2003 Philadelphia Eagles season The 2003 Philadelphia Eagles season was their 71st in the league . They matched their previous season ' s record , going 12 – 4 , however , they were again upset in the NFC Conference Championship . The team made the playoffs for the fourth straight year , won its third straight NFC East division title , and had the NFC ' s top record for the second straight season . After losing their final game in Veterans Stadium to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 2002 NFC Championship , Philadelphia looked to turn the page with the opening of brand - new Lincoln Financial Field , but the stadium got an inaspicious start when the Eagles dropped their first two games there , including a season - opening loss to Tampa Bay . A crushing loss to the Dallas Cowboys left the Eagles , expected to compete for the Super Bowl , at a precarious 2 – 3 , and it looked to be 2 – 4 before Brian Westbrook returned a punt for a touchdown to shock the New York Giants in the closing minutes of their Week 7 contest . The play turned the Eagles ' season around and they won their next nine games , finishing with a 12 – 4 record . In the playoffs , the Eagles needed a miracle conversion on 4th and 26 to defeat the Green Bay Packers , but the magic had run out by the next week and the team dropped a 14 – 3 decision to the Carolina Panthers at Lincoln Financial Field in the NFC Championship . A preseason holdout by running back Duce Staley resulted in a running back by committee situation by Staley , Westbrook , and Correll Buckhalter . The trio rushed for a combined 1 , 613 yards and 20 touchdowns and became known as " The Three - Headed Monster . " The rushing attack , which also benefited from 355 rushing yard and three touchdowns by quarterback Donovan McNabb , carried the offense , which featured a weak receiving corps that did not record a touchdown until Week 9 . There were calls early in the season to replace McNabb with backup A . J . Feeley , but McNabb would find his rhythm and enjoy a great season . The defense weathered early injuries to defensive backs Bobby Taylor and Brian Dawkins to eventually surrender the seventh - fewest points in the league . Cornerback Troy Vincent , in his final season as an Eagle , was elected to the Pro Bowl . The weakness in the defense would be in stopping the run , something the team struggled with even at the height of their nine - game winning streak . Off Season . Player Selections . The table shows the Eagles selections and what picks they had that were traded away and the team that ended up with that pick . It is possible the Eagles ' pick ended up with this team via another team that the Eagles made a trade with . Not shown are acquired picks that the Eagles traded away . Regular season . Week 1 : vs . Tampa Bay Buccaneers . The Tampa Bay Buccaneers , who ruined the Eagles ' bid for a Super Bowl the previous season by defeating them in the their final game at Veteran ' s Stadium , spoiled the opening of Lincoln Financial Field by thoroughly dominating the Eagles in a 17 – 0 shutout . A big run by James Thrash gave the Eagles a chance at an early field goal , but head coach Andy Reid tried a fake field goal to rookie tight end L . J . Smith , who let the ball go off of his fingertips . Early in the second quarter , Tampa Bay put up a field goal for a 3 – 0 lead , while the Eagles looked out of sync . A touchdown pass to Joe Jurevicius , who had made a huge reception in the 2002 NFC Championship , made it 10 – 0 . Jurevicius caught another short touchdown on the next drive , which ate half of the fourth quarter . The loss was thoroughly embarrassing , and adding injury to insult , Brian Dawkins and Bobby Taylor both had to leave the game with injuries . Week 2 : vs . New England Patriots . The situation went from bad to worse as the Eagles suffered a second straight disastrous loss , again at their new home . The defense , already ravaged by injuries , fought hard and held the New England Patriots to only a first quarter field goal . Duce Staley scored Philadelphia ' s first points of the season early in the second quarter , but two Tom Brady touchdown passes in the second quarter made it 17 – 7 Patriots at halftime . Brady found Deion Branch for a touchdown in the third quarter before Eagles ' placekicker David Akers booted a 57 - yarder , his career high . Tedy Bruschi intercepted Donovan