Sunday was opening day for the Philadelphia Eagles NFL team. I'm still thrilled to be able to be on the sidelines where the players have turned from those grown-up men to those young kids. Talk about thrilling, at the end of the singing of the national anthem, Navy jets did a fly-by. You hear the faint scream of their engines grow into a very loud roar as they zoom over the stadium in about .45 seconds.


It was a stress-free day for Eagles fans. They scored on their first possession and never looked back. On their opening drive, from left, Philadelphia Eagles WR #10 DeSean Jackson, makes a big catch in the first quarter to the Rams' 20 yd line with St Louis Rams #26 Tye Hill defending.

There were other big catches, too, Here is Philadelphia Eagles WR # 83 Greg Lewis, right, hauling in a long pass in the 2nd quarter with St Louis Rams #26 Tye Hill, once again getting burnt, I mean defending on the play.

Even the Eagles' formerly ineffectual special teams made their mark. Here is #39 Quintin Demps jumping over the goal line to tip a punt back into play to be downed by teammates in the 2nd quarter.

And on the return side, rising star #10 DeSean Jackson returns a punt to the St Louis Rams 9-yd-line in the 3rd quarter. I believe that makes for what they call a short field ;)



Quarterback Donovan (healthy) McNabb threw for 361 yards...


...and he even ran (for his life) for a few.

And let's not forget the defense. "We need to talk... or maybe you need to sit down." St Louis Rams QB Marc Bulger, left of center, is sacked in the first quarter Philadelphia Eagles #98 Mike Patterson and #90 Darren Howard, right, leading to a 4th and 15.



And here's Brian Westbrook, who last year accounted for the most combined yards, catching, running. Like my son, Andy always says "Don't stand on the tracks when the train's coming."