessly executed a misdirection screen pass from the Cardinals 21 for their first touchdown.

The offense's struggles inside the 20 have been well documented, but Maclin's touchdown showed that the Eagles don't have to throw into the end zone to score. With center David Molk and right guard Todd Herremans pulling to the left and feigning blocks for a sweep, Nick Foles faked a handoff to LeSean McCoy and threw a screen to the right. Right tackle Lane Johnson, meanwhile, stepped down and kicked out upfield to block for Maclin. With a clear path, Maclin turned on the jets and scored his fifth of six touchdowns on the season.

Foles' occasional carelessness was apparent on a costly second-quarter throw. On a first down from Arizona's 25-yard line, Foles tried finding Huff in the end zone. He pumped once, then sailed the pass off his back foot. Cardinals cornerback Antonio Cromartie stepped in front of Huff and intercepted the pass. He then juked his way to a 40-yard return.

It was Foles' eighth interception of the season. He threw another one later in the game.

The Eagles had first and 10 from the Cardinals' 44-yard line with 23 seconds remaining in the second quarter and were armed with two timeouts. They needed about 10 yards to be within reasonable field-goal range for Cody Parkey. Instead, Foles attempted three deep passes. Each was incomplete. They were left to punt the ball to expire the clock on fourth down.

If the Eagles ran a screen or Foles went with a shorter pass, they may have entered field-goal range. They also could have attempted a Hail Mary at the end of the half instead of punting the ball out of the end zone.

DeMeco Ryans made a key defensive play late in the fourth quarter.

The Cardinals had third down from the 10-yard line, and quarterback Carson Palmer saw tight end John Carlson running down the middle with Ryans in coverage. Ryans knocked the ball out of Carlson's grasp in the end zone to force an incompletion. The Cardinals were held to a field goal to tie the game at 17.

If Carlson had caught the pass, Arizona would have taken the lead. It was the type of play that shows why the Eagles are so pleased with their top inside linebacker, who is consistent and dependable.

The Eagles' decision to acquire and keep rookie Parkey continues to pay off. Parkey drilled two field goals on Sunday, including a 54-yard attempt in the third quarter. That kick was the third longest in Eagles history, and the longest since David Akers' 57-yarder in 2003. Parkey has connected on three field goals of more than 50 yards, becoming just the sixth Eagles kicker with than many.

The Eagles' and Cardinals' big-play wide receivers - Jeremy Maclin and Larry Fitzgerald - did what they do best in Sunday's back-and-forth game. Here is a look at how they did:

MACLIN      FITZGERALD

16/12   Targets/Catches   10/7

187/15.6   Yards/Avg.   160/22.9

2   TD   1

54   Long   80

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