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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Falcons’ Vick just too slick


Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick leaps over the goal line as he scores a first-quarter touchdown against Philadelphia on Monday.
 (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
Paul Newberry Associated Press

ATLANTA – The Atlanta Falcons and Philadelphia Eagles couldn’t wait to get started on their rematch of the NFC championship game – two players got kicked out before the game kicked off.

Then, it was the Falcons who got a bit of payback.

Michael Vick ran for one touchdown and set up another with a long pass, enough to give Atlanta a 14-10 victory over the Eagles on Monday night.

Clearly, emotions were running high. Jeremiah Trotter of the Eagles and Kevin Mathis of the Falcons were ejected after a scuffle broke out in pregame warmups, setting an intense tone for the rest of the night.

The Eagles, after falling behind 14-0 in the first quarter, shut down Vick the rest of the way. But they couldn’t come all the way back, their final bid denied when Donovan McNabb took a vicious hit from Rod Coleman on a fourth-down pass, the ball dropping far short of Terrell Owens streaking down the sideline with 1:33 left.

Vick kneeled a couple of times to run out the clock, giving the Falcons a victory over the team that knocked them out of the playoffs two of the last three years.

Less than eight months ago, the Eagles beat Atlanta 27-10 for the NFC title in frigid Philadelphia.

“This goes to show how far we’ve come since 2004,” Vick said. “We certainly stepped up to the challenge.”

About a half-hour before the opening kickoff in the Georgia Dome and the players going through routine warm-ups, the teams began jawing at each other near midfield.

Trotter, the Eagles’ three-time Pro Bowl linebacker, apparently shoved Mathis, a backup cornerback. Mathis responded with a punch. Then, everyone got into it.

“He threw a punch and I tried to block it,” Trotter said. “I got the facemask and they must have thought it was a punch. We were just trash talking. I don’t think anyone should have been ejected.”

But the officials, after consulting the replay monitor, decided to eject both Trotter and Mathis – a ruling that definitely favored the Falcons. Mathis is a bit player, used mainly in passing situations, while Trotter anchors the middle of the Philadelphia defense.

Second-year player Mike Labinjo, who got in only three games as a rookie, made his first career start in place of Trotter. The Falcons took advantage, rushing for 200 yards. Warrick Dunn led the way with 113 yards on 20 carries.

“It’s unfortunate that happened,” Eagles coach Andy Reid said of the pregame fracas. “That’s no excuse. Absolutely no excuse.”

Clearly fired up, Atlanta raced to a two-touchdown lead before the game was 15 minutes old. Vick hooked up with Michael Jenkins and Alge Crumpler on a pair of 18-yard passes, then finished off things with a 7-yard scoring run.

The Falcons scored again less than 3 minutes later. Vick lofted a 58-yard pass to Michael Jenkins, who hauled it in just short of the end zone. T.J. Duckett bulled over from the 1 on the next play.

Vick struggled the rest of the way, throwing an interception and losing two fumbles. He completed 12 of 23 passes for 156 yards.

Owens caught seven passes for 112 yards, but the Falcons kept him out of the end zone.

After Duckett’s TD, McNabb went to Owens for a 14-yard gain, then back to him again on a 16-yard play. Brian Westbrook, another disgruntled star, got loose for a 17-yard run, then took a short pass 24 yards. Finally, Westbrook made a nice catch on a high pass in the flats for a 9-yard touchdown.

But the Eagles hurt themselves with some uncharacteristic plays. Three-time Pro Bowl kicker David Akers missed a pair of 49-yard field goal attempts, having failed on just five attempts all of last season. Akers did connect on a 44-yarder with 9:20 left in the game.