McNabb for a touchdown to break it open at 31 – 10 . In total , the offense gave up six turnovers and seven sacks . Week 4 : at Buffalo Bills . After two devastating losses to start the season , the Eagles used an early bye week to regroup and defeated the Buffalo Bills a 23 – 13 . The Eagles methodically built a 16 – 0 lead through the first three quarters . Correll Buckhalter scored a short touchdown in the first quarter , and David Akers added three field goals . In the final period , Drew Bledsoe rallied Buffalo to two straight touchdowns , cutting the lead to 16 – 13 . However , Brian Westbrook broke a tackle at the line of scrimmage and charged through the middle for a 62 - yard touchdown run to seal the deal . Donovan McNabb , nursing a sore thumb on his throwing hand , threw for 172 yards and rushed for 47 , while the defense played a solid game , especially in the first half . Week 5 : vs Washington Redskins . Coming off a crucial win at Buffalo , the Eagles battled their division - rival Washington Redskins to a 27 – 25 victory . David Akers opened the scoring with a 52 - yard field goal , and a short touchdown pass from Donovan McNabb to fullback Jon Ritchie gave Philadelphia a 10 – 0 lead in the second quarter . Redskin quarterback Patrick Ramsey rushed for a touchdown to cut into the Eagles ' lead , and the teams traded field goals to make it 13 – 10 Eagles at halftime . In the third quarter , the Redskins tied the game on a field goal . The Eagles defense restored the lead when defensive lineman Darwin Walker hit Ramsey as he was throwing , flinging the ball into the air and into the arms of teammate N . D . Kalu who returned it 15 yards for the touchdown . After another Washington field goal in the fourth quarter , Brian Westbrook scored on 19 - yard run with three minutes left to play , which put Philadelphia up 27 – 16 and appeared to end the game , as in Buffalo the previous week . The Redskins instead mounted a furious rally , with kicker John Hall booting a 53 - yard field goal , the special teams recovering an onside kick , and Ramsey firing a 32 - yard touchdown pass to Darnerien McCants with seconds remaining . However , the Eagles broke up the two - point conversion to preserve Philadelphia ' s first victory in Lincoln Financial Field . The defense turned in a relatively strong performance despite the absence of Pro Bowlers Brian Dawkins , Troy Vincent , and Bobby Taylor . Week 6 : at Dallas Cowboys . The 2 – 2 Eagles met the 3 – 1 Dallas Cowboys and fell to them 23 – 21 , their first loss to Dallas since 1999 . Andy Reid tried an opening kickoff onsides kick , which had helped spark the Eagles ' 2000 season opening route of Dallas , but the Cowboys ' new coach , Bill Parcells , was not fooled and the gamble blew up in Philadelphia ' s face . Randal Williams fielded the bouncing kick and raced into the end zone untouched in three seconds – the fastest touchdown in NFL history . Brian Westbrook ' s five - yard touchdown run in the second quarter tied the score , but Billy Cundiff kicked a field goal just before halftime to make it 10 – 7 Dallas . Troy Hambrick finished a third quarter Dallas drive with a one - yard touchdown to open a 17 – 7 Cowboy lead . A 52 - yard catch - and - run by Duce Staley on the Eagles ' ensuing drive brought Philadelphia within three points , but the Cowboys answered back with another field goal . With less than five minutes left to play , Correll Buckhalter broke free for a 20 - yard touchdown run , giving Philadelphia a 21 – 20 lead . A long kick return helped set up Dallas ' go - ahead field goal . Donovan McNabb , who struggled mightily throughout the game with a thumb injury , could not advance the team into field goal range after James Thrash returned the kickoff to midfield . Westbrook , Staley , and Buckhalter combined for over 100 rushing yards and three touchdowns . The loss dropped Philadelphia to 2 – 3 and a repeat of a division title appeared in doubt . Week 7 : at New York Giants . Brian Westbrook delivered the play of the year for the Eagles , returning a punt with less than two minutes left to win the game 14 – 10 over the New York Giants . In the first quarter , Westbrook ' s five - yard touchdown run ( his fourth in four games ) gave Philadelphia a 7 – 0 lead . New York got a field goal in the second quarter and a Jeremy Shockey touchdown reception in the third to take a 10 – 7 lead . It