Welcome back, Brian Westbrook. The Eagles' running back missed the last game out and, quite frankly, hasn't been at the top of his game since Week 2 against Dallas. He had a monster game on Sunday.

Westbrook ran 22 times for 167 yards. He caught a team-high six passes. He scored a pair of rushing touchdowns. It wasn't just the production that was so impressive. Westbrook looked great. He ran better than in any other game this season. His long run going into the game was only 18 yards. Westbrook had a 20-yard run in the first half. After halftime, he had touchdown runs of 16- and 39-yards.

The Eagles' running game has been highly inconsistent this year. Donovan McNabb and the passing game have carried the offense. That's fine for a few games, but you must be able to run the ball. The running game was strong on Sunday. The Eagles finished with 32 carries for 192 yards and three touchdowns on the ground. That's the kind of running game that many people would love to see on a regular basis.

I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the offensive line. This was the kind of game that those guys love. Jon Runyan had his best game of the year. Max Jean-Gilles had a solid day. At one point, Gilles threw mammoth defensive tackle Grady Jackson to the ground and then dove on him. I'm pretty sure the earth tilted off its axis at that moment. Todd Herremans and Jamaal Jackson did a terrific job of blocking for Westbrook, both on defensive linemen and linebackers. The Eagles served a few pancakes on Sunday.

McNabb even got in on the running. He came up big on the first touchdown drive. McNabb scrambled for 12 yards on one play. After getting near the goal line, he ran a quarterback draw for a three-yard touchdown.

I was frustrated on the first few drives when McNabb had running lanes and wouldn't take off. No one wants to go back to the situation of 2000 when the team struggled to throw and McNabb's legs carried the offense. It is important that he run from time-to-time. That keeps pressure on the defense. Nothing scares defensive coordinators more than a mobile quarterback.

The offense also benefited from good tight end play. Both L.J. Smith and Brent Celek looked good. They combined to catch four passes for 57 yards. Both players also blocked well. Smith catches a lot of flak from fans when he struggles with his blocking, but deserves a lot of credit for his performance against Atlanta. He helped to seal the edge for several of Westbrook's runs that went outside. Smith was knocked out of the game in the fourth quarter with a big hit from Falcons' safety Lawyer Milloy.

The defense had a good day as well. The big challenge for them was slowing down the Falcons' running game, ranked second in the league coming into the game. The Eagles held Atlanta to 77 yards on 24 carries. That is half of its normal output. No one player was the reason for the good run defense. Two guys that did stand out were Brodrick Bunkley and Gocong. Bunkley really controlled the middle of the field. He took on double teams and held his ground. He drove blockers backward on some plays. He got penetration at times. He hustled to the ball when it went away from him. The stat sheet only shows three tackles and one tackle-for-loss, but his impact was much bigger.

Gocong had his best game of the year. He did a great job of "setting the edge." That is when a defender controls the edge of the formation and won't allow the runner to get wide. It allows backside pursuit to catch up to the runner who either had to slow down or come to a complete stop. Gocong finished with four tackles, two tackles-for-loss and a sack. That is the kind of production you'd love to see from him on a regular basis.

The guys on the back end of the defense were more up and down. Asante Samuel had a very mixed game. He looked great at times. He had an interception and broke up three passes. Samuel had four tackles and drew a holding call on a run play. That sounds like a great game. Unfortunately, though, both touchdown passes by Atlanta involved him. He just missed intercepting the ball that Roddy White caught and turned into a 55-yard touchdown. Samuel played the ball and tried for the pick. He missed it and White raced in for the score. Brian Dawkins was in position to make the tackle on the play, but hesitated for a moment and missed White. The other touchdown was more conventional. Samuel was a step away when White caught an eight-yard pass for their second score.

Sheppard really came alive. He's struggled with getting used to the new cornerback rotation. It also hasn't helped that most teams haven't done much in the way of three-receiver and four-receiver sets. The Falcons gave Sheppard a chance to play quite a bit and he did well for himself and the Eagles. Sheppard had a pair of tackles, an interception and four pass break-ups. He did give up a couple of completions. He also got called for a pass-interference penalty that gave the Falcons the ball at the four-yard line. Sheppard made up for the penalty by picking off Matt Ryan's pass for White in the end zone. Say what you want about Sheppard, but he does have a flair for the dramatic. It was a very good showing on his part. More games like that will help the defense quite a bit.

The Eagles are certainly headed in the right direction, but there is still work to do. The sloppy play has got to go. They need to show more of a killer instinct. Still, seeing Westbrook have a big game was very encouraging. If you can get him on a roll, anything is possible.