Eagles-Lions Diary: The Giving Season Comes Early

On the first Detroit drive, the Lions show spunk with retread QB Shaun Hill saving a sack on an outlet to dangerous rookie RB Jahvid Best, and convert a third down to get into field goal position as star WR Calvin Johnson abuses DB Ellis Hobbs. But the Lions show their lack of confidence in the line play by trying for a deep jump ball into the end zone to TE Tony Scheffler, and Eagles rookie S Nate Allen makes his second career pick in two games as Fox chuckleheads Sam Rosen and Tim Ryan can't read the name on his jersey before the commerce. So nice to have the B Team, and non-HD coverage...

On the subsequent Eagle drive, a second and 1 is stuffed, and the third and one is quasi-trickery on a throwback TE screen to Brent Celek. Yes, this will be a power-free offense. Lions LB Julian Peterson picks up a big flag on an arm to the head, and QB Michael Vick connects with WR DeSean Jackson for a 45-yard slant to the house. Nice moment from DJ both on the field and off, as he repeatedly gives the ball to Vick on the sidelines with an emphatic "That's you, man, that's you!" There's no denying the fact that the Eagle locker room is solidly behind Vick, and has been for a while, really. 7-0 Eagles, and that was pretty. Later, Millen tells us that the linebackers had no choice in catching DJ on that play. Wrong! They could have chosen to be much, much faster. Or in better position. Or not to have been linebackers. There is always a choice, Matt!

Best continues his good game on the next drive with huge holes up the middle, and the Fox B team continues to shine in coverage by having the camera angle blocked by rising fans on a big run. I get that Lion Fan doesn't normally stand up in games, but you have to think that the television professionals might plan for this emergency. The Lions cap off the drive with more kitten-soft run defense, as Best goes in from 14. Ye gads; 6 plays, 67 yards, all of it on runs. I'd be nauseated, but it's hard to bring up nausea without any real amount of surprise. After only a decade of film, has the world gotten wise to the idea that the way to beat an Andy Reid defense is to run straight up the gut, especially when sub-replacement level LB Omar Geither is on the field instead of Stewart Bradley. 7-7 and we're looking shootout-ish now.

Oh, and when the HD game is not broadcast in HD, we lose portions of the screen to the landscape formatting. Joy.

The Lion defense keeps encroaching, which helps, but the Eagles keep falling -- Vick on the first drive to no effect, Mike Bell on the second, and Bell takes down Jason Peters as well -- keep falling, Peters perhaps seriously. This year just keeps getting better. King Dunlap on for Peters, and Green calls screens, smartly, to move the chains. Vick for six unassisted, and he's the first QB over 30 to rush for 100 yards in a game. Well, it's a soft 30, I suppose. On third and three with a jailbreak pass rush, Vick somehow throws it 40 yards downfield to DJ, who has one of those "Finish The Catch" moments that's ruled a catch, but should be overturned. If for no other reason than Lions Fan is raw over this rule to start. A flag is picked up for unsportsmanlike as the zebras forget about the coaching freakout from the Lion bench, and we go into a long delay before the inevitable overturn. Peters returns in the hour that it takes the refs to make the call. The play is finally reversed, and the Eagles punt. Maybe the team has found a run defense in the hour since the Lions had the ball. Sav Rocca hits a good one, and the Lions start at their 5 after a face mask backs up the fair catch.

Best for nothing on first, and then a false start; this is in the realm of safety here with a pass rush. Best for a loss to the 1 as Green sells out to the run; interesting. Hill airmails a fly route to Johnson, and that's a three and out. Helpful, but Lions punter Nick Harris kills it, and a weak DJ return and a hold causes 72 yards of field change.

On first, Vick pumps and fumbles from not sensing the rush; Winston Justice on the whiff, but at least he gets the fumble. Peters is down again, and have I mentioned how much I'm enjoying this year? Dunlap back in for 2nd and 18. McCoy for a nice run out of the gun, but it comes back on a flag. Long, ugly first quarter here. Vick has all day and an open DJ on 2nd and 23, but he underthrows it for a knockdown and near pick, and that's the end of the first quarter. Not good.

