2006 Philadelphia Eagles season

"at Candlestick Park, San Francisco, California

Hoping to take out their frustration from the previous week's performance, where they gave up a 17-point lead in the fourth quarter and lost to the Giants, the Eagles flew to the West Coast to take on the San Francisco 49ers. The Eagles started off well with RB Brian Westbrook catching a 4-yard TD pass from QB Donovan McNabb, along with TE L.J. Smith catching a 1-yard TD pass. In the second quarter, the 49ers would get on the board with kicker Joe Nedney kicking a 48-yard field goal, but the Eagles made sure to stay as far away as possible, with Brian Westbrook making a spectacular 71-yard TD run, along with kicker David Akers booting a 21-yard field goal. In the third quarter, Philadelphia took advantage of a Niners miscue, as DT Mike Patterson returned a fumble 98 yards for a touchdown. San Francisco would get a touchdown, ona a 1-yard run by rookie RB Michael Robinson. In the fourth quarter, Robinson would get another 1-yard TD run, but the Eagles managed to put the game away with Westbrook getting an 8-yard TD run. The 49ers would get one more TD, as QB Alex Smith completed a 15-yard pass to TE Eric Johnson, but fortunately, the Eagles would avenge last week's collapse with a win to give them the lead in the NFC East at 2-1.

Week 4: vs. Green Bay Packers

"at the Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

The Eagles lost a tight one to the resurgent New Orleans Saints in a loud and excited Louisiana Superdome. The Eagles, possibly suffering a letdown after their dramatic win over Dallas the previous week, came out sluggish and fell behind 10-0. They were about to get the ball with 1:56 left in the 2nd quarter, but Ryan Moats and Dexter Wynn muffed the punt return, turning it over to the Saints, who proceeded to score on a very short field to send the game into halftime with a commanding 17-3 lead. The second half was a different story, however. The Eagles scored almost immediately on a 60-yard catch and run by Reggie Brown. A 4-yard Donovan McNabb pass to tight end L.J. Smith evened up the game at 17. A Darwin Walker interception set up a 15-yard counter by Brown on the first play of the 4th quarter, giving the Eagles their first lead. It looked as though the Eagles would survive their sluggish start and the many drops by receivers. Unfortunately, the Eagles late-game struggles would return as the Saints scored on a blown coverage by struggling strong safety Michael Lewis, who was burned by Joe Horn. With 8:36 left, the Saints got the ball back and quarterback Drew Brees methodically drove the Saints down the field. without any remaining timeouts, the Eagles watched helplessly as New Orleans ran down the clock before John Carney kicked a game-winning 27-yard chip shot. The Eagles lost the game 27-24 and fell to 4-2, but remained in first place in the NFC East. McNabb finished with 247 yards and two touchdowns.

Week 7: at Tampa Bay Buccaneers

"at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

The Eagles got their season back on track with a 27-3 rout of the division-rival Washington Redskins. After a David Akers field goal on the opening possession, Donovan McNabb found Donte Stallworth for an 84-yard bomb. Philadelphia's explosive offense struck again when running back Correll Buckhalter recovered a dropped pass in the air from teammate Reggie Brown and raced for a touchdown. The sensational play gave the Eagles a 17-0 early lead, a rare luxury for them. Washington got a Nick Novak field goal before the half ended, but they could not reach the end zone on the Eagles defense. In the third quarter, Akers added a short field goal, making it 20-3. Later in the quarter, the Redskins were driving for a score, but quarterback Mark Brunell threw an interception to cornerback Sheldon Brown who returned it 70 yards to the house, putting Philadelphia up 27-3 and closing the door on Washington. Stallworth returned in a big way with 139 yards on six catches, and Brian Westbrook rushed for 122 yards on a season-high 22 carries.

Week 11: vs. Tennessee Titans

"at Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Behind a gutsy performance by quarterback Jeff Garcia and their defense, the Eagles prevailed on Monday Night Football against the Carolina Panthers. The Panthers struck first with a Jake Delhomme touchdown pass to Steve Smith (Carolina Panthers). The Eagles responded with an eight-yard touchdown reception by Brian Westbrook in the second quarter. Carolina retook the lead when Keyshawn Johnson reeled in a short touchdown pass just before the half. Garcia and Delhomme continued to trade blows in the second half, as Garcia found Donte Stallworth for a thirty-yard game-tying reception. Minutes later, DeAngelo Williams took a screen pass 35 yards to the end zone, making it 21-14 Carolina. The teams traded field goals, putting the score at 24-17. On Philadelphia's next possession, Garcia found Westbrook for a 29-yard gain, then hit Reggie Brown for a forty-yard game-tying touchdown on the next play. A Brian Dawkins interception and return set up David Akers' 25-yard go-ahead field goal. With less than a minute left, Carolina drove into Eagles' territory, but Lito Sheppard made a clutch interception of Delhomme in the end zone, preserving the 27-24 win. Garcia passed for 312 yards and three touchdowns. The win puts the Eagles at 6-6, and keeps them in the NFC playoff hunt.

