2004 Philadelphia Eagles season The 2004 Philadelphia Eagles season was the best in the modern history of the team . The Eagles had been one of the most successful teams in the league after the Andy Reid and Donovan McNabb era began in 1999 , making it to the playoffs for four straight seasons and to the NFC Championship Game in 2001 , 2002 , and 2003 . However , the team could not reach the Super Bowl , despite being favored in the final two NFC title games . In the offseason , this already championship - level team was reinforced on both sides of the ball by the free agent additions of wide receiver Terrell Owens , defensive end Jevon Kearse , and middle linebacker Jeremiah Trotter their third round draft pick in 1998 . The Eagles had the far and away best team in the NFC and proved that right from the start . Possessing a high - powered offense which featured McNabb , Owens , and Brian Westbrook , as well as a bruising defense led by Pro Bowlers Trotter , Brian Dawkins , Lito Sheppard , and Michael Lewis , they steamrolled opponents on the way to a 13 – 1 start to the season . After resting starters for the final two games , the 13 – 3 Eagles soared past the Minnesota Vikings and the Atlanta Falcons in the playoffs , earning a trip to Super Bowl XXXIX in Jacksonville against the defending champion New England Patriots . The game was hard fought , but the Eagles fell 24 – 21 , ending their magical season one score short of the ultimate goal . Regular season . Week 1 : vs . New York Giants . The highly - anticipated Eagles ' season began with a convincing rout of the division - rival New York Giants in a game that was not as close as the 31 – 17 score . New York scored the first points when Ron Dayne finished a first quarter drive with a 3 - yard touchdown run . Then it was all Eagles for a while . Brian Westbrook ' s 50 - yard run was followed up by a 20 - yard touchdown pass from Donovan McNabb to his new weapon – Terrell Owens . McNabb acrobatically scrambled and threw for Owens in the end zone on the Eagles ' next possession , and it was 14 – 7 Philadelphia . In the second quarter , the Eagles added a touchdown reception from tight end L . J . Smith and a 45 - yard David Akers field goal to take a commanding 24 – 7 lead . Steve Christie booted a 53 - yarder before the half , but in the third quarter , McNabb found Owens surprisingly wide open in the end zone , making it 31 – 10 . Tiki Barber ran for a long touchdown late in the game to make the score more respectable for New York . Rookie Giant quarterback Eli Manning was put in the game for New York ' s last possession , but he was rocked hard by the Eagles ' defense as he was christened into the NFL . McNabb threw for 330 yards and four scores , while Owens did not disappoint in his Philadelphia debut , hauling in three touchdowns . The only negative for the Eagles was the loss of rookie starting offensive guard Shawn Andrews . Week 2 : vs . Minnesota Vikings . A Monday Night Football matchup against the Minnesota Vikings was touted as a potential playoff preview . A war of words between outspoken receivers Terrell Owens and Randy Moss dominated the media coverage during the week prior to the game . A 22 - yard reception by Moss helped Minnesota take a 3 – 0 early lead . Donovan McNabb marched the Eagles down the field on their first possession and finished the drive with an 11 - yard touchdown pass to L . J . Smith . The Vikings drove the ball and had first and goal from the Eagles ' 2 - yard line , but the defense made a goal - line stand , holding the Vikings to another field goal . David Akers capped the Eagles ' next possession with a 37 - yard field goal , making it 10 – 6 Philadelphia . Later in the quarter , the Vikings again had first and goal from the Eagles 2 - yard line , but linebacker Mark Simoneau met Daunte Culpepper at the goal line and stripped him , with Brian Dawkins recovering the fumble . McNabb bootlegged for a 20 - yard touchdown in the third quarter to give the Eagles breathing room . Morten Andersen kicked his third field goal to make it 17 – 9 . However , McNabb found Owens deep for a 34 - yard touchdown , increasing the Philadelphia lead to 24 – 9 . Moss scored a late - touchdown on a short fade route , but the night belonged to the Eagles . McNabb