National Football League
Washington 23, Philadelphia 20
When: 1:00 PM ET, Sunday, October 4, 2015
Where: FedEx Field, Landover, Maryland
Temperature: 58°
Head Official: Jerome Boger
Attendance: 74767

WASHINGTON -- Washington wide receiver Pierre Garcon overcame a bothersome knee on Sunday, helping the Redskins overcome the Philadelphia Eagles.

Quarterback Kirk Cousins threw a 4-yard touchdown pass to Garcon with 26 seconds left, lifting the Redskins to a 23-20 win over the Eagles at FedEx Field.

Garcon caught seven passes for 55 yards, including three on the final drive.

"He's one of the greatest competitors on this football team and people feed off of that," Redskins coach Jay Gruden said. "Those are some tough catches he made today."

Starting on their own 10-yard line with 6:05 left, the Redskins (2-2) used a mix of passes and runs to get to the Eagles' 34 at the two-minute warning.

On third-and-6, Cousins hit Garcon for 14 yards to the 16, and the pair connected again for 12 yards, setting up the game-winning pass, which Garcon held onto despite getting crunched between two Philadelphia defenders.

"He runs precise routes," Cousins said. "He runs to the football. He's fearless."

Garcon left the game briefly due to his knee, but returned in time for the final drive.

"Just something been going on for a while. Just decided to get worse after I went deep," Garcon said of his knee. "Glad it didn't give out on me right before the end of the game."

Cousins bounced back from a subpar effort against the Giants to finish 31-of-46 for 290 yards, one touchdown and no interceptions. He went 6-for-10 on the game-winning drive.

"He's managing the football game and he's putting us in position to win in the fourth quarter and we finally did that," Gruden said.

Philadelphia quarterback Sam Bradford threw three second-half touchdown passes as the Eagles rallied from a 13-0 halftime deficit. He finished 15-of-29 for 269 yards for the 1-3 Eagles.

"I think the good news is it's close," Bradford said. "A couple of these games we've had opportunities and we just haven't finished. But it's not like we're light years away from getting things to where they need to be. I think it's just the small details here and there."

Hurricane Joaquin proved to be only a mild factor, causing some winds, but no rain.

The Eagles took a 20-16 lead after linebacker Brandon Graham stripped tight end Jordan Reed of the ball after a catch and linebacker Jordan Hicks recovered at the Philadelphia 42.

After a penalty moved the ball to the Redskins' 39, Bradford hit wide receiver Miles Austin behind the coverage for the go-ahead touchdown less than a minute into the fourth quarter.

The Eagles erased a dismal offensive first half with two Bradford touchdown passes in the first seven minutes of the second half to tie the score at 13-13.

First Bradford found wide receiver Riley Cooper in stride down the middle for a 62-yard score, but new kicker Caleb Sturgis missed the extra point.

On the next possession, Bradford capped a five-play, 56-yard drive when he avoided linebacker Ryan Kerrigan in the backfield and threw to wide open tight end Brent Celek from 10 yards out.

"In the second half we protected Bradford better and gave him the opportunity to feel the football, and you saw what he could do and we could do," Eagles coach Chip Kelly said.

Dustin Hopkins 33-yard field goal on the ensuing drive made it 16-13 Redskins.

Washington outgained the Eagles 128-25 in the first quarter, but led only 6-0 after field goals of 20 and 38 yards by Hopkins.

Washington found the end zone after a 10-play drive midway through the second quarter.

On third-and-8 from the 18, Cousins threw to wide receiver Ryan Grant in the end zone, and cornerback Eric Rowe was called for pass interference.

Two plays later from the 1-yard line, Cousins fumbled the snap, scooped it up and, with a push from running back Matt Jones, bulled in for the score.

Philadelphia's first four drives ended with three punts and a fumble.

NOTES: Redskins TE Jordan Reed was evaluated for a concussion after the game. He took a knee to the helmet late in the contest. He has had previous head-injury issues so this could have short-term and long-term implications. ...The Redskins ran the ball 32 times for 127 yards. ... Washington wide receiver Jamison Crowder had seven catches for 65 yards. ... The Eagles lost three defensive starters early. DE Brandon Bair (groin), CB Byron Maxwell (quad) and LB Mychal Kendricks (hamstring) left on Washington's first two drives. ... Eagles LT Justin Peters (quad) left in the second quarter. ... RB DeMarco Murray's 30-yard run in the first quarter was his longest of the season. ... Washington DE Chris Baker had two sacks for his first career multi-sack game.
Top Game Performances
Rushing
Philadelphia   Washington
DeMarco Murray Player Alfred Morris
8 Attempts 17
36 Yards 62
4.5 Avg Yards 3.6
0 Touchdowns 0
30 Long 16
Receiving
Philadelphia   Washington
Riley Cooper Player Jamison Crowder
2 Receptions 7
72 Yards 65
36.0 Avg Yards 9.3
1 Touchdowns 0
62 Long 22
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Philadelphia 320 87 233 3 0 0 1.0 1
Washington 417 127 290 2 3 0 5.0 0
Upcoming Games
  • Washington will play their next game on the road against Atlanta. The Redskins have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .667 after a loss.
  • Philadelphia will play their next game at home against New Orleans. The Eagles have a W/L % of .000 after a win and .333 after a loss.
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