could have been more , as they drove inside the Philadelphia 40 - yard line seven times , but usually squandered their opportunities . Meanwhile , the Eagles ' offense was virtually non - existent throughout the game . Donovan McNabb had his worst game as a professional , only completing 9 - of - 23 passes for a meager 64 yards . Inside the two - minute warning , the Giants forced the Eagles to burn their timeouts , then punted to give it back to the dormant Philadelphia offense and end the game . However , Westbrook fielded the Jeff Feagles punt on a bounce , broke through the first few defenders , and began to race down the left sideline and into the end zone , stealing the victory and saving the Eagles ' season . The 84 - yard punt return was a turning point for Philadelphia , saving them from falling to 2 – 4 and propelling them on a what would be a nine - game winning streak . Week 8 : vs New York Jets . A week after the so - called " Miracle at the Meadowlands III " , the Eagles defeated the Big Apple ' s other team , the New York Jets , 24 – 17 in a sea - saw game . After a 30 - yard field goal gave New York the first points , Correll Buckhalter scored on a six - yard run to take the lead . Santana Moss hauled in a 60 - yard bomb from Jets quarterback Vinny Testaverde to go up 10 – 7 . In the second quarter , Buckhalter scored his second touchdown , from seven yards out , to retake the lead for Philadelphia . For the Jets , quarterback Chad Pennington , returning from a preseason injury , took over midgame as planned . After a Donovan McNabb interception in the third quarter , Pennington drove his team down the field and LaMont Jordan finished the drive with a touchdown run and a 17 – 14 New York lead . McNabb rebounded and led the Eagles to a go - ahead touchdown – a four - yard pass to fullback Jon Ritchie . A big tackle by Darwin Walker on LaMont Jordan on 4th and 1 led to Philadelphia ' s final points – a field goal by David Akers . McNabb passed for 141 yards and a touchdown , an improvement over his dismal performance against the Giants . Buckhalter had his second - career 100 - yard game , along with two scores . The Eagles improved to 4 – 3 and were now only one game out of first place . Week 9 : at Atlanta Falcons . In Week 9 , the Eagles travelled to the Georgia Dome and defeated the lowly Atlanta Falcons 23 – 16 . A turnover on the opening kickoff led to a short field goal for David Akers . Following a Lito Sheppard interception in the red zone , the Donovan McNabb connected with Freddie Mitchell for a 39 - yard touchdown pass – the first to a wide receiver all season for the Eagles . The second quarter belonged to Atlanta , as they scored thirteen unanswered points and went into halftime ahead 13 – 10 . Philadelphia took care of business in the second half , tying the game on a field goal , while the defense stifled the Falcon offense , which switched quarterbacks in the third quarter . A pair of big catches by rookie tight end L . J . Smith powered a drive that ended in a Duce Staley touchdown run and a Philadelphia lead . The teams traded field goals later in the fourth quarter , but the defense kept Atlanta out of the end zone . McNabb had his first 300 - yard passing game in two years , Correll Buckhalter rushed for 92 yards , and L . J . Smith had a breakout performance with six catches for 97 yards . The Eagles went to 5 – 3 and suddenly had three wins in a row . Week 10 : at Green Bay Packers . Playing in a rainy Lambeau Field on Monday Night Football , Donovan McNabb led the Eagles to a last - minute victory over Brett Favre and the Green Bay Packers . Both offenses struggled on a wet field in the first half . David Akers and Ryan Longwell each missed field goals , and the only points of the half would be a 24 - yard touchdown reception by Packer halfback Ahman Green . The Eagles got on the board with a short Akers field goal after a long drive in the third quarter . Donovan McNabb then scored on a one - yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter to give Philadelphia a 10 – 7 lead . However , Ahman Green broke a 45 - yard run to the end zone that put Green Bay back on top 14 – 10 . The Philadelphia defense came up with a big stop to give McNabb and the offense one last chance with 2 : 43 left in the game . McNabb marshalled the team downfield and with less than thirty seconds remaining , he hit Todd Pinkston in the