Vick ends the drive with a take what he can get scramble. Rocca enjoys the dome, and PR Stefan Logan gets a nice return that's aided by a dumb taunt by rookie S and marginal NFLer Kurt Coleman. The Lions go for the lead after commerce, but Hill's inaccuracy on first and second is really noticeable. Third and 10 is a blitz that Hill panics on early for an ineffective scramble, but a defensive hold turns the sticks, and this team is really struggling with the flags in the first two games.

False start, Detroit; they are sending the tapes of this one to Canton, because they have an incinerator there. Shotgun draw to Best gets smashed. Hill to TE Brandon Pettigrew sets up a long third down that fails on good pressure. K Jason Hanson hits from 49, and the Lions lead. That's 3 points from a single defensive holding flag. Lions 10, Eagles 7.

Peters to return, because 60% of him is better than 100% of Dunlap. Vick rolls out, gets hammered, and completes a pass to WR Jason Avant while falling; wow. That's seven wildly painful yards. A weird handoff mix up ends with McCoy for the first. Bell for five in a line straight ahead, and that was mildly tough. DJ for an end-around for four, and he wisely gets to the ground, rather than take a big hit. Third and 1 is the terror down for this offense, and they fix the problem by OL Nick Cole taking a flag. Joy. And since Andy Reid can't waste timeouts to prevent flags, he uses one after it. I'm going to miss him so. One day. From the gun on third and six, Vick hits Avant, who drops it for the change of possession. Rocca's punt off a high snap bounces inside the five, but the Eagle special teams can't down it. The Lions start at their own 20.

A run to the side gets little, and Hill to Bryant Johnson makes it third and five. From the gun, Hill throws a screen to Best that the Eagles know is coming, and yet fail utterly to defend anyway. That's a 75 yard screen pass for the touchdown, yet another reason why Joselio Hanson needs to be unemployed, and 17 straight points for the home team. Lions 17, Eagles 7, and Best's fourth touchdown of the year already. Good grief.

Everything on Vick now. A safe outlet from pressure to FB Owen Schmidt gets eight. Celek off a nice play fake to move the sticks. Bell gets nothing inside. Fox informs us that Vick doesn't eat fast food anymore, so I guess this means he's not a reprehensible felon anymore. On pressure, an incomplete, and it's 3rd and 9 with the game on the line, really, given how leaky the defense has been to date. Vick bails out the line on a blitz, then finds WR Riley Cooper on a drag, and that's a first down. I'm not sure he shouldn't be the starter now, given how bad the line is. As in response, he tries DJ deep on a ball that should have been picked, then misses Avant for a long third down, outside of field goal range. Vick wills and spins for a scramble, and he gets the first down by a nose. Wow. Vick to Schmidt on nice protection and ball, and that's another first. Say this for Vick; he's not fixating on a single target, though he still does telegraph throws. He misses Celek, who was covered, in the end zone. Just as I'm about to chastise Reid for ignoring the run, it's a shotgun handoff to McCoy, who takes it right up the gut for a score. Big, big drive there. Akers with the low point after, and it's Lions 17, Eagles 14, just when they needed it.

CB Dmitri Patterson with a moment of redemption for the earlier 3-point holding penalty, and the kickoff coverage looks less porous today. Can they stop Best? On first down, he loses four as S Quentin Mikell steps up. On second, Hill takes a hole with clarity, and that's a long scramble as the Eagles sell out for Best. On third and one, it's a toss outside to the back, and he breaks it back to move the sticks. His rookie of the year candidacy is getting a major boost from Green. Two minute warning, as the Lions show some Reid-esque clock management skills. Ryan seems some need to praise Hill's plainly inadequate arm strength; hokay. On third and five, he throws a jump ball to Johnson, but the ball isn't controlled to the ground, and that is that. The Lions punt before a merciful review, and Vick will have 72 seconds and two timeouts (not three, of course, that would be cheating) to try to tie this, assuming that Reid lets them try it from their own 11.

