They did it. The Eagles came, they played hard and well on defense and offense, and then, most importantly, they finished the game, winning a huge, hard-fought victory over division rivals the Dallas Cowboys. Perhaps even more satisfying, they completely defeated ex-teammate Terrell Owens, making him a non-factor in the game. The Eagles might not have been the only ones involved in removing him from the game; there might also have been some bad juju working against him, thanks to a couple of recent promotions by local radio stations, wherein piles of T.O. jerseys were burned in a gigantic bonfire, and a car with "81" spray-painted on it was attacked by fans armed with sledgehammers and other implements of destruction. But regardless of what did it, T.O.'s stats in the game speak for themselves: three catches for only 45 yards and zero touchdowns. T.O.'s main contribution to the game was whining and complaining on the sidelines. The fans treated him to some brutal "O.D." chanting, while he dropped passes, or waited for throws that never came.

Speaking of the fans, their huge presence in the stands and the incredible amount of noise and enthusiasm they brought to the game definitely made an impact, forcing Dallas to waste a timeout at least once. Thankfully they also weren't too obnoxious; we didn't hear about any shameful incidents of violence or trash-throwing this time around.

But anyway, if T.O. wasn't the star of the game, who was? We'd say the Eagles defense. They put tons of pressure on Cowboys' QB Bledsoe, sacking him seven times and coming up with five turnovers. One of those turnovers was possibly the greatest moment in a game of many great moments. Dallas was threatening to score and drag the game into an agonizing overtime at the end of the fourth quarter when Lito Sheppard intercepted a pass in the end zone and ran the ball all the way back for a 102-yard touchdown that clinched the Eagles' victory.

But let's not also forget the great performance by the birds' offense. McNabb passed for 354 yards and ran in a touchdown himself on a quarterback sneak. Meanwhile, rookie Hank Baskett had three big catches for 112 yards and really showed his worth. One of the most exciting and effective offensive plays was probably the flea-flicker that put the Eagles back in the lead near the middle of the last quarter. The Dallas defensive line was totally thrown off balance by the fake run, giving McNabb the time and space to deliver a touchdown pass to Reggie Brown.

Sure, the Eagles made some mistakes, as well. This was not a comfortable game; it never is with our birds. They had a few turnovers of their own, one of which led directly to a Dallas TD. Also, Reid insisted on calling passing plays when running the ball would have made a lot more sense. But the important thing is, the birds came through when it counted with some really explosive plays. They showed their worth and their talent. This was a great game, an exciting game, an important game, a satisfying game. Let's hope there's plenty more of this kind of playing in the team's future.

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