It was a win, and at this point in the season, the Eagles will take it. After letting the Vikings hang around for most of the game, the Eagles were finally able to do away with them, and left Minnesota with a 26-14 win. This means that the Eagles live to play next week, and will head to the Meadowlands to play the Giants for the third time this year.
The Eagles let the Vikings stay to within 2 for much of the game, but in the 4th quarter, Brian Westbrook took a screen pass 71 yards to finally put the game away. It was the Eagles only offensive touchdown of the game, with David Akers making 4 field goals. While it wasn't a dominating performance, it was a game that the Eagles earlier in the season would have lost. No games are easy in the playoffs, especially on the road. So for the Eagles to come away with a 12 point win is impressive. There were a lot of positives to take from the game, and a few things the Eagles need to work on.
1) Andy Reid: This season, I have thrown alot of the blame on Reid. Im not saying this win takes that all away, but in moving to 7-0 in the first game of the playoffs, Reid deserves some credit. The Eagles could have given up after the two week blow of Cincinnati and Baltimore, but with all of the teams around them collapsing (Tampa Bay and Dallas) Reid held his team together. And whether you think they are or not, they are 1 of only 8 teams still alive. That is a credit to the coach. In todays game, I thought he did a good job calling the plays, and he even out smarted the other coach when it came to time management. He also stuck to the run, even with little success. Brian Westbrook had the same amount of carries as Adrian Peterson, and I can't even imagine what the odds of that happening would have been before the game. 100-1 maybe? He also called the screen play at just right the time, and sealed the victory.
2) Jason Avant and Kevin Curtis: Both of them came up big today, and combined for 11 catches for 103 yards. But that is not where they came up big. Both players had big third down catches in the second half. Avant had a key one with the Eagles agaisnt there own goal line, helping them get some breathing room. He is the Eagles best option over the middle in key 3rd down plays. Curtis did a good job holding onto the ball and running with it after the catch. The Eagles really missed him during the season, but he is starting to emerge at just the right time.
3) The Defense: Without the play of the defense today, the Eagles are packing their lockers up this week, not getting ready for New York. All of the talk is how McNabb has resurrected the Eagles since his benching, and that is somewhat warranted. But its the defense that really has brought this team back from the dead. Today, they allowed only 14 points. They held Peterson to a mere 83 yards on 20 carries. If you take away his 1 big run of 40 yards, that 43 yards on 19 carries. They also scored what would turn out to be the game winning touchdown, and got two turnovers. Asante Samuel really stepped up today, playing hurt. Other then maybe Baltimore, this is the bet defense playing right now.
4) David Akers: He went 4 for 4 today and looked great doing it. All of his kicks were dead on, and looked like they could have all been good for 60. After a rough start to the season, if he can continue to kick like this, he is another weapon for the offense.
5) Brent Celek: So what are the chances LJ Smith is our starter at TE next year? .001%?
What I Didn't Like:
1) Offensive Line: Im not going to pretend I know about blocking and how well each player on the line played. But I do know a problem when I see it, and today, protection was a problem. McNabb was running all over the place and had Vikings in his face for alot of the first half. The Vikings do have a good defensive line, but they looked like a line of Hall of Famers today. Tra Thomas looked like Winston Justice when Jared Allen right right by him to force the fumble on McNabb. They also got nothing going on the ground. I give them credit for setting up the big screen play well, but other then that, I was unimpressed. They have got to play better next week.
2) Sheldon Brown: I know this is nit picking, and he did have a good game. But he has got to catch that interception!
3) Brad Childress: He really is a product of Reid. First, he declined a penalty that would have forced the Eagles into 3rd and 24, and knocked them out of field goal range. Way to show confidence in your defense, and to give the Eagles 3 points. Then, with around 1:30 remaining in the half, he lets the clock run down to 50 seconds, and calls a pass. If your going to try to score, why let the clock run down so far? He actually managed to let Reid outsmart him on clock management. That really is a accomplishment in itself.
4) Jared Allen: Something annoys me about him. He did force a fumble, but it seems like everytime he makes a tackle, he is behind the line flexing his muscles to the crowd. Jared, your team is losing, shut up and get back to the huddle.
5) Correll Buckhalter: I would have liked to seen him get more plays. He got 1 carry after he took his first one 27 yards. I did like how they spilt Westbrook out wide and left Buckhalter in the back field, but he is a huge weapon for the Eagles that dosn't get used enough.
6) Lito Sheppard: Did anyone else feel bad seeing Sheppard come in for garbage time?
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