Let's face it: without Matt Ryan or Michael Turner, the Falcons barely resembled a professional football team. Chris Redman had trouble throwing the football over his own offensive line, having a season's worth of passes batted at the point of attack. He was otherwise inaccurate, chucked two interceptions and nearly a few others. With no running game to speak of, the Eagles defense easily shut down Atlanta's crippled offense, very nearly pitching a 34-0 shutout in the process.
More on that unit in a moment. The other story today was Mike Vick's return to Atlanta, where he scored two touchdowns (one passing, one rushing) and briefly led the offense. There was a mixed reaction from the crowd, but there were clearly more Vick supporters in the building, bringing with them plenty of signs and red number seven jerseys. He finished 2 for 2 passing for 48 yards along with 17 yards on 4 carries.
The Eagles offense had little problem moving the ball up and down the field, despite more penalties and red zone stalls. They were able to reverse poor field position on several occasions though, which forced the Falcons to earn their points. The star of the show was Leonard Weaver, who totaled 100 yards from scrimmage, including a huge a 59 yard catch and run to set up a field goal try. He also hauled in the game's first touchdown, a 4-yarder made possible after McNabb broke the pocket.
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It was the defense that carried the day though. The line penetrated Atlanta's, which took running the football off the table early. That put the ball in the hands of a backup quarterback who was at one time was an insurance salesman. A key goal line stand toward the end of the first half saw them stop three consecutive runs within two yards, holding the score to 13-0 and keeping it a two possession game. It was especially meaningful for a group that has had issues getting off the field in some crunch time situations.
Once the Eagles began to increase their lead, out came the Redman passing attack. The defense iced the game when Sheldon Brown intercepted a fourth down attempt and ran it back 83 yards for a touchdown.
Going back to Vick for a second, I have to believe today really raised his stock. A guy who looked like he wasn't a fit here at all only a month ago and probably wouldn't be worth a whole lot on the market just went out and got two scores, looking very much the team player in the process. Some desperate organization out there is probably going to part with at least a third round pick to get this guy.
This was another big win, though admittedly against a listless opponent, but good teams are supposed to dismantle the bad. That's what the Eagles did today. They kept mistakes to a minimum (no turnovers) and never allowed the opponent's back-up quarterback to get comfortable. As it stands now, they still own the wild card standings, and if the Giants can defeat Dallas tonight, they're back in the driver's seat in the NFC East.