THE Philadelphia Eagles landed in the backyard of the Dallas Cowboys, snapped a long losing streak and established themselves as serious challengers for the Super Bowl.
Texas Stadium has been a burial ground for Philadelphia's hopes for the past five years and it looked as if the Eagles would come up short once again as the game wound down after a fierce tussle. The Cowboys were marching the length of the field and were about to strike, either for a touchdown to win it all, or a field goal to send the game into overtime with just over a minute left. Troy Aikman, the Cowboys quarterback, floated a pass to his tight end, hovering in the left corner of the Eagles' end zone.
The pass was too soft. James Willis snatched it up eagerly, ran out of the end zone and in an inspired, if risky play, passed it rugby style to Troy Vincent. The speedy cornerback, snagged from Miami for $16.5 million, earned his keep by zigzagging 90 yards down the field for a glorious touchdown. It was a spectacular way for the Eagles to conquer their nemesis by the score of 31-21.
"I saw the tight end coming across, coming my way. I just stood there, turned around and the ball was coming. I ran it for to yards, but I was dead tired. I haven't heard about the lateral yet, but I'm sure I will," Willis said.
The Eagles now are joint first with the Washington Redskins, who lost 38-13 to the Buffalo Bills in the NFC East. The Eagles and the Redskins both boast a 7-2 record, while the Cowboys have slipped to 5-4. The Eagles have come this far despite the loss early in the season of Rodney Peete, their starting quarterback. But good fortune has come from adversity in the presence of the able Ty Detmer. Peete's deputy has become a local hero in Philadelphia as he has led the Eagles to one victory after another.
On Sunday, the calm Detmer outshone Aikman. He threw a 14 yard touchdown pass to Irving Fryar, the veteran receiver sneaked in for a six yard touchdown, avoided any sacks and most importantly, threw no interceptions. Aikman threw two. One led to an Eagles field goal, the other to Philadelphia's dramatic touchdown.
Ray Rhodes, the emotional coach of the Eagles, was understandably elated. "We talked about the fourth quarter all night and all last week. We made the plays in the fourth quarter. No turnovers by us was a key. I can't say how big this is for our football team," Rhodes said.
The devastating loss to the Eagles was the last thing the Cowboys needed before next Sunday's showdown with the San Francisco 49ers, who beat the New Orleans Saints 24-17. Jerry Rice, the extraordinary 49ers receiver, set another milestone in an already illustrious career by becoming the first player to make 1,000 receptions. Rice caught a 36 yard touchdown pass, set up another with his record setting catch and recovered an onside kick as the 49ers notched up their seventh win of the season.
Normally, a match up between the 49ers and the Cowboys is seen as the prelude to the Super Bowl. But this year, the 49ers Cowboys duopoly looks set to end with a very strong Green Bay Packers team in the wings and challengers like the Eagles and the Redskins also on hand.
