MIAMI -- Given another chance for more playing time in his rookie season, linebacker Casey Matthews wasted no time taking advantage in the Eagles' 26-10 win over the Dolphins.
Matthews teamed with Keenan Clayton in the nickel defense and contributed with his first NFL quarterback sack and played well in coverage in the outstanding defensive performance from the Eagles, who held Miami to 215 total net yards and on 3 of 15 conversions on third downs.
For Matthews, the promotion to starting nickel defense was a reward for his hard work during the season, which has certainly been a roller coaster for the fourth-round draft pick. Matthews started the first three games of the year at middle linebacker, was replaced and then kind of faced into oblivion on special-teams duty.
But behind the scenes, Matthews continued to work hard and Sunday was his chance to step back into the spotlight.
"He worked hard and didn't get down. He had a chip on his shoulder about the situation," said defensive coordinator Juan Castillo. "He wasn't happy about what happened so he kept working, playing well on special teams. I'm proud of Casey and all of our guys."
Matthews came on a blitz in the second quarter and got in clean on quarterback Matt Moore, downing him for a 7-yard loss. It was one of seven Eagles' sacks on the day and it was especially pleasing for Matthews, who had 3 total tackles and a quarterback hurry.
"I wanted to get back out there," said Matthews. "I was itching a little bit, but you have to keep working. There were still mistakes made today, but that's going to happen. It's been eight weeks since I've been out there.
"I look forward to learning from this and keep on finishing these last few games strong.
In fact, Sunday was a day for all of the linebackers. Brian Rolle had a sack and his hit on Moore in the third quarter knocked Moore out for the remainder of the game. Clayton was outstanding in the nickel and starting linebackers Jamar Chaney and Akeem Jordan helped limit running back Reggie Bush to 5 catches for 27 yards and tight end Anthony Fasano to 3 catches for 56 yards. Bush gained 103 yards on the ground, but had only 17 in the first half, after which the Eagles led 24-7.
"We wanted to be more physical than they were and we did that," said defensive tackle Cullen Jenkins. "We got after it. That's the way we need to play every week. Keep playing hard and good things will happen."