passed for 245 yards and two scores , while running for another , and the defense only one touchdown to the highly - regarded Minnesota offense . The 27 – 16 win allowed Philadelphia to seize early control of their division and established them as the team to beat in the NFC . Week 3 : at Detroit Lions . With two home wins under their belt , the Eagles played their first away game of the year at Ford Field against the lowly Detroit Lions . The Eagles broke through in the middle of the first quarter when Donovan McNabb arced a 48 - yard bomb to third receiver Freddie Mitchell setting up a first and goal . McNabb finished the drive with a 1 - yard quarterback sneak . After recovering a Detroit fumble , McNabb hit Terrell Owens in stride for a 29 - yard score . The next touchdown was scored by long - snapper / tight end Mike Bartrum on a 1 - yard pass , his first touchdown since 2001 , making it 21 – 0 Eagles . Emerging Detroit receiver Roy Williams had two touchdown receptions over the rest of the game , but three second half field goals by David Akers kept the score a lopsided 30 – 13 . McNabb had 356 passing yards , with Owens owning 107 of those yards . Week 4 : at Chicago Bears . Playing in extraordinarily windy conditions at Soldier Field , the Eagles air attack was somewhat hindered in its 19 – 9 win over the Chicago Bears . David Akers , facing his most challenging conditions of the season , connected on a 51 - yard field goal in the first quarter . He made another field goal in the second quarter to double Philadelphia ' s lead to 6 – 0 . Capitalizing on a turnover , Donovan McNabb hit his favorite target Terrell Owens for an 11 - yard touchdown in the second quarter . With another Akers field goal , the Eagles led 16 – 0 . The Bears got on the board with a field goal before the half ended , but Akers ' fourth field goal made it 19 – 3 . Akers missed his next two field goals in the increasingly windy conditions , but the Eagles hung on for the 19 – 9 victory . Brian Westbrook had a career - high 23 rushes for 115 yards and Owens caught his sixth touchdown in just four games . With the victory , the Eagles completed a four game sweep of their schedule preceding their Week 5 bye . Week 6 : vs . Carolina Panthers . Undefeated and fresh off of an early season bye , the Eagles sought to take revenge against a wounded Carolina Panthers team that had beaten them in the 2003 NFC Championship Game . A long kick return by J . R . Reed set up a 48 - yard field goal by David Akers to begin things for the Eagles . A 53 - yard catch and run to Terrell Owens led to a 1 - yard plunge by veteran running back Dorsey Levens . Another long completion to Owens set the stage for another field goal , and it was 13 – 0 Eagles . Akers kicked his third field goal in the third quarter before Lito Sheppard ' s exciting 64 - yard interception return for a touchdown . Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme , who was picked off four times by the Eagles defense , threw a late - touchdown to Muhsin Muhammad . However , Brian Westbrook answered right back with a 42 - yard scamper to the end zone , his first touchdown of the year , which made it 30 – 8 . Despite failing to catch a touchdown reception for the first time all season , Owens had 123 receiving yards and the Eagles were 5 – 0 . Week 7 : at Cleveland Browns . After five relatively easy wins , the Eagles were drawn into a dogfight against the Cleveland Browns . The Browns were led by quarterback Jeff Garcia , who was called a homosexual by his former teammate – Terrell Owens . The Eagles roared to an early lead when Donovan McNabb completed a 65 - yard bomb to Todd Pinkston before a 10 - yard strike to veteran tight end Chad Lewis . Cleveland answered the Eagles with a touchdown , but McNabb struck quickly again on his next possession by tossing a 39 - yard touchdown to Owens , who fired the football at a Cleveland fan ' s sign accusing him of having body odor . After a Browns field goal , McNabb found Owens again , this time for 40 yards , and this time with Owens pulling down a sign which implied he was a homosexual . The Eagles were up 21 – 10 , but the Browns did not quit , scoring before the half ended on a Lee Suggs touchdown and after the half on a Garcia touchdown pass to Steve