Sheldon Brown helped turn the game around on Sunday, picking off two passes and leading a defense that took the football away seven times and scored a touchdown and could have had more had Asante Samuel held on to a ball with an open field in front of him in the second half.
Brown was pleased with his performance, but he gave credit to the defensive line. The Eagles put all kinds of pressure on Jake Delhomme, sending him to the sidelines with a chorus of boos ringing from the seats at Bank of America Stadium.
"It's the guys up front that win and if you get some hits on the quarterback you are going to make him make mistakes," said Brown. "The guys up front dominated the line of scrimmage today."
The Eagles knew the Panthers would run the football, but the Eagles were up to the challenge. After allowing a 13-play, 70-yard touchdown drive to open the game, the Eagles allowed just 99 total yards of offense, sacked the Panthers five times and had all of those takeaways. It was an encouraging first game from the young, fast defense.
And Brown helped turn the game around with his two interceptions. The first came when he was lined up at safety in the middle of the field. A throw to Steve Smith was behind Smith and was tipped by Smith, who was well covered by Macho Harris. Brown reached behind him and made a sensational interception just inches from the ground. The takeaway led to three points. On the second interception, Brown again had coverage on Smith and made the pick and returned it to the Carolina 9-yard line to set up a touchdown.
"I don't think we've ever started this fast," said Brown. "We understand, though, that we haven't accomplished anything yet. It's a long season and if we win this one and lose the rest of them ...We're a veteran group in there and we're going to keep working."
The Eagles blitzed well and took control of the game. They got the bounces and took advantage of takeaway opportunities and started the season off the right way.
"It was a good way to start and we're a confident group," said Brown. "New Orleans comes in next week and it's another challenge for us on Sunday."
-- Posted by Dave Spadaro, 5:45 p.m., September 13