end zone with the game - winning touchdown pass . The Packers struggled to hold onto the ball ( Favre especially ) , and turned it over three times compared to zero turnovers for the Eagles . Ahman Green rushed for 192 yards in defeat ( Green Bay rushed for 241 as a team ) . The suddenly red - hot Eagles were now 6 – 3 on the season . Week 11 : vs New York Giants . Playing at home , the Eagles dominated the New York Giants in an easy 28 – 10 route . The Giants scored first on a short field goal , but the Eagles answered back late in the first quarter when Donovan McNabb drove the team down the field , setting up a one - yard touchdown by Correll Buckhalter . Brian Westbrook scored on a 29 - yard pass play in the second quarter and a four - yard run in the third quarter as Philadelphia went ahead 21 – 3 . Tiki Barber , who rushed for over 100 yards , scored in the fourth quarter , but Westbrook took in his third touchdown on a short pass to end the scoring . McNabb had one of his best games , completing 24 of 30 passes for 314 yards and a pair of touchdowns . Westbrook , developing a reputation as a ' Giant killer , ' had 108 all - purpose yards to go along with his three touchdowns . The win moved the Eagles to 7 – 3 and virtually knocked the reeling Giants out of contention , while A Dallas loss allowed the Eagles to move into a tie for first place in the NFC East . Week 12 : vs New Orleans Saints . In a game that featured 272 penalty yards , the Eagles topped the 5 – 5 New Orleans Saints 33 – 20 . Todd Pinkston pulled down a 48 - yard bomb to open the game , and the drive ended in a chip - shot David Akers field goal . Brian Westbrook scored on a 15 - yard run and it 10 – 0 Eagles . Correll Buckhalter scored in the second quarter as Philadelphia pulled away . Saints quarterback Aaron Brooks completed a touchdown pass later in the quarter , but Akers kicked another field goal to end the half 20 – 7 Philadelphia . After another Akers field goal , Deuce McAllister broke a 76 - yard touchdown run to narrow the score to 23 – 14 . The Eagles , who moved the ball easily all game , responded with another field goal and a Donovan McNabb to fullback Jon Ritchie touchdown pass to open a 33 – 14 lead . McAllister scored again , but the conversion failed and Philadelphia had won its sixth straight . McNabb threw for 259 yards and did not allow an interception for the fourth consecutive week . Duce Staley , McNabb , Westbrook , and Buckhalter combined for 201 rushing yards to counter the 177 rushing yards by McAllister . Week 13 : at Carolina Panthers . The 8 – 3 Eagles and 8 – 3 Carolina Panthers squared off in a key battle for NFC supremacy and the Eagles emerged with the win . A rare Donovan McNabb interception allowed Carolina to score a quick field goal . But he rebounded , leading the Eagles on a 10 - play drive capped by a touchdown plunge by Duce Staley . In the second quarter , David Akers connected for his first field goal . He was good from 48 - yards out in the third quarter to put Philadelphia up 13 – 3 . Carolina ' s offense then struck when Jake Delhomme found Steve Smith for a 24 - yard touchdown pass to make it 13 – 10 going into the final quarter . A long drive by McNabb ended in a big Akers field goal . Then , the defense provided a big play when a blitz by linebacker Nate Wayne caused a fumble , recovered by Darwin Walker . This set up a McNabb 10 - yard touchdown pass to James Thrash , who was pushed into the end zone by Carolina defenders trying to tackle him . The two point conversion by Philadelphia failed . Delhomme completed another touchdown , this one to Muhsin Muhammad , but kicker John Kasay missed the extra point , leaving the score 22 – 16 . Trying to burn the clock , McNabb slowly marched the Eagles down the field and Akers came on to kick his fourth field goal , giving the Eagles a nine - point lead . While Akers was 4 - for - 4 on field goals and won NFC Special Teams Player of the Week , Kasay was 1 - for - 4 with a missed extra point . Staley , Correll Buckhalter , and Brian Westbrook combined for 118 rushing yards , while McNabb was efficient , completing 18 - of - 26 passes . The big win moved Philadelphia to 9 – 3 , with the top record in their conference . Week 14 : vs Dallas Cowboys . In another key game , with the NFC East essentially at stake , the Eagles crushed the Bill Parcells - led Dallas Cowboys 36 – 10 . Dallas tried