The Eagles defense has been the steadying element of this turbulent season. On Sunday afternoon, in the Meadowlands against the Jets, the offense followed up its horrid display on the same field 2 weeks earlier against the Giants, with its second winning performance of the year. That performance was made a winner by another strong effort by Jimmy Johnson’s defensive troops. This developing unit that is still missing Pro Bowl players Brian Dawkins and Lito Sheppard in the backfield, allowed only 9 points and 286 total yards from scrimmage. They made good the 16 points that the offense scored.

The first quarter saw the Jets drive the ball on the ground. Thomas Jones (24 attempts for 130 yards) was rolling up gains by using cut back lanes. Jones racked up 82 of his yards on the first 2 drives. The Jets first 3 drives resulted in Mike Nugent field goal attempts. Nugent only made 2 of them. Both he and David Akers (3 of 5 FG attempts) had a tough time in the swirling stadium winds. The Eagles D adjusted in the second quarter, and only allowed one more score, a fourth quarter FG after a Donovan McNabb INT at the Eagles 28.

In the fourth quarter, trailing 16-9, the Jets threatened to take control of the game. They took possession at their 46 after a Sav Rocca punt. In 8 plays they drove the ball to a first down at the Eagles 13. Jones ran left for 9 yards to the 4. On 2nd and 1, the Birds stopped Jones for no gain. Chad Pennington tried to sneak for the first down but came up short. That left 4^th and 1 at the 4. The Jets went for it. Pennington took the snap and threw a fade to the left corner of the end zone. Laverneous Coles was covered by Sheldon Brown who knocked the ball through Coles’ hands preserving the lead. It was the same play that the Giants used to score on Brown 2 weeks ago. On that play Brown had Plaxico Burress well covered but the throw was perfectly placed, just beyond his reach. This throw was good but not great and Brown made a fine play on it. Brown’s play this season had been superb. That has been especially important with Sheppard on the sideline. He’s a great tackler and has elevated his cover game to new heights.

While Jones was grinding out gains in the 1^st quarter, the Eagles used a quick strike on their first possession to take an early advantage. From their 25, McNabb hit Kevin Curtis on a slant. Curtis broke a tackle and went 75 yards down the left side for a score. It was their only TD on the day. The Birds were in the red zone 3 times but only got 3 FGs out of it. Some of their missing pieces returned to the lineup and provided a more competent performance. Donovan McNabb had much better protection with William Thomas back at left tackle. Left guard Todd Herremans had arthroscopic surgery on his knee immediately after the Giants loss 2 weeks ago. He made an improbable return in short order and played the whole game. With the left side of the line intact, McNabb had a pretty good day. He was 22-35 for 278 yards, 1 TD and 1 INT. Brian Westbrook returned from missing the Giants game with a torn muscle in his rib cage. His return was in doubt early in the week and he did not practice much. He ran 20 times for 120 yards and caught 6 for 36 yards. Another welcome return to form was made by Reggie Brown. He had 6 catches for 89 yards. If he can bounce back to his expected level of play, and Kevin Curtis (5 catches for 121 yards, 1 TD) can establish some consistency, the offense may grow beyond its severe Westbrook reliance. The tight ends only had 4 catches, and LJ Smith’s return lasted just the first half. Rookie Brent Celek had 2 of the catches. The Eagles need him to develop as quickly as possible. Matt Schoebel isn’t good enough, and Smith’s return to form is becoming more doubtful.