Comeback effort falls short as Eagles drop first preseason game to Steelers

(AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

It's only preseason, so I spent most of my night watching the Phillies, but I thought I would share some positives and negatives from the Eagles first preseason game against the Steelers, which, despite a last ditch effort by A.J. Feeley, they lost 16-10.

Positives:
-Donovan McNabb and the first team scored on both of their drives to account for all of the Eagles' points. McNabb looked pretty sharp, completing 10 of 13 for 97 yards and hooking up with fullback Jason Davis for a touchdown. McNabb spread the ball around, hitting 7 different receivers, and the offense looked good early even without newly rich offensive MVP Brian Westbrook. More important than all the numbers, though, is that McNabb looked healthy and didn't get injured.

-Lorenzo Booker ripped off several good runs. On the second drive of the game, Booker had two runs of 6 yards where he looked really good. Booker finished with 16 yards on 4 carries, and he further solidified his spot as Westbrook's back-up.

-DeSean Jackson, who has been dealing with a hamstring injury, looked great in the passing game, catching 5 passes for 51 yards. He didn't make an impact in the return game, but he showed flashes of being a quality third or fourth receiver option for the Eagles.

Negatives:
-The first team defense was very porous on the Steelers first drive, giving up multiple big yardage plays, including runs of 7 and 11 yards and two 19 yard passing plays, including the touchdown. It was the only time the Eagles defense faced the Steelers first team, and they weren't impressive. Once Charlie Batch entered the game, things changed as the Eagles managed a pair of 3-and-outs in a row.

-The running game as a whole was pretty weak. The Eagles were without their top running back, but the backups should be able to do better than 61 yards on 18 carries. Tony Hunt in particular didn't look good, making it even more likely that he will be the odd man out in the backfield.

-Kevin Kolb looked like the third string QB. With A.J. Feeley nearly leading the Eagles to a last minute win, Kolb looked like he took a step back. With the running game not doing much, it was up to him to do something through the air, but after starting strong and completing 10 of 13 passes, he faded to finish 12 of 21 for only 81 yards, leading the offense to no points. If Kolb is supposed to unseat McNabb any time in the next few years, he's going to have to play better.