early to establish their running game , and late in the first quarter , they scored the game ' s first points on a field goal . Philadelphia evened the score in the second quarter , then took the lead when Donovan McNabb guided the offense down the field and tossed a short pass to Brian Westbrook , who broke several tackles on his 16 - yard scamper to the end zone . Dallas responded with a long drive that ended in a Quincy Carter touchdown pass , sending the game to halftime tied 10 – 10 . The Eagles would own the second half . Sheldon Brown picked off Carter , setting up a shovel pass touchdown to Duce Staley . Later , a botched shotgun ended with Carter kicking the ball out of the endzone on an intentional safety as Philadelphia assumed a 19 – 10 lead . Another interception , this one by Bobby Taylor , resulted in tight end L . J . Smith ' s first career touchdown reception . David Akers added a field goal in the fourth quarter , and a 64 - yard burst through the middle by Correll Buckhalter in the final minutes made it 36 – 10 . The defense , especially the pass defense , absolutely shut Dallas down in the final two quarters . McNabb finished with 248 passing yards and three touchdowns and Buckhalter had 115 yards on 13 carries . The Eagles record went to 10 – 3 and the team had all but wrapped up their third straight division title . Week 15 : at Miami Dolphins . On a Monday Night Football matchup in Miami , the Eagles had roughly 20 , 000 fans who made the trip in attendance as they beat the 8 – 4 Dolphins in a shootout . A 59 - yard bomb to Todd Pinkston opened the game , and two plays later , Brian Westbrook danced through the defense and into the end zone on a 21 - yard run for a quick touchdown . The Miami Dolphins answered with a touchdown , and on the Eagles ' ensuing possession , Donovan McNabb took it in himself for a score . Quickly , the Dolphins came back with another touchdown , but Philadelphia retook the lead when Freddie Mitchell completed a 25 - yard touchdown pass to Westbrook , who beat linebacker Zach Thomas , on a trick play . The teams traded field goals before halftime , and in the third quarter a rushing touchdown by Ricky Williams tied the game at 24 – 24 . In the fourth quarter , Correll Buckhalter , on a short sweep , dove over the pylon for the go - ahead touchdown . The Eagles would drain the clock on their next drive and eventually added a field goal to take a ten - point lead and put the game away . The Eagles scored four touchdowns on a defense that had only given up 17 all season . Their record improved to 11 – 3 and their winning streak was now at nine games . Week 16 : vs San Francisco 49ers . A home overtime loss to the San Francisco 49ers snapped the Eagles ' nine - game winning streak . A bad snap led to an early field goal miss for San Francisco , but after an Eagles 3 - and - out , the 49ers took back over and scored on a 15 - yard screen pass to Kevan Barlow . The defense then tightened and creating a turnover that led to a short Duce Staley touchdown run . Todd Pinkston fumbled away a touchdown out of the endzone after catching a long pass from Donovan McNabb . The Eagles took a 14 – 7 lead on another short - yardage Staley touchdown . A 33 - yard pass from Garcia to Brandon Lloyd tied the score at halftime . Before the half was over , 49ers star Terrell Owens had broken his collarbone , and Eagles starting linebacker Carlos Emmons had broken his leg – a big blow for the playoffs . Brian Westbrook returned a punt 81 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter – bringing back recent memories of his big touchdown in the Meadowlands . San Francisco answered with two fields goals and a touchdown by Barlow ( followed by a successful two - point conversion ) to take a 28 – 21 lead . McNabb rallied the Eagles , driving them down the field ( with Freddie Mitchell coming up with a big 4th down reception ) . McNabb beat the blitz and Pinkston made a backward diving catch to tie the game with a minute left . In overtime , Tony Parrish picked off McNabb and returned it inside the Eagles 5 - yard line . Todd Peterson kicked the game winner and the Eagles ' streak ended . McNabb had two interceptions and David Akers missed two field goals . Pinkston had 121 receiving yards and a touchdown , but Barlow rushed for 154 for San Francisco . Week 17 : at Washington Redskins . Playing on a Saturday night to clinch the