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| ARI at PHI | ATL at SD | BAL at CIN | CAR at GB | CHI at MIN | DEN at NYJ | IND at CLE | JAX at HOU |
| KC at OAK | MIA at STL | NO at TB | NYG at WAS | PIT at NE | SEA at DAL | SF at BUF | TEN at DET |
Week 13 Game Recap: Arizona Cardinals 20, Philadelphia Eagles 48
What you need to know
| Arizona Cardinals |
For the first time this season, QB Kurt Warner did a really bad job of protecting the football. He threw interceptions on two of his first five pass attempts, which set the tone for the rest of the game. From the first quarter on, Arizona was playing catch up.
WR Larry Fitzgerald started slowly, as did most of the Arizona offense. But two touchdowns and a long bomb reception in the second half helped him put up big numbers.
WR Anquan Boldin had a forgettable game, with two dropped passes and two fumbles (one of which was lost). Steve Breaston, on the other hand, looked outstanding. He made a fine catch on his first target of the game, and later added a touchdown when the outcome had already been decided.
RB Tim Hightower and the running game could get nothing going. This was mostly due to Arizona being behind by so many points early on and the fact that the Eagles controlled the clock for nearly forty minutes.
| Philadelphia Eagles |
QB Donovan McNabb, fresh off the first benching of his career, turned in one of his finest performances of the season. He threw four touchdown passes, didn't turn the ball over once, and led the Eagles to a dominating victory over a quality opponent.
RB Brian Westbrook tied a team record with four touchdowns (two rushing, two receiving) and had plenty of room to roam all night long.
There wasn't one Philadelphia receiver whose stat line really stands out, but DeSean Jackson, Kevin Curtis, Hank Baskett, L.J. Smith, and Jason Avant all caught between three and six passes. Avant and Jackson added touchdowns.
What you ought to know
| QB Kurt Warner, Pass: 21 - 39 - 235 - 3 TD / 3 INT |
Warner's evening began about as badly as possible, throwing interceptions on two of his first five pass attempts. The first one was thrown off his back foot and sort of floated into coverage, while the second one was simply a bad overthrow that was easily picked. Late in the fourth quarter, he threw a ball up in coverage to TE Jerheme Urban that was also intercepted. It wasn't all bad, as he did manage to toss three touchdown passes along the way. He twice found Larry Fitzgerald and once connected with Steve Breaston for scores. The first touchdown to Fitzgerald marked the twentieth consecutive game that Warner has thrown a touchdown pass, breaking the franchise record set by Neil Lomax and tied by Warner last week. Though he wasn't sacked once, Warner was under a fair amount of pressure at times. But he did a nice job avoiding it and stepping up in the pocket. On one such occasion, the protection broke down as he stepped forward and found Fitzgerald streaking downfield for a 40 yard bomb.
Obviously the turnovers are Warner's fault, but his defense did him no favors. They couldn't keep the Eagles off the field at times. And with the Eagles controlling the ball for 39:33 to Arizona's 20:27, it was difficult for Warner to have enough drives to put up numbers that were any better than what he did.
| RB Tim Hightower, Rush: 7 - 7 - 0, Rec: 3 - 34 - 0 (3 targets) |
Hightower's rushing line tells you all you need to know about his performance in the ground game. His big gain went for just four yards, and the Eagles early start really forced Arizona to get away from the running game much earlier than they would've liked. Hightower did have a nice 26 yard catch and run on a third down screen. That extended a drive that eventually led to a Larry Fitzgerald touchdown. What was very telling about this game was the way Hightower was used, or rather not used, near the goal line. On a second quarter possession, Arizona got down to the one yard line. Hightower had helped get them there with a two yard rush from the three yard line. Facing a third and one, the ball was thrown to Anquan Boldin. Philadelphia was whistled for a holding penalty, giving the Cardinals first and goal at the one. The next two plays were both passes, the second one being the aforementioned touchdown to Fitzgerald. Philadelphia later had a third and one at the six, and again opted to pass (this time resulting in a Steve Breaston touchdown). And at one point in the second half, Arizona threw the ball on 18 consecutive plays.
