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A week after playing as poorly as any Joe Gibbs team ever
has in suffering their third loss in four games, the Redskins were in
desperate need of a victory last Sunday night. A loss and they would have been
4-4 overall, 1-2 in the NFC East.
But the 17-10 victory over Philadelphia -- preserved by
safety Ryan Clark's interception at the Washington 9-yard line with 1:32 left
-- put the four-time defending division champion Eagles (4-4) in the NFC East
basement and moved the Redskins (5-3) into the last wild-card spot thanks to
their Sept. 19 victory over the Cowboys (5-3).
After going 4-7 in games decided by a touchdown or less
in 2004, Washington is 4-2 in those games this season.
"If we lost, our backs were going to be against the
wall the rest of the way," Gibbs said. "When you start winning some
close ones ... you start feeling like you're going to win those."
What's more, Washington already has beaten division
leaders Chicago and Seattle and is 5-1 in the NFC, losing only to the New York Giants.
"Maybe we'll look back at this game as a defining
moment," said quarterback Mark Brunell, who bounced back from a dreadful
performance in the 36-0 drubbing by the Giants to complete 21 of 29 passes for
224 yards and a 94.6 rating.
Next up is a game at Tampa Bay, which is reeling from a
loss to lowly San Francisco followed by a blowout defeat at home against
Carolina. The week after that, struggling Oakland comes to FedEx Field, where
Washington is 4-0 this season and has won five in a row overall.
If the Redskins can build off the Eagles win and beat the
Buccaneers and Raiders, they'll be 7-3 heading into Thanksgiving. The last
time Washington was 7-3 was 1991, its last Super Bowl season.
Replay
After quickly falling behind 7-0 on the heels of the
previous week's horrendous 36-0 loss at the Meadowlands, the Redskins had the
resolve to score on their next possession, and 8:19 after that, they took the
lead.
And when the Eagles tied the game in the third quarter,
the Redskins came right back to retake the lead. That's the kind of resilience
the boys in burgundy and gold hadn't shown since the Clinton Administration.
With some good fortune (recovering two of their three
fumbles and winning all three replay challenges), the Redskins put an end to
their losing streaks (seven straight overall, five in a row at home) against
the Eagles, holding on for a 17-10 decision at FedEx Field.
Player
Notes
--LB LaVar Arrington, who four weeks ago didn't get on
the field in Denver, replaced Warrick Holdman in the starting lineup against
Philadelphia. Arrington tied DE Phillip Daniels for the team lead with six
tackles.
--DT Cornelius Griffin was inactive against Philadelphia
with a hip flexor, missing a game for just the sixth time in his six seasons.
--RB Mike Sellers scored against Philadelphia on a 1-yard
run, his first rushing TD, and his fifth score in eight games this year. The
five TDs equals Sellers' total from his previous five seasons.
--RB Clinton Portis went over the 5,000-yard mark for his
career with a 15-yard run during the second quarter against Philadelphia.
Portis finished with just 67 yards on 21 carries, but his 6-yard touchdown in
the third quarter was the game-winner.
--K John Hall played for the first time since pulling
his right quadriceps in the Sept. 11 season opener. Hall kicked a 24-yard
field goal and two extra points against Philadelphia. Three of his four
kickoffs went at least as deep as the 6-yard line, but his first one went out
of bounds and gave Philadelphia the ball at its 40.
