Eagles sloppily dominate Browns

(AP Photo/Tom Mihalek)

It wasn't always pretty and they left a lot of points on the board but the Eagles proved that they were the far superior team as they dominated the Browns on Monday Night. The Eagles won the game 30-10 although they could have easily added two more touchdowns in the first half alone.

The Eagles didn't put together their best effort of the season but they didn't need to against the Browns. Donovan McNabb looked sharp for most of the night, completing 26 of 35 passes for 290 yards and 2 touchdowns. He really only made one bad pass all game and it came from the 1 yard line right before the half. With only 9 seconds left until halftime, McNabb threw a fade pass that didn't get over the defender, instead it got intercepted and nearly returned the other way for a touchdown.

The other bad play for the Eagles also came at the goal line and it was another interception thrown this time by DeSean Jackson. The Eagles lined up with Jackson at quarterback and he threw a terrible jump pass that didn't have enough behind it and ended up getting picked off in the end zone. Let's hope we don't ever have to see Jackson throw another pass.

Despite the two sloppy plays, the Eagles offense clicked all night. Nine different recievers caught passes and Brian Westbrook, Correll Buckhalter and Kyle Eckel combined for nearly 140 yards of rushing. The Eagles never had any problems moving the football and if it wasn't for the three interceptions (Kevin Kolb also had one in relief of McNabb), the Eagles would have made the game an even bigger blowout.

The defense also continued it's strong play of the last few weeks. The Browns didn't score an offensive touchdown all game and were continually stopped on 3rd down. Cleveland managed only 196 total yards on offense and had only 11 first downs all game. Asante Samuel also added an interception return for a touchdown to cap off a strong defensive performance.

The Eagles took care of business on Monday Night. They got the ball first and marched right down the field and never looked back. Some fans worried about a letdown before the two big divisional games to end the season but the Eagles stepped up and got the much needed win. Things are still lining up for the Eagles in terms of qualifying for the playoffs. Winning the rest of their games doesn't guarantee them a playoff spot but it puts them in a good position. The tie against the Bengals, while completely embarassing, would actually put them slightly ahead all the other 10-win teams if they win out. Of course, if they had simply beaten the Bengals, the 11 wins they might finish with would guarantee them a playoff spot.

It wasn't a pretty game but it was sure fun to watch. Let's hope the next two weeks are more of the same for the Birds.