| RB J.J. Arrington, Rush: 2 - 10 - 0 (1 targets) |
Arrington certainly didn't do enough to get recognition, but he needs mentioning only because he was the team's leading rusher. Starter Tim Hightower had seven carries for just seven yards, three fewer than Arrington, who had runs of one and nine yards.
| WR Anquan Boldin, Rush: 1 - 8 - 0, Rec: 5 - 63 - 0 (12 targets) |
Boldin had a game he'd soon love to forget. Amongst his many lowlights were a fumble on an end-around that Arizona recovered, a dropped touchdown in the end zone (Larry Fitzgerald caught a touchdown on the next play), another dropped pass late in the game, and a crucial fumble early in the fourth quarter with Arizona down by 14 points. On the first drop, the one that would have gone for a touchdown, he ran a quick slant and had the ball put right on his hands. He simply dropped the ball. He had nearly scored on a previous play but was tackled down at the two yard line. The fumble is tough to blame on him, because just about every NFL receiver would have fumbled in the same situation. Philadelphia S Brian Dawkins dove in and laid his helmet perfectly on the football, jarring it loose. Boldin was about to be tackled on the play, and had no chance to get his bearings and recover the football. Boldin was also shaken up on a hard hit late in the game and limped off the field, but returned and didn't seem to be bothered by it.
| WR Steve Breaston, Rec: 6 - 45 - 1 (10 targets) |
Breaston was every bit as involved as the stars, Larry Fitzgerald and Anquan Boldin. He had just two fewer targets than Boldin, and one more than Fitzgerald. His first catch of the game was a fantastic leaping grab along the right sideline early on. Breaston caught a late third quarter touchdown that pulled Arizona to within 34-13. On the play, CB Lito Sheppard left Breaston a ton of room in front. He took advantage by running a curl, and Warner found him with a quick strike right at the edge of the goal line. It was debatable at first whether Breaston had crossed the plane, but replays confirmed that he had.
| WR Larry Fitzgerald, Rec: 5 - 65 - 2 (9 targets) |
On his first touchdown, Fitzgerald was able to take advantage of a situation which Anquan Boldin could not. On a first down pass, Boldin was wide open in the end zone for a sure touchdown, but dropped the football. On the next play, Fitzgerald was the target and he made sure to hold on. Later on, he displayed the hands that commentator Cris Collinsworth referred to as the best he has ever seen. Fitzgerald hauled in a 40 yard bomb down the middle of the field, and two plays later caught his second touchdown of the game. The second one was particularly tough, as he had to reach back across his body and pick the ball out of the air, then use his strength to pull it away from the defender, all the while moving in the other direction towards the end zone. It was an excellent display of strength, hands, body control, and concentration.
| WR Jerheme Urban, Rec: 1 - 3 - 0 (5 targets) |
Perhaps Kurt Warner should have stopped looking in Urban's direction earlier. The first pass he threw to him was deflected and then intercepted. He also failed to connect with Urban on a fourth down pass late in the second half. And Warner's final toss of the game was a deep ball down the sideline to Urban that was easily intercepted by Brian Dawkins.
| TE Leonard Pope, Rec: 1 - 25 - 0 (1 targets) |
Pope was only thrown to once, but he made a nice twisting grab of a floater downfield. Philadelphia head coach Andy Reid actually challenged the play, claiming that the ball hit the ground. It appeared he was correct, but the call on the field stood and Pope had his only catch of the night.
| PK Neil Rackers 0 - 0 FG, 2 - 2 XP, 2 points |
Rackers was only called upon to boot a pair of extra points, both of which he converted.
| ARI Rush Defense |
There wasn't much the Cardinals could do to stop Brian Westbrook. With the passing game having so much success downfield, that really opened things up in the run game. And vice versa. The Eagles actually made a concerted effort to establish a strong rushing attack early on, and it worked to perfection. Brian Westbrook punched in two scores on the ground, and the gaping holes created by the Philadelphia offensive line left little doubt as to how he was able to find the goal line repeatedly. And even when an Arizona defender would get a hand on him, it was usually just a glancing blow as he simply ran right by (or over) most of them.