Heiden . Suddenly , the Browns were leading 24 – 21 , the first time the Eagles had trailed in the second half all season . Early in the fourth , McNabb found L . J . Smith in the end zone to retake the lead and after Cleveland fumbled the kickoff , David Akers booted a 38 - yarder to make it 31 – 24 . However , the resilient Garcia rushed it into the end zone himself with less than a minute left in regulation , sending the game into overtime . In the overtime , both teams punted before the Eagles , helped by a 28 - yard McNabb scramble , got into field goal range . With five minutes left in the overtime , Akers barely cleared the uprights on a 50 - yard game - winning kick . McNabb had 376 passing yards and four touchdowns , while Owens and Pinkston each collected over 100 receiving yards . The Eagles went to 6 – 0 and continued to pull away from the rest of the conference . Week 8 : vs . Baltimore Ravens . The Eagles put their undefeated record on the line at home against the Baltimore Ravens . In what had become a weekly event , controversial receiver Terrell Owens had a war of words in the days leading up to the game , this time against Ravens superstar linebacker Ray Lewis . The game would prove to be a battle between the dominating Philadelphia and Baltimore defenses . After getting good field position , David Akers put the Eagles up with a short field goal , but the Ravens matched that before the end of the quarter . A Donovan McNabb fumble near the Baltimore goal line erased a possible scoring chance in the second quarter , but he drove the team to a field goal on the Eagles ' next possession . The defenses dominated the third quarter , and the score remained a close 6 – 3 as the final quarter began . Akers added a field goal early in the quarter , but the Ravens remained less than a touchdown behind . Ravens running back Chester Taylor fumbled in Eagles territory , with Hollis Thomas making the recovery . The Eagles took advantage , ending the possession in an 11 - yard third down touchdown pass to Owens , who broke a tackle on his way to the score . The two - point conversion failed , but it was now 15 – 3 Eagles . The points proved necessary as Kyle Boller completed a touchdown to Daniel Wilcox on Baltimore ' s next possession . The Philadelphia defense held strong the rest of the game and the Eagles won by a final of 15 – 10 . Owens again had over 100 yards , and scored his ninth touchdown of the year . The Eagles , at 7 – 0 , were off to their best start ever . Week 9 : at Pittsburgh Steelers . In a possible Super Bowl preview , the 7 – 0 Eagles travelled across the state to take on the 6 – 1 Pittsburgh Steelers , who had just knocked off the defending champion New England Patriots . However , the Eagles would not have one of their better days in this major test . The Steelers scored early and often , driving two touchdowns on their first three drives . In a rare 21 – 0 hole , the Eagles offense could only muster a field goal before the end of the half . The offense continued to sputter in the second half , and the Steelers fed the Eagles a steady diet of Jerome Bettis rushes . The final score was an embarrassing 27 – 3 . The Eagles high - octane offense only mustered 113 yards , while the Pittsburgh ground attack amassed 252 yards . Making matters worse , a frustrated Terrell Owens was caught on camera yelling at quarterback Donovan McNabb . After the game , Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Johnson made Jeremiah Trotter the Eagles ' starting middle linebacker in an effort to better defend against the run . Week 10 : at Dallas Cowboys . In a Monday Night Football game that is probably more remembered for a controversial pre - game promotion featuring Terrell Owens and Desperate Housewives actress Nicollette Sheridan , the Eagles avenged their loss to the Steelers by throttling the Dallas Cowboys in Texas Stadium 49 – 21 . On the first play of their third possession , Donovan McNabb completed a pass over the middle to Owens . The two nearest Cowboy defenders ran into each other , freeing Owens to run for a 59 - yard touchdown . A muffed punt put the Eagles in position to score their second touchdown on a 4 - yard run by Dorsey Levens in the second quarter . A touchdown reception by Dallas tight end Jason Witten cut the Philadelphia lead to 14 – 7 as the game turned into a shootout . McNabb completed another touchdown to Owens , and then a 59 - yarder to Todd Pinkston for Pinkston ' s first score of the season . Cowboys quarterback Vinny Testaverde found Witten again a few minutes later , making it 28 – 14 Philadelphia . On the next Eagles ' possession , McNabb , in a famous play , scrambled for a record 14 . 