Eagles' defense winning running battle

WHAT HAPPENS when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object? We'll find out Sunday when the Redskins' fourth-ranked ground game collides with the Eagles' vaunted run defense.

The Redskins and their 1-2 running punch of Alfred Morris and rookie Matt Jones are averaging 143.7 yards per game and are fifth in the league in rushing average (4.6 yards per carry).

The Eagles have held their first three opponents to a league-best 3.1 yards per carry. They are tied with the Bengals for the fewest rushing first downs allowed (11). And only the Ravens have given up fewer double-digit-yard runs (two to the Eagles' four).

"That's going to be the most important matchup of the day," Redskins coach Jay Gruden said. "Their defensive line is excellent. They're very disruptive. They do a lot of line stunts that are disruptive.

"They do a good job of getting tackles for losses (18 of 84 opponent rushing attempts have gained zero or negative yards) and forcing you into long-yardage situations. Then you're in trouble if you have a young offensive line like we do."

Last week, even without two of their top three inside linebackers - Kiko Alonso (knee) and Mychal Kendricks (hamstring) - and even without starting defensive end Cedric Thornton (broken hand) and backup Taylor Hart (shoulder), the Eagles held the Jets' running back to 34 yards on 12 carries.

"The biggest plus for us has been not having to put the extra (eighth) guy in the box," Eagles linebacker DeMeco Ryans said. "Being able to defend the run game with just the front and the 'backers.

"Everybody's just playing sound technique, starting with the defensive line. When those guys strike (the offensive linemen) and they play their technique well, they make it easier on everybody behind them."

The Eagles' run defense isn't an overnight sensation. They were very good against the run last year, finishing tied for fourth in yards allowed per carry (3.7) and third over the final eight games (3.5).

They haven't allowed an individual 100-yard rusher in 15 games and have allowed just one in the last 27 (Frank Gore, 114 yards, last September).

It starts with a disruptive front three that goes an impressive seven deep. Last week, with Thornton and Hart both out, Brandon Bair, who was a game-day inactive the first two weeks, stepped in and played 46 solid snaps and had four tackles and batted a pair of Ryan Fitzpatrick passes, including one that linebacker Jordan Hicks was able to intercept with 6 1/2 minutes left in the game and the Jets driving.

"Those guys up front are active," outside linebacker Brandon Graham said. "They're not just doing their (two-gap) job and saying, 'OK, I'm good.' They're trying to get to the ball just like us. It's like a race to get to the ball basically; (to see) who's going to make the tackle."

The Eagles' ability to shut down the run with their front seven has allowed defensive coordinator Bill Davis to keep both of his safeties - Malcolm Jenkins and Walter Thurmond - back in coverage rather than have to move one up in the box to defend the run. That has benefited their pass coverage.

"As a secondary, when you don't have to worry about the run game and you can stop the run in a two-safety look, that's just one more person you have in coverage," Jenkins said.

"It takes the stress off of you. We honestly don't think about the run at all as a secondary. Because our front does a great job of really clogging up the gaps. And if one does happen to break, it's usually going east-west. And those are easy tackles for us to come out of the secondary to make.

"Rarely do we get somebody streaming downhill through the secondary. That's a DB's nightmare. But that's one of the benefits of playing behind the big guys that we've got."

EAGLES vs. THE RUN

1st 2nd 3rd

Down Down Down

Att.-Yds.. . . 50-138 25-95 9-28

Yds./Att.. . . 2.76 3.80 3.11

Rank. . . 2nd 14th 10th

THIS AND THAT

* DeMeco Ryans limped out of the visitor's locker room at MetLife Stadium last Sunday, grimacing in pain with every step. He injured his groin in the fourth quarter. Yet, he has been a full-practice participant this week and his name is nowhere to be found on the Eagles' daily injury report. On Tuesday, he limped off the practice field and headed straight for treatment and a massage before meeting with reporters. Come hell or high water, he will play against the Redskins Sunday. Asked earlier this week how the groin was feeling, he wouldn't even acknowledge that there was a problem with it, saying he only left Sunday's win over the Jets early because, "we were playing a lot of dime and they wanted to give Najee (Goode) a couple of reps there as well. The game was pretty much over with by then." This is why the Eagles kept the 31-year-old warrior, even though he was coming off his second ruptured Achilles' tendon in four years, even though they had traded for Kiko Alonso. This is why Chip Kelly calls him Mufasa and why rookie Jordan Hicks relished playing alongside of him on Sunday. "I wouldn't want to play next to anybody else," Hicks said. "He's the vet. The one who keeps everybody calm, who keeps it loose out there, has fun. He's who I want to play next to." Groin injury or no groin injury, Ryans will play Sunday against the Redskins, and he will give his teammates everything he has to give.

* Mychal Kendricks has been playing sports most of his young life. Has had his share of bumps and bruises, but had never pulled a hamstring. Until two weeks ago when it happened in the Eagles' 20-10 loss to the Cowboys. Kendricks missed the Jets game, but has been a full-practice participant the last two days. He's hopeful he'll be able to play Sunday, but he's been warned by teammates that hamstring injuries can be deceptive. You think it has healed and then you play on it and boom, you reinjure it. "That's the thing that's so tricky," he said. "You can feel great and go and do it again. That's what you don't want to happen." Last year, Kendricks missed four games and parts of two others with a calf bruise. The length of time it took him to return prompted that snide "when he played he played really well for us" comment from Chip Kelly at the league meetings in March that had everybody convinced Kendricks wasn't long for Philadelphia. Kendricks said that injury was very different than this one. "The calf was a little bit more serious," he said.