| ARI Pass Defense |
The Cardinals were utterly powerless to stop Donovan McNabb and the Philadelphia passing attack. The Eagles receivers were wide open all day downfield on just about every play. And there was a gross tackling display by the Arizona defenders once a catch was made. On at least three occasions, the Eagles picked up more than double the yardage they should have due to some very spotty tackling techniques. On one, L.J. Smith carried tacklers for extra yardage. On another, Kevin Curtis faked Ralph Brown out of his shoes for a big gain. And on another, DeSean Jackson took a relatively harmless short pass and burst towards the sideline, turning a third and 23 into a first down. They did sack McNabb once, but more often than not he was stepping out and around would-be tacklers and making plays down the field without much care that anyone was going to get in his face.
| QB Donovan McNabb, Pass: 27 - 39 - 260 - 4 TD / 0 INT, Rush: 4 - 24 - 0 |
It is no secret to most people that Donovan McNabb was benched for the first time in his career this past Sunday. It was on everyone's minds to see how well he'd respond to the benching in this game. His response was loud and clear. He had one of his best games of the season, tossing four touchdown passes without a turnover, threw for 260 yards, and led the Eagles on eight separate scoring drives while taking apart the first place Cardinals. In addition to the passing, he looked good with his feet too. He showed nice elusiveness early on in the pocket by avoiding a sack, and added a very strong run in the second quarter that went for 13 yards. None of the touchdowns was a particularly tough throw, though that doesn't detract any from them. The first score was a shovel pass to RB Brian Westbrook. The second was a nice play by McNabb to find a wide open Westbrook in the flat with Adrian Wilson blitzing right at him. The third score was a crossing route by DeSean Jackson, a simple pass that involved Jackson making a nice move at the end to get in. And the fourth score was to Jason Avant, who appeared to actually come up short in his dive attempt at the end zone but the play was never challenged and the score stood up.
McNabb was helped a great deal not only by Arizona defenders giving the Eagles receivers a lot of cushion, but also by Arizona defenders being unable to wrap up those Eagles receivers once they got in the open field. There was a lot of yardage after first contact and this was a truly dominant effort by the Philadelphia passing attack.
| RB Brian Westbrook, Rush: 22 - 110 - 2, Rec: 3 - 20 - 2 (3 targets) |
Westbrook had an historic night. He tied the Philadelphia team record with four touchdowns. And he became the first player since Lydell Mitchell of the 1975 Baltimore Colts to finish a game with at least 100 yards rushing, two rushing touchdowns, and two receiving touchdowns. There were gaping holes being opened for Westbrook all over the field, and his shifty running inside made it virtually impossible for Arizona to stop or even slow him. His first touchdown reception was a simple shovel pass from McNabb, and the second was even easier as he was wide open in the flat for a score to beat the safety blitz. He didn't break any huge runs, but he consistently picked up tons of positive yardage. All night, it seemed like if the Eagles needed three yards, he got four. If they needed six, he got eight.
| WR DeSean Jackson, Rush: 1 - 6 - 0, Rec: 6 - 76 - 1 (8 targets) |
For a guy who had a solid but unspectacular stat line, Jackson certainly made his presence felt in this game in a major way. Facing a long third and 23 situation midway through the third quarter, Jackson caught a quick pass and looked to be out of room. But he quickly sprinted for the sideline and turned upfield. He outraced several Arizona defenders to the first down marker, and picked up 24 yards to keep the chains moving. He might have scored on the play but he couldn't keep his balance as he tip-toed down the sideline. That drive resulted in a Brian Westbrook on the very next play. Jackson celebrated with a flying chest bump for head coach Andy Reid, who didn't move an inch. Later in the fourth quarter, Jackson added a touchdown of his own. He caught a short pass from McNabb but almost didn't get in. He had a blocker helping out near the goal line and eventually found a hold just big enough to reach out and stick the ball across for the score.
