Posted: Tuesday, September 16, 2014, 3:01 AM
INDIANAPOLIS - Cody Parkey walked onto the field after Chip Kelly called a timeout with three seconds remaining. The Eagles had not led over the Indianapolis Colts on Monday night since early in the first quarter, and Kelly relied on his rookie kicker to seal the Eagles' second second-half comeback in as many weeks.
Parkey made the 36-yard field goal for the win, although the Eagles' celebration was halted when the officials awarded the Colts a timeout that they said the Colts called right before Parkey's kick.
So Parkey lined up again. The Colts had no timeouts to stop Parkey this time, and the Eagles celebrated a 30-27 win that was bolstered by the dynamic ability of Darren Sproles and an opportunistic defense. The Eagles improved to 2-0.
The game changed when the Colts held a seven-point lead and were in field-goal range late in the fourth quarter to try to put the game out of reach. Colts quarterback Andrew Luck tried to find T.Y. Hilton, who appeared to be dragged to the ground by Brandon Boykin when the ball was in the air. The pass went right to Eagles safety Malcolm Jenkins, who made a pivotal interception.
The Eagles needed only five plays to tie the game. It helps to have Sproles, who continued proving he was a shrewd offseason acquisition by taking a short pass 51 yards to the Colts' 6-yard line. Jeremy Maclin caught a touchdown pass on the next play to tie the game.
The Eagles' defense came up with a critical stop to get the ball back for the offense. Nick Foles helped bring the Eagles into field goal range. He first found Zach Ertz for 24 yards, then connected with Sproles for 17 yards. Parkey's right foot handled the rest.
Sproles finished with seven catches for 152 yards. He also had 26 rushing yards and a touchdown. LeSean McCoy led the Eagles with 79 rushing yards and the score. Foles finished 21 of 37 for 331 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
One week after entering halftime with a 17-0 deficit, the Eagles trailed 17-6 at the break against the Colts. The Colts possessed the ball for 18 minutes, 17 seconds, keeping the Eagles' offense off the field. Indianapolis also stymied the Eagles on their scoring opportunities.
The Eagles had drives stall at the Colts' 20-yard line, 14-yard line, and 8-yard line. They scored only six points in those three possessions near the end zone. Cody Parkey's missed 38-yard field goal did not help, but the Eagles needed those drives to result in touchdowns - not field goal attempts.
Meanwhile, the Colts' running game overmatched the Eagles defense in the first half. Even with Luck at quarterback and going against the Eagles' inconsistent pass defense, the Colts ran more than the passed in the first half. They averaged 5.3 yards per carry, with Trent Richardson and Ahmad Bradshaw finding holes through a rush defense that was stout last season.
The Colts also scored on both of their red zone trips. The first touchdown was a fourth-and-1 conversion from Luck to Bradshaw. The second was a two-yard rollout to reserve tight end Jack Doyle with just more than one minute remaining in the first half.
Just like the opening weekend, the Eagles rebounded from a lackluster first half. After the Colts built a 20-6 lead, the Eagles scored two touchdowns within two minutes to tie the game. The first score came when Foles tried connecting with Riley Cooper on a deep pass in the end zone. Cooper could not secure the catch, but he drew a critical pass interference that netted the Eagles 35 yards. McCoy rushed for a one-yard score two plays later for the Eagles' first touchdown.
On the first play of the ensuing drive, Fletcher Cox stripped Colts running back Trent Richardson at the Colts' 26-yard line. DeMeco Ryans jumped on the ball, and momentum had appeared to shift in the game.
The Eagles tied the game with the help of two critical running plays. McCoy took the ball on a third-and-15 at the 31-yard line and juked his way for a 21-yard play to keep the drive alive. Three plays later, Sproles pinballed through the Colts defense for a 19-yard score. It was Sproles' second rushing touchdown in two weeks, and tied the game at 20.
The Eagles return to Philadelphia for a condensed week of preparation for their first NFC East game of the season when Washington visits on Sunday.
zberman@phillynews.com
@ZBerm
Posted by Unknown on Monday, September 15, 2014 - Rating: 4.5
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