Week 14: at Washington Redskins

"at Texas Stadium, Dallas, Texas

The amazing December turnaround of the Philadelphia Eagles continued with another road win over a division rival. Philadelphia's surprising 23-7 Christmas Day victory over the Dallas Cowboys was broadcast on national television and clinched a playoff spot. Jeff Garcia, who outshined fellow backup-turned starting quarterback Tony Romo, led the Eagles to scores on four of their first five possessions. Capping off their first drive, which took 7:12 off the clock, Garcia hit tight end Matt Schobel for a 25-yard touchdown. Cowboys' return man Miles Austin fumbled the ensuing kickoff to Quintin Mikell. However, Dallas cornerback Anthony Henry intercepted Garcia and the Cowboys drove to the Eagles' 1-yard line. From there, the Philadelphia defense stuffed Dallas goal-line back Marion Barber III on three straight plays. The ball turned over on downs and Garcia promply found Donte Stallworth for a 39-yard gain. The drive finished with a David Akers field goal and the Eagles led 10-0. Romo and the Cowboys responded with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Terrell Owens, who only caught two passes for 23 yards on the game. With only :29 seconds left in the half, Garcia got the Eagles into field goal range, and David Akers connected on a 45-yarder to make it 13-7 as time expired. On the opening drive of the third quarter, Garcia beat a Dallas blitz and completed a 65-yard catch and run to L.J. Smith. Philadelphia finished the drive with another field goal and it was 16-7. Early in the fourth quarter, Brian Dawkins made an over the shoulder interception in front of Owens in the end zone. On a 6:57 drive that included ten running plays and broke the Cowboys' backs, Correll Buckhalter pounded it in from one yard out, increasing the lead to 23-7. Romo would throw another interception, this one to Lito Sheppard, and the Eagles' domination of the Dallas offense continued for the rest of the game. The Eagles ran the ball a whopping 42 times for 204 yards (with Brian Westbrook accounting for 122 of those yards), while Garcia and the passing game gained 238 yards. The defense recorded three sacks in addition to the two interceptions and held Dallas to a meager 201 total yards on their own turf. Philadelphia now suddenly controls the NFC East and can win the division with a win over the Atlanta Falcons or a Dallas loss. With another victory, the Eagles moved up to 9-6.

Week 17: vs. Atlanta Falcons

"at Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana

Riding a six-game winning streak, the Eagles traveled to the Louisiana Superdome to face the NFC South champion New Orleans Saints. New Orleans had bested a Philadelphia team still led by Donovan McNabb 27-24 in Week 6. The Saints were rested and had what appeared to be the sympathy of the nation, but the Eagles brought greater playoff experience.

Cornerback Sheldon Brown set the tone early with a devastating hit on Saints' rookie star Reggie Bush on the first series. After trading punts on their opening drives, the No. 1 and No. 2 offenses in the league began to make some noise. A 28-yard run by Bush helped New Orleans take a 3-0 lead. In the second quarter, the Saints reached the Eagles' 5-yard line and added another field goal. The Eagles offense then awoke when Jeff Garcia heaved a 75-yard bomb to Donte Stallworth, the longest Philadelphia playoff touchdown play ever, giving the Eagles the lead. However, a 14-play Saints' drive ended in Bush racing around the right end for a 4-yard touchdown, and a 13-7 New Orleans lead. Garcia responded with big completions to Reggie Brown and Hank Baskett that got the Eagles in position for Brian Westbrook to dive over the pile from a yard out. A "Hail Mary pass" by Saints quarterback Drew Brees narrowly missed and the teams went to the locker room with Philadelphia leading 14-13.

On the Eagles' third play of their opening drive of the third quarter, Westbrook broke through and outran the New Orleans secondary, scoring a 62-yard touchdown, the longest playoff rushing touchdown in team history. The score was now 21-13 Philadelphia and visions of a fifth trip in six years to the NFC Championship Game became more real, but this was to be the Eagles' high-water mark. New Orleans running back Deuce McAllister scored short touchdowns (one rushing, one receiving) on the Saints' next two possessions, putting New Orleans back on top 27-21. The Eagles drove to the Saints 4-yard line on their next series, but could not get into the end zone, settling instead for a short David Akers field goal that left them behind 27-24 early in the fourth quarter. After punts by both teams, New Orleans got the ball back and began a drive that looked like it would run out the clock. However, Reggie Bush fumbled a pitch from Brees to end the five-minute drive, giving Philadelphia another shot with 3:18 remaining in the game. After the two-minute warning, Andy Reid decided to go for it on 4th and 10 with the Eagles on their own 44-yard line. The result was a completion to Baskett that would have been good for a first down, but right guard Scott Young (replacing the injured All-Pro Shawn Andrews), was flagged for a false start penalty. Despite only 1:56 remaining in the game, Reid elected to punt the ball back to New Orleans on the resulting 4th and 15. The Saints ran the ball for a first down and killed the clock, ending the Eagles' playoff run.

Westbrook, who nearly willed his exhausted team to victory, ran for 116 yards and two scores, while McAllister had 163 all-purpose yards and two scores of his own for the Saints. Garcia threw for 240 yards, Stallworth had 100 yards receiving and a touchdown against his old team, and Reggie Brown added 76 receiving yards. The defense sacked Brees three times, but it was not enough to slow down the New Orleans offense.

Division standings

References