THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, October 9, 1995 TAG: 9510090139
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JIM DUCIBELLA, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: PHILADELPHIA LENGTH: Long : 107 lines
Long after Gary Anderson's 35-yard field goal eight minutes into overtime provided the Philadelphia Eagles with the last-second or last-play victory they almost always get when hosting the Washington Redskins, the winners' locker room was empty except for one stall.
There sat center Raleigh McKenzie, in his first season as an Eagle after 10 in Washington, and a primary reason Eagles rushers Ricky Watters and Charlie Garner combined for 259 yards.
After enduring four consecutive losses by 13 points in the Philadelphia edition of this rivalry, McKenzie was asked how it felt to be on the winning side.
``This one makes the heart a little warmer on the inside,'' McKenzie said, pulling on trousers over a gray shirt already sweat-stained despite a shower and toweling off.
Across the hall, Norv Turner's heart may have been a little warmer as well - but not from the thrill of victory. His team's 37-34 loss, which dropped the Skins to 2-4 and kept them from their first back-to-back wins since 1992, was the stuff of heartburn.
Eight times Sunday, the Redskins' offense began a series on their 48-yard line or better. Much of that advantageous field position came courtesy of Brian Mitchell. He returned two kickoffs for 44 and 42 yards, and took one of his two punt returns 59 yards for a touchdown.
But despite Mitchell's effort to put the Redskins to the goal line, the Washington offense scored but 17 points. Worse, one possession became a Philadelphia touchdown when, six plays after quarterback Gus Frerotte lost a fumble, the Eagles' Rodney Peete hit Fred Barnett with a two-yard slant just six ticks before the half.
``We had enough opportunities,'' Turner said after seeing his team's shot to go 3-0 in the NFC East fail. ``We weren't as sharp as we have been offensively. We were off on some things early.''
Defensively, they were off on some things - most notably, tackling - early and late. Philadelphia backs slipped, slid, stumbled, sneaked, roared, plunged and glided through Washington tacklers as though the Redskins had spent their pregame film session eating buttered popcorn.
``They've got two good running backs,'' admitted free safety Stanley Richard, one of the main mis-tackling culprits. ``But you look at our team today; that's not our football team.''
Watters, the free-agent acquisition from San Francisco, and Garner, a second-year pro from Tennessee, entered the game with a combined 565 yards rushing. On Sunday, they became the first tandem of Eagles to rush for more than 100 yards since Randall Cunningham and Heath Sherman in 1990.
The last time a pair of Philly running backs beat the century mark was 1978 when Wilbert Montgomery and Mike Hogan did that trick on the New York Giants.
Philadelphia gained 524 total yards, its most since 1981. Watters did the bulk of the damage, carrying 25 times for 139 yards. He also led Eagles receivers with 11 catches for 90 yards. His 229 yards were 41 more than his previous career-best.
But Philadelphia repeatedly hamstrung itself with silly penalties, 11 in all, for 105 yards.
``We made it closer than it should have been,'' Eagles coach Ray Rhodes said.
Not Garner. He blazed for 120 yards in just nine long-distance carries and became the first Eagle to score three rushing touchdowns since Wilbert Mongtomery 1992. It was hard to distinguish which of the scores was the most impressive.
The first was a 55-yard dash around left end, a play brilliantly assisted by Watters, who rubbed out two Redskins with one block. It game Philadelphia a 7-0 lead.
The second covered just one yard and pulled Philadelphia into a 17-17 tie with three minutes left in the first half. But it came on fourth down, and after the Redskins had successfully stuffed two previous plays from the 1 and appeared to be headed for a momentum-changing goal-line stand.
Garner's final score was a 17-yard scamper, again around left end, with 4:40 left in the third quarter. It followed Greg Jackson's interception of a ill-fated pass by Gus Frerotte, who had Daniel Stubbs draped over him and still tried to launch a ball 40 yards downfield for Henry Ellard.
``He's so explosive,'' Peete said. ``When Charlie would break to the outside, Ricky was the one blocking for him most of the time.''
Peete, making his second start replacing Cunningham, was so effective Philly coach Ray Rhodes was never tempted to make a change. He completed 30 of 45 passes for 256 yards and his only interception was a last-second heave in regulation that Richard pulled in in the end zone.
Washington, meanwhile, gained 293 yards, only 72 in the first half. Frerotte was somber after completing 22 of 45 attempts for 252 yards, with one touchdown run and two scoring passes that could be considered gifts.
The first was a 40-yard strike to Henry Ellard, who was shut out most of the day by 5-foot-6 corner Mark McMillian. Ellard caught the pass, then had clear sailing to the end zone when safety Derrick Frazier inadvertently bumped teammates McMillian and Greg Jackson off stride.
The second scoring pass, a 12-yarder to Ellard, drew Washington within three at 34-31 with 7:13 left in regulation. Again, McMillian shadowed Ellard, and got his hand on Frerotte's pass. But the ball fluttered in the air, McMillian fell down and Ellard neatly brought the ball to his chest and got both feet down.
``It'll be good to play them again at RFK,'' the veteran receiver said. ``There's a lot to make up for here.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color AP photo
ASSOCIATED PRESS photo
The Eagles' Mike Mamula, left, and Joe Patton of the Redskins
grapple after an early second-quarter play.
by CNB