NFC East title , the Eagles walloped the Washington Redskins 31 – 7 . Donovan McNabb called for a quick snap and threw the ball to Chad Lewis for a touchdown when he noticed Washington had left him uncovered for Philadelphia ' s first score . A 96 - yard drive , the longest of the season , ended with McNabb bootlegging it into the end zone as Philadelphia took control early . Freddie Mitchell made it 21 – 0 Philadelphia with a touchdown reception later in the second quarter . Rock Cartwright scored a one - yard touchdown a few minutes later , but that was all Washington would get . Correll Buckhalter added a touchdown and David Akers kicked a field goal as Philadelphia cruised 31 – 7 . McNabb passed for 242 yards and three touchdowns , Todd Pinkston had 74 receiving yards , and the defense recorded five sacks . However , Brian Westbrook , one of the top weapons of the Philadelphia offense , tore his biceps muscle and was lost for the playoffs . Playoffs . Divisional Round : vs Green Bay Packers . In what became known as the " 4th and 26 game " , the Eagles came back and beat the Green Bay Packers in one of the most dramatic playoff games in their history . Inspired after the death of his father , Brett Favre led the Packers to victories in their final four games to win the NFC North Division , then led the team into overtime against the Seattle Seahawks in a game eventually won on an interception return by former Eagle Al Harris . The Packers were proclaimed by experts as the " team of destiny " and had the sympathy of the nation . The Eagles , who finished 12 – 4 , had ended the season with nine wins in ten games , but had some injuries on defense and were without running back Brian Westbrook for the playoffs . On a wall in the Eagles ' locker room , it was written , " If they ' re the team of destiny , where does that leave us ? " The Eagles offense came out sluggishly , failing to record a first down on their first three drives . One play after Donovan McNabb turned the ball over on a fumble , Brett Favre hit Robert Ferguson with a 40 - yard touchdown pass after Ferguson had burnt the Philadelphia coverage . A 44 - yard scramble by McNabb got Philadelphia into the Green Bay red zone , but David Akers missed a 33 - yard field goal . Favre promptly marched the Packers down the field and found Ferguson again for a 7 - yard touchdown and it was 14 – 0 Packers as the first quarter came to a close . In the second quarter , the Eagles went to the air and McNabb tossed a big 45 - yard pass to Todd Pinkston , then fired a quick 7 - yard touchdown pass to Duce Staley to cut the Packer lead in half . Late in the half , the defense came up with a goal line stand after Green Bay had 1st and goal from the four - yard line . On 4th and 1 , Packer running back Ahman Green was stuffed and the game went to halftime 14 – 7 . On their two possessions in the third quarter , the Packers got inside the Philadelphia 40 - yard line , but they failed to score both times . The Eagles , again attacking through air , drove it into the Green Bay red zone . On the first play of the fourth quarter , McNabb scrambled to the right and found Pinkston in the front right corner of the end zone for the game - tying touchdown . Favre completed a 44 - yard bomb to Javon Walker to get inside the Eagles 10 - yard line a few minutes later , but the Packers settled for a field goal and went up 17 – 14 . With 8 : 44 left to play , the Packers took back over and began a long drive that drained the clock . The drive stalled at the Philadelphia 41 - yard line , and the Packers decided to punt on 4th and 1 with just over two minutes left in regulation . The Eagles took over and immediately Staley burst forward for 22 yards , but a costly sack and two incomplete passes left the Eagles at 4th and 26 from their own 26 - yard line . On what looked to potentially be the final play of their season , McNabb fired a laser over the middle that Freddie Mitchell came down with for a 28 - yard gain . McNabb completed another pass to Mitchell and a 10 - yarder to Pinkston to get to the Packer 19 - yard line . With seconds left in regulation , Akers booted the 33 - yard field goal home and the game went to overtime . After a three - and - out by Philadelphia , Favre was chased on his first play and heaved the ball into the air , almost like a punt . Brian Dawkins caught the pass and the returned it well inside