Eagles Move One Step Closer

Duce Staley ran for 100 yards and third-string quarterback A.J. Feeley threw for 190 yards and two touchdowns as the Eagles held Matt Hasselbeck in check to beat the Seattle Seahawks 27-20 Sunday.

Feeley's 20-yard touchdown pass to Todd Pinkston early in the third quarter gave Philadelphia (10-3) a 27-6 lead, and the Eagles held on for their fourth straight victory and seventh in the last eight games. They are 3-0 without starting quarterback Donovan McNabb, who has a broken right ankle.

It wasn't as close as the final score suggested. The Seahawks trimmed it to 27-20 on Hasselbeck's 11-yard pass to Jerramy Stevens with 45 seconds to play, but the Eagles recovered Seattle's onside kick and ran out the clock.

The Seahawks (4-9) outgained Philadelphia 367-316, but that was aided by a fourth-quarter push that came up short. Hasselbeck threw for two TDs in the final 17 minutes.

Philadelphia must wait at least one more week to clinch its second straight NFC East title.

After career-high passing days over the last two weeks, including a 427-yard performance last week at San Francisco, Hasselbeck was pressured most of the day by the NFL's No. 3 defense.

He completed 24 of 45 passes for 223 yards with two TDs and three interceptions. He scrambled for 62 yards.

Over the previous two weeks, Seattle had posted consecutive 500-yard offensive days for the first time in franchise history. They couldn't get there this time, despite Shaun Alexander's 123 yards rushing on 17 carries.

Seattle pulled to 27-13 on Hasselbeck's 8-yard TD pass to Koren Robinson with 2:04 remaining in the third quarter. The Seahawks forced a punt, and Alexander broke a 58-yard run on the final play of the third quarter.

That moved the ball to the 23-yard line, but Seattle couldn't score. Coach Mike Holmgren decided to go for it on fourth-and-2 at the 15, and Hasselbeck's throw to tight end Jerramy Stevens was off the mark.

One week after Philadelphia's defense sacked Rams quarterback Kurt Warner eight times, the Eagles got to Hasselbeck four times. They contained his dangerous scrambling and pressured him into mistakes.

Cornerback Bobby Taylor had two interceptions, diving for one on an athletic play in the second period. That led to a 21-yard TD run by Staley, who broke through the left side and cut back into the end zone for a 14-6 lead.

David Akers kicked field goals of 33 and 40 yards to give Philadelphia a 20-6 lead at the break.

Feeley had a respectable day, completing 21 of 35 passes. But the Eagles also benefited from good field position, starting four drives inside Seattle territory through the first three quarters.

The Seahawks looked great early, dictating the first-quarter pace by scoring on their first two possessions. Rian Lindell kicked field goals from 34 and 43 yards to put the Seahawks ahead 6-0.

Philadelphia's offense, limited to 11 yards rushing at that point, picked up late in the first period. Feeley threw a 6-yard TD pass to James Thrash to help the Eagles to a 7-6 lead.

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