It wasn't all good for Jackson as he muffed a punt midway through the third quarter. He mistakenly thought a teammate had touched the ball and was trying to dive on it to maintain possession, so it's tough to assign blame for that. But a turnover is still a turnover.
| WR Kevin Curtis, Rec: 5 - 59 - 0 (9 targets) |
The Philadelphia passing attack was designed to spread the ball around to several different targets rather than just one guy, so Curtis's stat line looks very similar to his Philadelphia teammates. He had one big play where he caught a pass in the flat, was squared up by Ralph Brown, and proceeded to fake Brown out of his shoes for an extra 15 yards or so.
| WR Hank Baskett, Rec: 5 - 42 - 0 (5 targets) |
Baskett had a mostly quiet evening, with five receptions for just 42 yards. But he certainly made his mark on one of the receptions, laying out fully to make a terrific diving catch along the left sideline. His legs dragged across the field inbounds as he displayed tremendous concentration in holding onto the football.
| WR Jason Avant, Rec: 4 - 25 - 1 (6 targets) |
Avant started, and had receptions on two of the first four plays of the game (and each of the first two passes). He kind of disappeared from the offense a bit after that point, catching just one pass over the next two plus quarters. Late in the game, however, he was rewarded when he caught an eight yard score from McNabb. It actually appeared as if Avant's knee was down and the ball should be placed at the one yard line or so, but the call was not challenged by Arizona so the touchdown obviously stood.
| TE L.J. Smith, Rec: 3 - 32 - 0 (3 targets) |
Smith caught all three passes thrown in his direction, including a big 25 yard catch and run in the second half. He hauled in a short pass, turned upfield and ran over one would-be tackler, and made it count by dragging another pair of tacklers down to the ground with him. He was looked to once in the red zone, catching a short two yard pass that he took to the Arizona four yard line. Brian Westbrook scored two plays later.
| PK David Akers 2 - 2 FG, 6 - 6 XP, 12 points |
Akers connected on kicks of 42 and 41 yards, both of which were nailed with relative ease.
| PHI Rush Defense |
The Arizona Cardinals ran the ball ten times for 25 yards. I repeat -- the Cardinals ran the ball ten times for 25 yards. The Eagles jumped out to an early lead of 14-0 after one quarter and 24-7 by halftime. This turned Arizona into a very predictable one dimensional offense, one that relied almost exclusively on the passing game to get back into it. Philadelphia controlled the ball for 39:33 to Arizona's 20:27, and with the score the way it was, the Cardinals needed every minute they had to try and strike quickly. That meant airing it out almost non-stop, leaving very little opportunity for the backs to do much of anything.
| PHI Pass Defense |
The Eagles didn't completely shut down Kurt Warner and company for a full sixty minutes, but they shut him down for as long as they needed to. Warner did most of his damage in the fourth quarter when the game had already long been decided (aka, garbage time). With a little less than five minutes left in the third quarter, Arizona trailed 31-7. To that point, Warner had thrown for just 111 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. Over the remainder of the game, he threw for 124 yards and two touchdowns.
Philadelphia's early opportunistic defense took advantage of a couple of poorly thrown balls by Warner to grab interceptions on two of his first five pass attempts. Those turnovers really helped to set the tone for the remainder of the game, as the Eagles went up 14-0 before anyone had even settled into the game yet.
S Brian Dawkins had a big game. He had a late interception in the fourth quarter that was a fairly easy play. What was much more difficult was his forced fumble on WR Anquan Boldin. Dawkins put his head down, drove it into the football, and jarred it loose from the strong Arizona wideout. Although Arizona already trailed by 14 points at the time, that play really put a damper on Arizona's comeback hopes. The Eagles scored another touchdown five plays later, and the game was essentially over.
CB Joselio Hanson, starting in place of the injured Asante Samuel, had his first career interception.