A draw to McCoy moves the sticks and encourages Green, as Lions S Louis Delmas limps off. A big potential loss, if only because this secondary was suspect already. Avant for a short and pointless gain; second time out, 51 seconds left. On second and 2, Vick fins DJ for a seemingly effortless deep bomb, and that was just perfection, effortless perfection. Wow. 53 yards total, DT Kyle Vanden Bosch goes down, and there's 37 seconds left in the half for a game that's suddenly trending hard Green. From the gun at the 17, Vick's blitzed and misses Cooper on the hot out. From the gun on second, Vick spins out of a blind side blitz and gains the corner for the first down; huge play by Vick, bad miss by the blitzer. Terrible out to McCoy burns the final time out with 18 seconds left, and they'd have been much better off with Shady knocking it down there. Second and goal from the 9 is a drop back and TD pass to WR Jeremy Maclin, who makes his first catch of the day a real good one for the go-ahead score. Maclin got away with a clear push off, and Eagle Fan can't see Akers kick this PAT fast enough. Cheaty! Eagles 21, Lions 17 with 13 seconds left, and we're going to see Mac's malfeasance in every highlight film tonight. It also says something that the Lion DB isn't even coached well enough to cry about that. Vick now with 225 yards of total offense, and he's winning some fantasy matchups and giving every Kevin Kolb detractor ammo. That's the half.

The Shooter Mom shows up after the half, and we watch a nice out to Maclin to move the sticks. DJ fights for a cross for 8. McCoy off a shotgun handoff for the first. A stuffed run and dropped pass by Maclin sets up third and 13, and the Lions finally catch up to Vick for a coverage sack. An open and shut penalty by the punt coverage gives the Lions the ball at their 30.

A stuffed run and a nothing screen gives the Lions 3rd and 11, and this is a big play, even though the Fox chatterheads have to talk about Vick. Jailbreak from DE Trent Cole and that's a hurried incomplete, and a three and out. Lions punter Harris gives DJ a little room, but the hole isn't quite big enough. Maybe telling for later.

From the 35, it's a slow screen to McCoy for a couple, and some growling about a late hit at the tail end of the play. DT Suh takes Vick down on a sack by the head, and how that's not a horse collar or a face mask is kind of ridiculous. The QB has his revenge on an insanely athletic play and 29-yard deep ball to DJ, and how he doesn't keep this job, I don't know; Kolb would have taken a half dozen sacks by now. Five yards for McCoy on a run, then pretty touch by Vick to Maclin to move the sticks. Vick then performs sleight-of-hand to get a ball to Celek for eight, and it's just a showcase for him right now. McCoy for a yard to the 20, and that's third and one. Beautiful flip call to McCoy gets the corner, and a horse collar tackle gets it inside the five. McCoy finishes the drive on a nice run up the gut, and that could be the kill shot. Eagles 28, Lions 17, and the red zone work here today has been exemplary.

The first weakoff kickoff coverage of the day isn't too bad, but a throw to Petitgrew gets the Lions to midfield; first time today that the TE has made a play for the Lions. RB Mercury Morris wiggles out of trouble to get to third and seven. From the gun, Hill miss Johnson by a yard to the left, and Hobbs takes the pick and dances the happy dance.

Vick fumbles a handoff, not exactly an auspicious start to a possible kill shot drive. Timeout on 2nd and 11, because even when things go well, we need to waste those. Real bad screen is covered, leading to a real bad sack; that's a 12 yard loss. On 3rd and 23 from the gun, Vick tries Maclin deep, and the corner can't make the long arm punt pick. Rocca's punt is long, on the sideline, and gives the Lions the ball at their 22. He's liking indoor kicking.

Best for 9 on a screen, then rides the line to just move the sticks. DE Juqua Parker is held without a flag, but that's an incomplete. A deep screen to Petitgrew is covered beautifully by Allen and Mikell, who nearly picks it, but it's ruled an incomplete. Hill scrambles early on third, but finds the TE to convert, and the Lions have the ball at midfield. At the end of three, it's Eagles 28, Lions 17, and it's still a game.

Best on a screen is tackled by LB Ernie Sims, who gets late hit by ex-teammate C Dominic Raiola; off-setting laundry. Joy. From the gun again, Johnson catches a short one, loses it on the ground, but it's ruled down for a short gain, rather than a fumble. 3rd and 2 from the gun is a shovel screen to backup RB Aaron Brown that moves the sticks again, and the Lions continue to stay in this game on tape and spit. From the gun on first, Hill finds Brown for a flat out for 8. Brown on a shotgun carry for a yard, and it's 3rd and 1 from the 28, and a power formation goes nowhere. Nice work by the defense there. Rather than try a field goal to cut it to 8, the Lions try the same play, and get the same result. We have our You Crap moment!