1 seconds before launching a 60 - yard bomb to Freddie Mitchell . The drive ended in a 1 - yard Brian Westbrook run , padding the Eagles ' lead to 35 – 14 . Dallas running back Eddie George scored on the Cowboys ' first possession of the third quarter , keeping Dallas in the game . But they would not score again , while McNabb and Owens hooked up for another touchdown . In the fourth quarter , Lito Sheppard intercepted Testaverde in the end zone and went the distance , returning the pick 101 yards for a touchdown as he outran Cowboy receiver Keyshawn Johnson . Owens had his biggest game as an Eagle , catching six passes for 134 yards and three touchdowns . McNabb ' s equally fantastic season continued with 345 passing yards , four touchdowns , and zero interceptions . The Eagles went to 8 – 1 , with a division title already in sight . Week 11 : vs . Washington Redskins . In Week 11 , the Eagles faced the Washington Redskins for the first time all season . Using a steady rushing attack , the Redskins opened the scoring with a 35 - yard Ola Kimrin field goal . The Eagles answered back with a touchdown – a 2 - yard pass to a wide open Chad Lewis in the end zone . The Redskins got another field goal to make it 7 – 6 , keeping pace with an Eagles team that had a sluggish first half . In the third quarter , the Eagles put together an impressive drive that ended with Donovan McNabb firing a bullet over the middle to Terrell Owens in the end zone . Brian Westbrook added two short yardage receiving touchdowns in the fourth quarter , breaking the game open and making the final score 28 – 6 , prompting the Redskins to accuse the Eagles of running up the score after the game . It was not the Eagles ' best offense performance , but McNabb , who fumbled and was intercepted , threw four touchdowns . Overshadowed receiver Todd Pinkston had 106 receiving yards , which led the team . Week 12 : at New York Giants . The 9 – 1 Eagles travelled up the New Jersey Turnpike to take on the New York Giants on November 28 , 2004 . Eli Manning ' s 50 - yard bomb to Jamaar Taylor allowed New York to take a first quarter lead after a field goal . Donovan McNabb took it in himself as the Eagles ' answered with a touchdown . Steve Christie got another field goal in the second quarter , and it was a 7 – 6 game . McNabb was sacked and fumbled near midfield on the Eagles ' next possession . Manning promptly arced another rocket to Taylor , putting the ball on the Philadelphia 3 - yard line . On the next play , Manning underthrew a fade to the end zone and rookie Quintin Mikell made a clutch interception . The game was still tight as the second half began , but the Eagles defense would not allow the Giants to score again . Philadelphia used a 24 - yard reception by Terrell Owens to set up a 47 - yard David Akers field goal . Then , a Brian Dawkins interception of Manning led to another field goal , pushing the Philadelphia lead to 13 – 6 . Later in the quarter , Jevon Kearse blocked a New York punt , and the offense was able to capitalize , with Brian Westbrook taking it in from 1 - yard out , and putting the Eagles ahead 20 – 6 . Early in the fourth quarter , Westbrook took a screen from McNabb and rumbled 34 yards to paydirt , breaking the game open at 27 – 6 . Westbrook had 127 combined yards and both a rushing and receiving touchdown . The defense gave up 110 yards to Tiki Barber and two long Manning - Taylor passes , but otherwise kept the Giants muzzled , while making key interceptions . With the victory , the Eagles locked up an NFC East division title earlier than any team had before . They had also won their tenth game quicker than any team in franchise history . Week 13 : vs . Green Bay Packers . The Eagles turned in perhaps their best performance of the entire season when the 7 – 4 Green Bay Packers , who had won six straight , travelled to Lincoln