Week 1 Wrap-Up: Eagles vs. Browns

(Photo: Philadelphia Eagles)

In a game of true struggle filled with critical penalties and five disappointing turnovers, the Eagles barely escaped with the win after Clay Harbor’s touchdown catch from Michael Vick late in the fourth quarter.

Among the many areas of struggle for the Eagles, one of the biggest was the unusually dismal play of quarterback, Michael Vick who accounted for 4 of the Eagles’ 5 turnovers by throwing four interceptions; one of which was returned for a touchdown. Throughout much of the game, Vick appeared to be thrown off by Cleveland’s pass rushers as most of his snaps resulted in wild scrambles and poor passing decisions.


Because of the play of Michael Vick, partly due to poor blocking by the Eagles’ offensive line, most of the Eagles receivers were very quiet throughout the game. Although Desean Jackson had a few big gains early in the first half, he was nearly shut out in the second half leaving Jeremy Maclin to be Vick’s main go-to receiver for the game. One receiver, who played big when it mattered, in his true fashion, was Jason Avant who made critical 3rd down catches to help move the Birds down the field.

After the passing game seemed to fail Philadelphia, the Eagles relied heavily on Lesean McCoy to help move the ball. Though he himself had a turnover, Shady McCoy had some key runs for the Eagles offense. Second string running back, Bryce Brown, also got several touches throughout the game although his contribution was not as big as one of the league’s top running backs of 2011.

While the game proved to be a struggle for the Eagles, the defense showed great strength with critical stops throughout the game holding the Cleveland offense to just three field goals. Another highlight for the Eagles defense was the three turnovers forced including two interceptions by cornerback, Dominique Rogers-Cromartie and safety Kurt Coleman. It was Coleman’s second interception that sealed the victory for the Birds.

Next Sunday, the Eagles look to extend to 2-0 in a more impressive fashion against the Baltimore Ravens in Philadelphia. Kickoff is at 1:00pm.