Copy and paste the last two recaps, and just change the names of the opponent and players, because it's the same story. The Eagles blew a fourth quarter lead for the third week in a row, this time after going ahead by as much as 20 points, and lose to the San Francisco 49ers 24-23, dropping Philadelphia to 1-3 for the season.
As much as the defense is responsible for coughing up yet another game, once again the Birds failed themselves in every phase of the action. Alex Henery missed two field goals, either of which would have created a slight cushion on the scoreboard, and Jeremy Maclin fumbled the football as the offense was driving late in the game, destroying any hopes of a comeback.
There were few brightspots in this one.
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Michael Vick survived for an entire 60 minutes, setting a career mark with 416 yards passing. He was much more efficient in general than he has been in recent weeks, finishing 30-for-46 with two touchdowns and one interception. He also carried eight times for 75 yards, and added another trademark moment to his highlight reel on the TD pass to Clay Harbor in the first quarter that made it a 7-3 game.
DeSean Jackson added six receptions for 171 yards, though there was another big drop.
Jason Babin had himself a day on the other side of the ball, sacking QB Alex Smith three times. He made one of the key plays late in the second quarter, stripping Smith and giving the Eagles excellent field position, which they would capitalize on with a shovel pass to LeSean McCoy to take a 20-3 halftime lead into the locker room.
The Eagles also blocked a David Akers field goal attempt in the third quarter, which they converted into three of their own, growing the score to its widest margin at 23-3.
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And that's right about where the fun ends.
Twice Eagles drives stalled during the fourth quarter in part because of holding penalties. When Henery was called upon in both instances, he botched attempts of 39 and 33 yards. Two fumbles also proved costly -- Ronnie Brown's bizarre lateral at the goal line, and DE Justin Smith's strip of Maclin from behind, which was the final nail in the coffin.
The defense didn't have any answers either. RB Frank Gore got it going during the second half, finishing with 127 yards on 15 carries and putting six on the scoreboard. Jamar Chaney couldn't keep up with TE Vernon Davis on another Frisco scoring play, a consistent issue for this unit going all the way back to the merger it seems. And Juan Castillo dialed up an ill-timed blitz that left a wide-open WR Josh Morgan waltz into the end zone.
Frankly, I'm tired of tapping away about the same issues week after week. Four quarters. 60 minutes. Sloppy. Inconsistent. It's all of that, but at some point, it's more.
The 49ers are not that good, and the Eagles clearly have more talent -- just like they arguably have more talent than either the Falcons or Giants. The difference at the moment, as far as I can tell, is those are better teams.
Right now, much as it pains me to admit it, the Eagles aren't any better than the 49ers -- or anybody else. The only positive is there is still time to turn the ship around, but we're starting to run out of evidence that they can or will.