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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
PHILADELPHIA (AP) -- The Philadelphia Eagles will take wins any
way they can get them.
David Akers kicked a 48-yard field goal as time expired to lift
Philadelphia to a 34-32 victory over the Tennessee Titans on Friday
night.
Tennessee (2-1), playing its second game in five days, rested
many of its regulars, including quarterback Steve McNair, running
back Eddie George and defensive end Jevon Kearse.
Philadelphia (1-2) played its starters the entire first half,
and led 21-6 at halftime and 31-19 midway through the fourth
quarter.
"We knew their starters weren't going to play, but we didn't
want to treat it as if we were playing their (second team)," said
Donovan McNabb, who completed 15 of 23 passes for 163 yards, three
touchdowns and no interceptions.
The Titans rallied behind quarterback Billy Volek and running
back Mike Green. Volek threw two touchdowns and Green ran for a
pair, including a 4-yarder with 1:38 left that gave Tennessee a
32-31 lead.
Former Notre Dame star Ron Powlus drove the Eagles 30 yards in
eight plays to set up Akers' winning field goal. Powlus' 19-yard
pass to Alex Van Dyke on fourth-and-10 preceded the kick.
"I wanted to get David in that situation one more time,"
Eagles coach Andy Reid said. "He executed very well."
McNair, who has been nursing a sore right shoulder, played in
Tennessee's 30-3 victory over the Super Bowl champion St. Louis
Rams on Monday night. Neil O'Donnell started in his place and led
the Titans to a field goal in one series.
"The bottom line was that we had a short week and the recovery
time was not to my satisfaction," Tennessee coach Jeff Fisher
said. "I wanted to see the young players."
Tennessee's go-ahead drive was set up by a 5-yard punt from Will
Brice. The Titans drove 64 yards on five plays to take the
one-point lead. A 23-yard pass from Volek to Isaac Byrd gave
Tennessee the ball at the 4, and Green ran in from there.
The two-point conversion attempt was intercepted by James
Darling, who started running the other way with a convoy of
blockers before realizing past midfield that the play was dead once
he caught the ball.
Philadelphia took a 7-3 lead on its first possession as McNabb
tossed a 9-yarder to Cecil Martin, capping a nine-play, 73-yard
drive.
McNabb connected with Charles Johnson on a 46-yard pass to give
the Eagles a 14-6 lead with 9:17 left in the second quarter.
Johnson, who worked out regularly with McNabb in the offseason,
streaked down the right sideline, beat backup corner George
McCullough and caught the ball in stride.
"It's something we worked on all offseason and through training
camp," McNabb said. "We try to establish ourselves as an
effective passing team."
McNabb, an elusive runner, displayed his scrambling ability in a
two-minute drill capped by a 5-yard shovel pass to Duce Staley that
gave Philadelphia a 21-6 lead with 16 seconds left in the half.
McNabb gained all 43 of his rushing yards in the 57-yard drive,
including a 7-yard run in which he collided with an official en
route to a first down.
One play later, McNabb dodged tacklers and hurdled defenders for
a 21-yard run that set up the touchdown.
Philadelphia's first-team offense had 231 total yards in the
first half.
The Titans drove 53 yards on 14 plays to start and took a 3-0
lead on a 40-yard field goal by Al Del Greco with 7:53 left in the
first.
Rodney Thomas, starting for George, gained 32 yards on the
drive, including 16 on the first play from scrimmage.
Second-year quarterback Kevin Daft replaced O'Donnell and played
into the third quarter.
A 48-yarder by Del Greco cut it to 7-6 just 23 seconds into the
second quarter.
Tennessee made it 21-13 on a 2-yard run by Green with 13:04 left
in the third.
Powlus, fighting for a roster spot on the Eagles, threw a
35-yard touchdown pass to rookie Todd Pinkston to give Philadelphia
a 31-19 lead with 9:28 remaining.
"Powlus did some good things in clutch situations," Reid said.
"He kept his composure."
Volek tossed a 1-yarder to Mike Leach to cut the score to 24-19
with 1:37 left in the third. He connected with Chris Sanders on a
35-yarder with seven minutes left to make it 31-26.
Tennessee's Frank Chamberlin left the game with an injured shoulder and did not return.
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