Financial Field . The Eagles offense completely gashed the Packers ' defense , and Brett Favre could do nothing with the stubborn Eagles ' defense . Donovan McNabb continued his hot streak from the previous week ' s win against the Giants . Having completed his last 10 pass attempts of that game , and his first 14 attempts against the Packers , McNabb became the sole owner of the record for most consecutive passes complete – with 24 over two games . In the first quarter , Terrell Owens broke a tackle and raced away for a 41 - yard touchdown . In the second quarter , Donovan McNabb fed Brian Westbrook a short pass that Westbrook took in a for a score . On the next series , Westbrook lined up in the slot and beat the coverage as he reeled in a 41 - yard touchdown reception . McNabb gave L . J . Smith a turn on the next possession , completing a 6 - yard touchdown to him . Dexter Wynn made a big punt return later in the quarter , leading to McNabb finding Westbrook over the middle . It was Westbrook ' s third touchdown of the quarter , and McNabb ' s fifth of the half – and the Eagles were leading the Packers 35 – 0 with time left in second quarter . Green Bay got a field goal before halftime . However , long completions by McNabb to Owens and Westbrook led to three third quarter field goals by David Akers . A 45 - yard run by Dorsey Levens set up Akers ' fourth field goal at the start of the final quarter , which made it 47 – 3 . Packers ' backup quarterback Craig Nall led Green Bay to two touchdown drives in the fourth quarter , long after the Eagles had called off the dogs . The win was an example of just how good the Eagles were . The Packers won their division that season , but were totally dismantled by Philadelphia . The Eagles offense clicked on all cylinders , with McNabb recording five touchdowns passes and a team - record 464 passing yards . Owens and Westbrook both had over 150 receiving yards . Meanwhile , the Eagles defense registered five sacks and held the Packers ' offense to three points while the starters remained in . The win put the Eagles at 11 – 1 and proved conclusively that they were light years ahead of the rest of the conference . Week 14 : at Washington Redskins . A mere three weeks after pasting the Washington Redskins at home , the Eagles traveled to play them in a Sunday night game at FedExField . The Redskins were fired up all night , and Ladell Betts took the opening kickoff inside the Eagles 10 - yard line . Two plays later Clinton Portis rushed it in for an early Washington lead . On a drive highlighted by receiver Todd Pinkston seemingly breaking off a route to shy away from a hit , the Eagles managed to score a game - tying touchdown with L . J . Smith making a 2 - yard reception after a long pass interference penalty against Washington . At the end of the quarter , McNabb launched his longest pass of the season , an 80 - yard bomb to Pinkston , which he caught before stumbling up to the four yard line . Owens caught the next pass and tried to make a move to score his 15th touchdown of the year , but instead lost the football . Each side would miss a field goal before halftime arrived with the score knotted 7 – 7 . The Eagles posted a 38 - yard field goal by David Akers on the opening drive of the third quarter , then got a short Dorsey Levens touchdown at the end of the quarter , putting Philadelphia ahead 17 – 7 . However , the Redskins defense intercepted McNabb near midfield , and Portis finished the drive with his second touchdown , making it a 17 – 14 game . With only a few minutes left , Washington quarterback Patrick Ramsey drove his team to the Eagles ' 27 - yard line . His next pass was to the end zone , and both Brian Dawkins and Lito Sheppard had a play on the ball , but Sheppard prudently allowed Dawkins to make the interception and end the Redskin threat . It was not the Eagles ' prettiest game , but they survived a scare and escaped with another victory . Week 15 : vs . Dallas Cowboys . After their scoring fest in Week 10 , the Eagles and Dallas Cowboys played a defensive struggle in a Week 15 game that would mean home - field advantage throughout the playoffs if the Eagles were to win . The teams had long drives , but could not get into field goal range in the first quarter . In the