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.
Ah, turnovers again, sigh. The D just looked tired at the end of the game. (Wonder why?) This was really a game they should have won. At least we have the Phillies and Flyers... oh, wait.— verve- Vick is the biggest liability on this team.— SedatedManiac
- Vick's fumble on the 1 cost at least 3 points - if not 7. Those are the points that force Pittsburgh to go for a TD instead of a FG at the end. Who knows what the other fumble would have lead to, but the first one was killer!
I've said it before, but how could Foles do any worse? At least he's bigger and might have enough arm strength to hold onto the ball!— gdibig - Vick is not an NFL capable quarterback not just worthy of benching, but cutting to save a couple mill. Hey Reid, three fumbles, holds the ball too long deciding eenie meenie minie mo, who shall I throw the ball to (on our side)........................— AirForceZoomer
- That loss was NOT on the defense. The Steelers had the ball for 34 minutes against 26 for the Eagles, never a good scenario for the defense. Still, the D allowed only 16 points. That should be enough to win. But it's not when the quarterback can't hold onto the ball and gives away points and possession time.— Dave Clemens
- Reid needs to teach Vick how to hold on to a football the same way he holds on to a foot long Cheese Steak Hoagie.— SedatedManiac
- 3 fumbles by Vick- 2 Lost- the goaline one lost the game. 2 of them Vick was hit right at the ball with the defender helmet. Can't they just work on drills where Vick runs and covers up the ball with 2 hands like a running back?? Teach him to run like a running back. One arm holding the ball doesn't do it for him. He's too thin and ball gets knocked out easily. I actually like Vick without the turnovers. The playcalling and his decision making has cut out the INTs. Now why not just run "live" contact drills with Vick protecting the ball while running?? I think if they just drilled and practiced it, it can be fixed.— Charlie
- 3 fumbles by Vick- 2 Lost- the goaline one lost the game. 2 of them Vick was hit right at the ball with the defender helmet. Can't they just work on drills where Vick runs and covers up the ball with 2 hands like a running back?? Teach him to run like a running back. One arm holding the ball doesn't do it for him. He's too thin and ball gets knocked out easily. I actually like Vick without the turnovers. The playcalling and his decision making has cut out the INTs. Now why not just run "live" contact drills with Vick protecting the ball while running?? I think if they just drilled and practiced it, it can be fixed.— Charlie
- I think Vick has become gun shy after being hit almost everytime he touches the ball. And I don.t think he has any confidence in the line protecting him any more.Replace Vick with Nick Foles and see how the eagles respond.After one or two games possibly bring back Vick.— 303320
- Vick is trash and the D is highly overatted. Anybody remember the last time they got a sack? Castillo is a joke— pflynn20
- Vick is trash and the D is highly overatted. Anybody remember the last time they got a sack? Castillo is a joke— pflynn20
- The turnovers cost the Birds in this one.
1) When the eagles had the steelers on 3rd and 12 on the last drive, we did not blitz. When Ben has time he does a good job of finding receivers. We played zone and continued to rush 4 instead of being aggressive
2) The steelers blitzed a lot. In the first half they sent 2 blitzers on Vick's right which would be his blind side. Vick stayed in the pocket and tried to move up in the middle. Don't know why he doesn't roll to his left and the birds cross a receiver from the right to give him a target to throw to. They have to be prepared for teams blitzing them on vick's right and have him roll to his strength.
3) When you're going up against a desperate team who is very good at home, you have to take care of the ball.
4) Our defense came up with no turnovers today. We didn't sack Ben, got some hits on him but need to get after Ben more. You can't let Ben have time or he will beat you.
5) Another 10 or 11 hit game on Vick. He will not survive this kind of beating. No QB will. It's only a matter of time until he gets hurt getting his 10 or 11 times a game. We're also talking big hits. Ben was rarely hit hard. Vick was clobbered a number of times. Mike's gonna need more than Kevlar because the hits are way too many and too often.— Fan74 - Asomugha has become a major liability. His poor play shouldn't be overshadowed by Vick's turnovers.— Phillyaquila
- Amen Shawnmack. And a physical one too. As is Jackson. As I've been saying for 2 and 1/2 years, you cannot win with mental and physical midgets. And we haven't and won't.— DallasEagle
- The Esglesd have an excellent team at every position except quarterback, and trust me, Reid will say, "Vick' is my quarterback," until the bitter end and that is coming soon. Lone wolf, so you're saying Vick pl;ayed bad bnecause of the wide 9????????????????— mario1239
