SportsDirect Inc. staff
Nov 13, 2011
John Skelton threw a pair of touchdown passes in the fourth quarter, including a 5-yarder to Early Doucet with 1:53 remaining, as the Arizona Cardinals rallied for their first road win of the season by beating the Philadelphia Eagles 21-17 on Sunday.
Larry Fitzgerald, who made seven catches for 146 yards and two scores, set up the winning TD with a tremendous 37-yard reception on third-and-10 that put the ball on the Eagles 1.
Three plays later, Skelton connected with Doucet as Philadelphia blew a fourth-quarter lead for the fifth time this season.
Philadelphia (3-6), which fell to 1-4 at home, has been outscored by a league-high 47 points in the fourth quarter this season.
Skelton was 21 of 40 for 315 yards and three touchdowns with two interceptions for Arizona (3-6), which has won two in a row after six straight losses.
Michael Vick completed 16 of 34 passes for just 128 yards but was without star receiver DeSean Jackson, who was inactive reportedly for missing a team meeting on Saturday. Jeremy Maclin also missed the majority of the game with shoulder and hamstring injuries, catching just two passes for six yards.
Fitzgerald plucked a tipped ball out of the air at the Eagles 4 and trotted into the end zone for a 7-yard score with 9:18 to go in the fourth, tying the contest at 14. But Nnamdi Asomugha picked off a pass by Skelton at the Arizona 30 on the Cardinals' next drive, setting up a 36-yard field goal by Alex Henery for a 17-14 advantage.
After Arizona kicker Jay Feely missed a pair of field-goal attempts in a scoreless first quarter, Asante Samuel picked off a Skelton pass and returned it 20 yards for a touchdown with 9:35 remaining in the second for a 7-0 lead.
The Cardinals forged a tie on a 10-yard scoring strike over the middle from Skelton to Fitzgerald, but LeSean McCoy put Philadelphia back in front with a 1-yard TD run with 17 seconds left before the half.
McCoy has scored a touchdown in a franchise-record nine straight games, eclipsing the old mark set in 1947 by Steve Van Buren.