second , the Eagles broke through with a drive capped by a 2 - yard touchdown pass from Donovan McNabb to Chad Lewis . David Akers missed the extra point , making it a 6 – 0 game . McNabb was later sacked and fumbled the ball away to Dallas , with Vinny Testaverde taking advantage by firing a 7 - yard touchdown pass to Keyshawn Johnson . The missed extra point now seemed more critical as the Eagles trailed 7 – 6 going into halftime . On the opening drive of the third quarter , McNabb found his favorite target , Terrell Owens for a 20 - yard gain , but Dallas safety Roy Williams , made a horse - collar tackle on Owens , breaking his ankle . The play would prompt a new NFL rule the next season , barring horse - collar tackles . McNabb was intercepted two plays later and again later in the quarter as neither offense could score . Cowboys kicker Billy Cundiff missed a 46 - yarder in the fourth quarter , giving the Eagles new life . McNabb , going back to one of his old tricks in the absence of Owens , made scrambles of 12 yards and 19 yards , setting up an eventual Dorsey Levens touchdown run from 2 - yards out . The two - point conversion failed and it remained 12 – 7 Eagles . However , Lito Sheppard picked off Testaverde on the next series to end the game . Proving again that they could win a close game , the Eagles prevailed under adversity and completed an unprecedented sweep of their NFC East opponents while locking up home - field advantage throughout the playoffs . Unfortunately , the word after the game was that Owens , the Eagles ' sharpest offensive weapon , would be out until at least the Super Bowl . Week 16 : at St . Louis Rams . With nothing left to play for until the playoffs and in the wake of the disastrous injury to Terrell Owens , Eagles ' head coach Andy Reid decided to only play his starters for one series in a Monday Night Football game against the St . Louis Rams . The Rams ran ten rushing plays , split between Steven Jackson and Marshall Faulk , in the opening drive as they scored a touchdown . The Eagles offense , also playing without Brian Westbrook who was a healthy scratch , efficiently marched down the field , with Freddie Mitchell , who was now a starter , receiving a 7 - yard touchdown pass from McNabb . At that point , most of the Eagles ' starters left the game . The second - string Philadelphia defense limited a St . Louis team that needed the game to help secure a playoff spot . The Rams offense only scored 20 points , but backup quarterbacks Koy Detmer and Jeff Blake could do little to score on St . Louis . Week 17 : vs . Cincinnati Bengals . The 7 – 8 Cincinnati Bengals rolled over the Philadelphia reserve players . Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook were among the many starters that did not play for the Eagles , who were clearly preparing for a run to the Super Bowl . Koy Detmer and Jeff Blake were again mostly unimpressive while Bengals running back Rudi Johnson torched the Eagles ' backup defense for three touchdowns to give Cincinnati a 38 – 3 lead by the middle of the fourth quarter . Blake was able to connect with Freddie Mitchell , who had six catches for 76 yards , for a touchdown late . Meanwhile , Terrell Owens continued to rehab his ankle , guaranteeing that if the Eagles made it to the Super Bowl , he would be ready to play in it . The Eagles , not trying to win their last two games , finished with a franchise record 13 – 3 record . Playoffs . Divisional Playoffs : vs . Minnesota Vikings . With expectations high , the Eagles ' playoff run began with the Minnesota Vikings coming to town . Minnesota had backed into the playoffs with an 8 – 8 record and losses in four of their final five regular season games , but they had upset the Green Bay Packers in the Wild Card round . On the Eagles ' second possession , Brian Westbrook , who had missed the 2003 – 2004 playoffs with an injury , gained 48 total yards , setting up Donovan McNabb ' s two - yard touchdown pass to Freddie Mitchell . At the end of the quarter , McNabb found third receiver Greg Lewis for a 52 - yard completion . Two plays later , Westbrook caught a short pass over the middle and put Philadelphia up 14 – 0 . A long completion to Marcus Robinson by Daunte Culpepper led to a quarterback bootleg for a touchdown , keeping Minnesota in the game . J . R . Reed returned the kickoff into Viking territory , and a few plays later , McNabb hit L . J . Smith with a pass over the middle and inside the Minnesota ten - yard line . Smith pushed for the score , but was hit hard , popping the ball into air towards the goal line . Freddie Mitchell was in the neighborhood and caught the derelict fumble in the end zone for an amazing touchdown that proved it would be the Eagles ' day . The Vikings got the ball to the Eagles ' 4 - yard line , but a botched fake field goal attempt left them with nothing to show for the drive and put a dent in their hopes . Interceptions by Ike Reese and Jeremiah Trotter in the third quarter kept Minnesota at bay , while Freddie Mitchell ' s luck was reversed when he fumbled a near - touchdown out of the end zone , resulting in a touchback . Two David Akers field goals in the fourth quarter put the game at 27 – 7 and out of reach . Culpepper added a 32 - yard touchdown pass to Robinson , but the Eagles were going to their fourth straight NFC Championship Game . McNabb had 286 passing yards and two touchdowns , Westbrook had over 100 all - purpose yards , and Mitchell caught five balls and had two touchdowns filling in for Terrell Owens . NFC Championship : vs . Atlanta Falcons . The Eagles hoped that the fourth time would be a charm for them against the Atlanta Falcons in the NFC Championship Game after losing the past three title games . The game would be played in post - blizzard , 17 - degree weather , with swirling frigid winds nearing 30 MPH . Atlanta had gone 11 – 5 over the year , and were the second best team in the conference , behind Philadelphia . Atlanta ' s quarterback and star player Michael Vick would basically be the Falcons ' main hope of upsetting the Eagles . He tried to run twice on the opening drive , but the Eagles ' defense , using a mush rush , stopped him both times . Later in the quarter , Brian Westbrook broke a 36 - yard run to the right side , followed by a completion to L . J . Smith for 21 yards . Dorsey Levens , with some help from his teammates , pushed his way in for a 4 - yard touchdown , giving Philadelphia a 7 – 0 lead . Atlanta took the ball back and began a long drive , which featured many Warrick Dunn and T . J . Duckett rushes , that took them to first and goal from the Eagles ' two - yard line . Duckett was stuffed on first down , Vick threw incomplete on second , then looked to have room to run on third , but big Hollis Thomas emerged and leveled Vick at the 3 - yard line . The Falcons settled for a field goal , making it 7 – 3 . The Eagles moved towards the end zone again , the big blow coming when Greg Lewis came back and hauled in a 45 - yard pass from Donovan McNabb , setting up first and goal from the Falcons ' four yard line . Two plays later , McNabb passed in the corner of the end zone to veteran tight end Chad Lewis , with Lewis catching the pass while making a spectacular effort to stay in bounds . On Atlanta ' s next possession , in the middle of the second quarter , Vick went deep over the middle for tight end Alge Crumpler , who made the catch but was absolutely crushed by safety Brian Dawkins on the play . Dunn went in for the 10 - yard score on the next play and it was 14 – 10 Eagles . Philadelphia took the kickoff in the third quarter and marched down the field , setting up a 31 - yard field goal by David Akers in the wind . Defensive end Derrick Burgess had his first of two sacks on Vick to kill Atlanta ' s next drive . Later in the quarter , a low pass by Vick was intercepted by Dawkins , leading to another Akers field goal and increasing the Eagles ' advantage to 20 – 10 . As the game moved into the fourth quarter and Atlanta ' s passing offense could do little against the Philadelphia secondary , a Super Bowl berth looked more and more likely . A six - and - a - half minute drive that ended in another short Chad Lewis touchdown reception kicked off the celebration in Philadelphia . Victorious by a score of 27 – 10 , the Eagles were NFC Champions for the first time since 1980 . McNabb threw for a modest 180 yards in the windy weather , but had two touchdowns and no interceptions . Westbrook came up with 96 yards on the ground , while Chad Lewis made two critical