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Eagles fend off late Rams' comeback attempt

Oct 5, 2014 - 10:53 PM Philadelphia, PA (SportsNetwork.com) - The Eagles' offense was once again contained to pedestrian levels, but touchdowns on defense and special teams helped Philadelphia hold off the St. Louis Rams, 34-28, in Week 5 action.

The Eagles (4-1) relied on a defense that forced three turnovers and a special teams unit that scored on a blocked punt for the second straight week.

Defensive end Cedric Thornton recovered two fumbles, picking up one in the end zone and returning another 40 yards to set up a Jeremy Maclin touchdown catch.

Nick Foles threw a pair of touchdown passes but finished with just 207 yards with an interception and a lost fumble for Philadelphia, which was outgained 466-352 one week after being held without an offensive touchdown in a loss to the 49ers.

"We're happy to win the game, but we're not happy with our performance," Maclin said. "We wanted to play better."

The Rams (1-3) scored the final 21 points and moved the ball just past midfield in the final minute, but two dropped passes and an incompletion on fourth down spoiled a chance at a miraculous comeback.

Austin Davis came on strong late and passed for 375 yards and three touchdowns, two going to Brian Quick.

Benny Cunningham's 14-yard touchdown run in the final minute of the third quarter cut St. Louis' deficit to 34-14, and the Rams turned a Foles fumble into seven points on Kenny Britt's 30-yard touchdown catch six minutes into the fourth.

Following a quick Philadelphia punt, the Rams pulled within one possession with a drive that lasted just 2:07, as a Davis-to-Quick connection of five yards capped the 6-play, 75-yard march.

Pinned at the 7-yard line inside the two-minute warning, Quick came down with a huge 43-yard catch before a pair of drops by Austin Pettis and an incomplete pass intended for Quick sealed St. Louis' fate.

"We played a good second half of football. It's unfortunate we ran out of time," Rams head coach Jeff Fisher said. "We lost the game in the first half."

Davis threw three straight incompletions to start the game, and on the ensuing punt, James Casey went virtually untouched up the middle to block John Hekkers' kick. Chris Maragos picked up the spinning loose ball at the 10-yard line and went in for an easy touchdown.

The Eagles moved inside the Rams' 10-yard line their first two possessions but settled for short Cody Parkey field goals and led 13-0 after one quarter.

After Foles was intercepted by E.J. Gaines, the Rams embarked on an 11-play, 84-yard drive that ended in Davis finding Quick in the end zone for an 8-yard score with 3:23 remaining in the half.

Foles led the Eagles into the red zone before halftime and cashed in with a 9- yard touchdown pass to Riley Cooper, who outjumped cornerback Janoris Jenkins along the sideline to give the hosts a 20-7 lead at the break.

On the Rams' first play of the second half, Trent Cole came in on Davis' blind side and strip-sacked the quarterback. The ball bounced around near the goal line and Thornton recovered it while lying in the end zone.

Zac Stacy fumbled later in the third quarter, and Thornton's return down to the Eagles' 24-yard line paved the way for Maclin's fourth TD catch of the year and what looked like an iron-clad 27-point edge.

Game Notes

Philadelphia improved to 8-3 against the Rams since the franchise relocated from Los Angeles to St. Louis for the 1995 season ... The Eagles have a combined seven defensive and special teams touchdowns this season ... Quick caught five passes for 87 yards, while Maclin led the Eagles with five for 76 ... The Eagles have won four straight meetings ... Eagles running back LeSean McCoy was limited to 81 yards on 24 carries.