Packer territory . McNabb got the Eagles up to the Packer 13 - yard line and Akers came on to kick the game - winner , sending Philadelphia to the NFC Championship and leaving Green Bay ' s " destiny " in ashes . McNabb had thrown for 248 yards and two scores , while also running 11 times for 107 yards . Pinkston caught 7 passes for 95 yards in one of the biggest games of his career . Ahman Green ran for 156 yards off of the Eagles defense . NFC Championship : vs Carolina Panthers . In a monumentally disappointing result for Philadelphia , the Eagles lost the NFC Championship 14 – 3 to the Carolina Panthers . It was their third straight championship game defeat , and second in a row at home . They had beaten the Panthers 25 – 16 in Week 13 in Carolina , but the Panthers ' opportunistic defense disrupted the wounded Eagles offense , holding them to three points and dashing their hopes for a Super Bowl a week after the 4th and 26 miracle . The Panthers , just two years removed from a 1 – 15 season , went 11 – 5 in 2003 , winning the NFC South . In the playoffs , they defeated Dallas 29 – 10 and beat the St . Louis Rams in double overtime on a 69 - yard touchdown catch by Steve Smith . Carolina drove into Philadelphia territory on their opening drive , but punted the ball away . Donovan McNabb marched the Eagles down the field , reaching the Carolina 32 - yard line after a 23 - yard catch and run by Correll Buckhalter . However , the drive stalled and the Eagles punted . The teams traded punts again , but early in the second quarter Jake Delhomme broke through and led the Panthers down the field , completing a 24 - yard touchdown pass to Muhsin Muhammad on a badly thrown ball that somehow beat the Eagles ' double coverage . McNabb responded with a long drive , but on 1st and 10 from the Carolina 23 - yard line , he was knocked down by his own lineman being pushed back , and was hit by linebacker Greg Favors after he was down . The Eagles sideline pleaded for a late - hit call , but to no avail . McNabb returned after one play , and had a 10 - yard completion to Freddie Mitchell ( which was initially ruled a drop ) . This set up a 41 - yard field goal by David Akers that made it 7 – 3 . Philadelphia ' s final drive of the half was ended when rookie Ricky Manning Jr . picked off McNabb , who was visibly hurt . While the Eagles defense played well , the offense was stifled by four first half sacks . With McNabb playing with torn cartilage in his ribs , the Eagles went to the ground , using Buckhalter and Duce Staley to drive into Carolina ' s red zone on their first drive of the third quarter . However , Ricky Manning Jr . stepped in front of a McNabb pass intended for Todd Pinkston and came away with his second interception , which proved to be tremendous blow . On Philadelphia ' s next possession , receiver James Thrash was hit as the ball arrived and Ricky Manning Jr . grabbed the deflection and returned it 13 - yards to the Philadelphia 37 - yard line , his third interception . DeShaun Foster helped power the ball to the Eagles ' one - yard line , and on first and goal from there , he ran over linebacker Mark Simoneau as he pushed into the end zone . Now behind 14 – 3 , Philadelphia ' s crippled offense was unable to pick up a first down the rest of the quarter . On the first drive of the fourth quarter , Koy Detmer finally came in to replace the injured McNabb . Detmer led the Eagles to the Panther 11 - yard line , but he was then intercepted by Dan Morgan , ending the Eagles ' final threat . Philadelphia got the ball back one final time , and as McNabb watched from the sidelines , could not get past midfield . For the second year in a row , the Philadelphia fans were forced to watch another team celebrate on their field . The five sacks and four interceptions by Carolina ' s defense were devastating , while receivers Pinkston and Thrash were manhandled by the Panther secondary throughout the game . The injury to McNabb , on an offense already missing Brian Westbrook , left the offense punchless and made the 14 – 3 deficit insurmountable . In three quarters of action , McNabb was 10 - for - 22 for only 100 yards , while Buckhalter and Staley combined for 127 rushing yards . The Panthers rushed for 155 yards on the night . After what looked at times to be a blessed season , the Eagles ' playoff campaign ended with an NFC Championship Game defeat , yet again .