By Jim Litke
The Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA - We wanted art, they gave us grit. We wanted fireworks, and plenty of back-and-forth. Stylish play and sparks flying to mark a rivalry that would light up the playoffs for the rest of this decade and shine all the way into the next. That, anyway, was what the matchup between Philadelphia's Donovan McNabb and Atlanta's Mike Vick promised to produce.

Maybe next time.

The duel between quarterbacks with fast feet and rocket launchers for throwing arms turned out to be a decidedly low-tech affair won by the Eagles 20-6 Saturday night. This one was a sloppy struggle between defenses, placekickers, too-cautious coaches and players struggling to avoid the telling mistake.

McNabb and Vick produced exactly one offensive touchdown between them, and even that turned out to be a very workmanlike effort. McNabb hooked up with James Thrash for 35 yards with 6:26 left in the final quarter and the Eagles hanging onto a 13-6 lead

But even that was more entertaining in the retelling; at the time of the score, the most exciting thing about it probably was the gutsy call by Eagles' coach Andy Reid, whose team was facing fourth-and-one.

Afterward, McNabb said all the hype about his duel with Vick, and the speculation about whether his eight-week layoff while nursing a broken ankle would limit the Eagles, mattered little once he found his comfort level.

"Everyone talked about the mobility and the rust," he said. "I just wanted to play football."

To be fair, McNabb benefitted from a better defense and game plan, home-field advantage and the kind of luck quarterbacks usually dream about. Atlanta's best cornerback, Ray Buchanan, didn't start because of an injury and the Falcons lost safety Keion Carpenter on the Eagles' first play. Not long after that, backup cornerback Juran Bolden got knocked out of the game.

McNabb, meanwhile, answered the toughest question on Eagles' second play when he took off from his own end zone, ran away from onrushing free safety Gerald McBurrows, around linebacker Keith Brooking and up the right side for 19 yards.

If the ankle was bothering him, it hardly showed. But that drive, like every other one the Eagles mounted in the first half, wound up stalling and led to a punt. Then Jim Johnson, Philadelphia's defensive coordinator, went to work.

Using the Eagles' multi-faceted blitz package, he sent rushers at Vick from angles the 22-year-old rarely sees. Facing pressure, Vick's 7-step drop quickly turned into a 9- and 10-step drop. At first-and-10 from his own 30, he was retreating and tried a difficult throw up the left sideline to Shawn Jefferson.

Instead, Bobby Taylor stepped in front of Jefferson, picked off the pass and returned it 39 yards for the Eagles' first score. The last obstacle he hit on his way into the end zone was Vick, whose half-hearted stab at a tackle seemed to suggest the Falcons were going to put up only so much resistance.

The Vet started rocking with a rendition of "Fly, Eagles, Fly" and when McNabb drove Philadelphia to a field goal on its next possession and a 10-0 lead, it looked like Vick and the Falcons would wilt.

But the opposite turned out to be true.

McNabb, who is four years Vick's senior, once played host to the youngster during a college visit to Syracuse and they've remained close friends since. But while Vick chose Virginia Tech because he didn't want to compete against the legacy McNabb was building at Syracuse, he had no problem trying to best him on this night.

Showing the same composure he employed at Green Bay a week ago to beat the Packers and Brett Favre, Vick steadied the Falcons, crafted two sustained drives and Atlanta's Jay Feely converted two field goals to pull within 13-6 at halftime.

Vick appeared well on his way to orchestrating another upset late in the third quarter when, flushed out of the pocket once more, he scooted 20 yards up the middle for the apparent tying touchdown.

But Eagles safety Brian Dawkins delivered a jarring shot to the ribs at the 3-yard line, and Vick must have felt even worse lying in the end zone when he heard the score nullified by a holding penalty on guard Travis Claridge.

Vick's night went downhill from there. McNabb's careful management of the Eagles' offense paid off with the touchdown throw to Thrash, choking off any late comebacks. It was a lesson in how grit sometimes works better than flash, how doing just enough is better than doing it all.

When it was over, McNabb said he thought Vick "handled himself real well."

"Anytime he's out there, he's dangerous," McNabb said. "Everyone across the league knows that."

For one night, though, McNabb didn't have to worry about footsteps.

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Jim Litke is the national sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jlitke@ap.org

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