* The Redskins, like the Eagles, will have a new kicker Sunday. They released Kai Forbath, who had been their kicker for the previous three seasons, after their 17-10 Week 1 loss to Miami, and replaced him with Dustin Hopkins. Forbath, who missed a 46-yard field goal against the Dolphins, had been one of the league's more accurate kickers the last three years, converting 88 percent of his field goal attempts. He was 24-for-27 last year. So why did they can him? "It was the total package," Redskins coach Jay Gruden said this week. "Kai made a lot of big kicks for us. but when you're talking about the position of kicker, it's more than making 35-40-yard field goals. It's the long field goals and being able to even attempt them. But it's also the kickoffs. Last year, we played the Eagles in Philadelphia. We go down and have like a 15-play drive. (We drive) 90 yards and then we kick off. (Chris) Polk returned it 100 yards (actually 102) for a touchdown. The last two games with (Hopkins, I think there's only been one attempted return. It's a big difference." Gruden said touchback percentage is particularly important right now because the Redskins have had some injuries to several starters that have forced them to move some core kickoff guys into the starting lineup, which has weakened their kickoff coverage unit. "To have a kicker kick the ball out of the end zone is a heckuva weapon to have," Gruden said "That's kind of why we did what we did. Nothing against Kai. But we wanted to get better all around at the kicker position."

2-MINUTE DRILL

FROM THE LIP

* "Well, I appreciate the kind words. I don't know if the comparison is . . . I'm not worthy of that comparison. I enjoyed watching Michael. I was a big fan as a kid."

- Packers QB Aaron Rodgers after the team's backup QB Scott Tolzien compared him to Michael Jordan

* "I wish it could be him and I wrestling on the 50, but it won't come to that. Foxy is pretty tough and still might take me."

- Raiders coach Jack Del Rio on coaching against longtime friend and former boss, Bears coach John Fox

* "I've got to do a better job, particularly with (having) 10 days to get my team ready. That didn't take place. We made way too many mistakes. That starts with me. I'm going to make sure we get this thing fixed."

- Chiefs coach Andy Reid the day after his team dropped to 1-2 with a 38-28 Monday night loss to the Packers

* "When you're speaking publicly and you've got a lot of people listening, I think it's probably in everyone's best interest in today's day and age to say as little as possible. That's just the way it is, and I think the way our culture is right now. Everything is really out there."

- Patriots QB and man of measured words Tom Brady

BY THE NUMBERS

* The Falcons are the first team in history to start 3-0 after trailing in the fourth quarter of each game.

* The Patriots' 51-17 win over the Jaguars was the 31st time they've scored 40 or more points in a game Tom Brady has started. That's the most by any quarterback in league history.

* For the second time in his career, Darren Sproles had a punt return for a touchdown and a rushing touchdown in the same game Sunday. He is just the fourth player in history to do that in multiple games. The other three: Ockie Anderson, Curly Oden and Gale Sayers.

* The Patriots have registered a league-high 172 takeaways since 2010. They have a plus-94 turnover differential over that period.

* With a win over the Vikings this week, the Broncos' Peyton Manning would have the seventh 4-0 start of his career. His six 4-0 starts already are the most of any QB in history.

FIGURING THE EAGLES

* The Eagles are 30th in the league in third-down efficiency. They've converted just nine of 38 third-down opportunities (23.7%), including just three of 26 third downs of 5 yards or more. They're averaging just 3.47 yards per third-down play. Only the Texans (3.29) and 49ers (3.32) have a lower third-down average. They are 29th in first-down play average (4.70) and 24th on second down (4.54) A breakdown of the Eagles offense by down:

OVERALL RUSHING PASSING

DownPly.Yds. At.-Yds. Avg. C-Att. Yds. TD/I

1st90-423 38-93 2.4 35-51 335 0/2

2nd61-277 25-69 2.8 25-35 218 2/1

3rd38-132 9-31 3.4 11-29 101 0/1

4th2-24 0-0 - 2-2 24 1/0

* Sam Bradford is 28th in third-down passing with an abysmal 33.8 rating. He is averaging a league-worst 3.48 yards per attempt on third down and has a league-worst 37.9 third-down completion percentage. Just four of his 11 third-down completions have resulted in first downs. Darren Sproles has two third-down receptions for first downs. Jordan Matthews and Ryan Mathews each have one. Last year, Matthews had 19.

* The Eagles are tied for ninth in third-down defense (34.9). The defense has a 66.8 opponent passer rating on third down. None of their five sacks have come on third down, but two of their five interceptions have. They've held opponents to 6.12 yards per attempt on third down.

* Not including three kneel-downs, the Eagles ran 11 of their 65 plays against the Jets with Sam Bradford under center. That's four more than they ran with him under center in the first two games combined. All 11 of those under-center plays were runs. They rushed for 45 yards on 11 carries with Bradford under center on Sunday, and 76 on 25 carries with him in shotgun.

* Through three games, the Eagles are tied for 14th in penalties (23) and are 25th in penalty yards (169). Last year, they finished 12th in penalties (115) and eighth in penalty yards (995). They've been called for 33 penalties, but 10 have been declined. Of those 33, 10 have been for offensive holding. They were called for 25 holds all last season. Center Jason Kelce and left guard Allen Barbre are the only Eagles players with multiple holding calls. Both have three. The Eagles have been flagged for delay of game three times already, which equals their season total from last season.