Vick endangers himself badly for a first down throw to deep bencher Garrett Mills; Reid needs to take the ball out of his hands and protect the investment at this point. On third and five, Bell misses a pass, and so much for grinding the clock. Not good. Rocca's punt goes out of bounds at the 14, and there's no reason why the Lions are still in this game, and yet they are.

Graham on the sidelines with an injury; not the ideal homecoming for him, as he's on the stretcher now. Sweet coverage of a screen, and then DT Trevor Laws and Parker eat Hill alive. That was terrifying. Fumble and sack recovered by the Lions. Third down is a sideline fly that lands without a flag, and that's a mighty fine three and out. DJ takes the punt to his own 41 with 7:49 left.

Celek with another drop; he does that too often. McCoy on a great run up the gut, but it all comes back on a holding call. This team just doesn't want to make things easy on itself. On 2nd and 16, Cooper with another drop, and seriously, who needs to take time off the clock? Cooper limping a bit, but stays out there. From the gun, Vick to Avant from good protection, and the Michigan wideout makes the conversion with some toughness. Really nice. Graham walks off, and McCoy delivers the coup de grace with a 46-yard burst up the gut. Now, this is the Lions defense I remember. Eagles 35, Lions 17, and we are into Garbage Time now.

Hill to Petitgrew, Johnson and Petitgrew for cheap yards and no real damage, and then Petitgrew breaks away from Gaither for a big gain. In the red zone, Brown can't catch the hot route, then a cross to Best where he torches Sims, then gets in on the short score. Best has every Lions score this year, five in all, and hopefully, that mattered more to fantasy players than reality. Eagles 35, Lions 24, and I'd still like to see more time off this clock.

Adding to his You Crap moment, Schwartz kicks away, rather than try the onside kick with 4:15 left. Vick with 321 yards total, and he'll have to add to it to salt this one away. McCoy for a yard and the clock runs. Weird scramble screen to McCoy burns more clock and gets a yard; Lions call time. Third and 8 for the win is Vick from the gun, and he scrambles left, tries to stay in bounds, gets hammered and spikes the ball for an extra five yards of frustration. Maybe Vick wants to ease the QB controversy by matching Kolb's concussion? The Lions still have two timeouts and 3:14 left, and Lion Fan is smelling the comeback. A clip on the return isn't called, and with 3:01 left, the Lions start at their 44.

Best, yet again, for 15; clock running and the Lions don't move that fast. Hill has Bryant Johnson deep, but throws it away. 2:31 left, and this one has suspense that is completely unmerited. Best makes another man miss and moves the sticks; he's their whole team. Lions call time with 2:23 left, and Sims is just losing this matchup. One Lions timeout left.

Best now with 8 for 153; make it 9 for 154 after a dump against the blitz. 2:18 left. Petitgrew moves the sticks, and the Lions now have two 100-yard receivers, neither of them Calvin Johnson. Two minute warning. Hill hits Johnson for a touchdown, but the play comes back for an illegal formation; phew. He was way too open, and that was way too easy, as somehow Hanson was on Johnson. Yeesh. And then the exact same play happens, and that's just ridiculous. No pressure on the passer, no double on their best wideout, and if Schwartz had taken his field goal, the 2-point conversion to Johnson would have tied the game. Just unreal. Eagles 35, Lions 32. I keep thinking that this Eagles defense has athletes, has promise, and has moments... and then they just give up points late, rather than salt the game away. Career high in yards for Hill.

Onside kick for the game. This is harder than it used to be, but not hard enough; the Lions recover as Cooper blows the handle. With 1:50 left, this is now looking like a collapse for the ages.

One timeout remaining hardly matters now, really. From the gun on first, Hill tries Johnson and limps from a hit; incomplete. Hill misses Best on pressure, and the QB still looks off. 3rd and 10. Allen makes a play on Bryant Johnson, and no flag. Why you aren't going to Petitgrew, Best or Johnson makes no sense at all. 4th and 10, and the Eagles call time to set coverage. 92 seconds left, ball game on this play, really. Hanson knocks down a ball to TE Tony Scheffler and that, finally, is that. In four plays with the game on the line and the clock not a problem, the Lions never get the ball to Best. If you can make any sense of that, you are a better man than I. As an Eagles fan, I'm just happy for the gift. And lo, There Was Gifting.

Next week, they go to Jacksonville. Maybe they'll even bring a defense, or an offensive line. But on the plus side, they are not the last place team in the division. How 'Bout Them Cowboys!