touchdown receptions . It was later learned that Lewis broke his ankle on the second touchdown catch , and he would be left off the Super Bowl roster . Meanwhile , the defense held Vick to 136 passing yards and 26 rushing yards , and kept Atlanta off the scoreboard in the second half . Super Bowl XXXIX : vs . New England Patriots . In their first Super Bowl appearance since Super Bowl XV , the Eagles met the New England Patriots at ALLTEL Stadium in Jacksonville , Florida . The Patriots , led by Tom Brady had won two of the past three Super Bowls and a win against the Eagles would likely lead to " dynasty status " . They had cruised to a 14 – 2 regular season record , and taken down the Indianapolis Colts and 15 – 1 Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC playoffs . Meanwhile the Eagles , considered heavy underdogs , had star wide receiver Terrell Owens miraculously returning , against doctor ' s orders , from injury . A third - down sack and subsequent fumble by Donovan McNabb on the Eagles ' first possession nearly led to a turnover in Eagles ' territory , but Andy Reid challenged the play and the Eagles were able to punt . Both offenses struggled in general until McNabb hit Owens on a 30 - yard catch and run to inside the New England 10 - yard line . Unfortunately , Patriot safety Rodney Harrison picked off McNabb ' s pass to the end zone . After a New England punt , the Eagles had good field position , but L . J . Smith was hit and fumbled after a completion , giving the ball back to the Patriots . New England ' s offense continued to struggle and the Eagles took back over , with McNabb finding maligned wide receiver Todd Pinkston for a 17 - yard completion then a spectacular leaping 40 - yard catch . On third and goal , McNabb hit Smith in the end zone and the Eagles had drawn first blood 7 – 0 . Brady led the Patriots to the Eagles 4 - yard line , but he was sacked and fumbled , with Darwin Walker recovering for the Eagles . Things were looking good for Philadelphia , but they went three and out , giving New England the ball back at the Eagles ' 37 - yard line . Brady did not waste this opportunity , and led the Patriots to a touchdown with 1 : 21 left in the half , with David Givens catching a 4 - yard scoring strike and celebrating by mocking Owens ' wing flap celebration . Brady connected with eventual game MVP Deion Branch four times on the opening drive of the third quarter . Mike Vrabel caught the short touchdown pass and New England had its first lead 14 – 7 . In the middle of the third , the Eagles drove to the New England 10 - yard line , before McNabb fired a bullet to Brian Westbrook between two Patriot defenders for a game - tying score . The Patriots answered back with a scoring drive capped by a two - yard touchdown rush by Corey Dillon early in the fourth quarter , giving New England the lead back 21 – 14 . On their next possession , the Patriots got good field position and ended the drive with a short Adam Vinatieri field goal , pushing the lead to 24 – 14 . Tedy Bruschi intercepted McNabb on the next series and it looked like the Eagles might be finished . However , they forced a three - and - out and got the ball back with 5 : 40 to play . They drove down the field , but there was an alarming lack of urgency and the clock kept ticking . A sudden 30 - yard touchdown pass from McNabb to Greg Lewis gave the Eagles new life , but less than two minutes remained . The Eagles failed to get the onside kick , then burned their timeouts on New England ' s possession . Philadelphia got the ball back at their at their 4 - yard line with : 46 seconds left down 24 – 21 , but Rodney Harrison got his second interception of McNabb three plays later and the season was over . McNabb threw for 357 yards and three touchdowns , but his three interceptions were devastating . Owens had an amazing nine catches and 122 yards on his partially - healed ankle , while Pinkston hauled in 82 receiving yards . The Eagles had done better than most expected and were in the game until the end , but they had made too many first half mistakes , when the Patriots were playing poorly , and left too many points on the field . Nevertheless , the 2004 Eagles had done better than any Eagles team had done since the 1960 NFL Championship .