Sorry, Eagles. Not this time, either. The surprising Carolina Panthers are Super Bowl-bound instead.
The Panthers once again showed no fear on the road, shocking Philadelphia 14-3 Sunday night and handing the Eagles their third straight NFC championship game defeat.
Rookie Ricky Manning Jr., a hero last week with an interception to set up the winning touchdown at St. Louis, picked off three passes against an ailing Donovan McNabb.
PHOTO: EPA
Eight days after ending the Rams' 14-game home winning streak in double overtime, the Panthers marched into The Linc and grabbed their first conference crown. They'd gotten this far in 1996, their second season, but lost to Green Bay. This time, they extended the angst-filled wait for a championship in Philadelphia and will head to Houston to meet the New England Patriots on Feb. 1.
"I'm going to try not to think about the Patriots tonight so I can at least get some sleep," quarterback Jake Delhommme said. "I don't want to think about that defense just yet."
For Philadelphia, it is now 20 full seasons without any kind of pro sports championship. The Eagles' last NFL title was in 1960, and they are the first team to host consecutive conference championships and lose both since game sites originally were determined by record in 1975.
Just two seasons back, the Panthers were the NFL's worst team with a 1-15 record. John Fox was hired as coach and engineered one of the most impressive turnarounds in league history. They beat Dallas handily at home in the wild-card round, then won the thriller at the Rams.
Fox's opportunistic defense made the difference Sunday, led by a fierce pass rush and third-round draft pick Manning, who tied an NFC championship game record with his three pickoffs. The Panthers hurt McNabb's ribs in the second quarter, then destroyed Philadelphia's chance for its first Super Bowl trip since 1981 with a powerful display in the third period.
By the final quarter, McNabb was out of the game and the Eagles were out of options.
With McNabb sidelined, Koy Detmer led the Eagles to the Carolina 11, but then forced a throw over the middle that Dan Morgan grabbed for the Panthers' fourth interception.
Overall, McNabb was just 10-for-22 for 100 yards. He could provide none of the heroics of last week, when he rallied the Eagles over Green Bay 20-17 in overtime. This decisive loss will erase the glory of "fourth-and-26," the play that saved Philadelphia's season -- for one week.
The Panthers' key offensive player, Stephen Davis, played regularly despite injuring his quadriceps last week. He had 76 yards on 19 carries, while Foster added 60 on 14.
Carolina barely needed Del-homme's passing and he was a mere 9-for-14 for 101 yards.
"The defense played lights out," Delhomme said.
Manning's third interception -- off a deflection when receiver James Thrash was hit hard by Mike Minter -- and his 17-yard return was critical. So was the inability of the Eagles' secondary to make the same kind of plays.
Lito Sheppard's 14-yard interference penalty against Steve Smith put Carolina at the 1. DeShaun Foster then powered through four tacklers for a 14-3 lead with 4:11 left in the third quarter.
In the first half, despite double coverage, Muhsin Muhammad made a 24-yard touchdown catch for a 7-0 lead.
Davis showed he was healthy enough on the opening series, running for 26 yards. But the drive died at the Philadelphia 32 and John Kasay, rather than attempt a long field goal in the swirling winds, pooched a punt to the 11.
Philadelphia also had an impressive first drive, including consecutive completions of 12 yards to L.J. Lewis and 23 to Correll Buckhalter. The threat ended when McNabb was sacked by Will Weatherspoon at the Panthers 36, forcing a punt.
Early in the second quarter, Carolina found the end zone with a little good fortune. On a third-and-1, Foster fumbled, but teammate Jermaine Wiggins pounced on it for a 2-yard gain.
After a 21-yard pass to Davis and a 15-yarder to Muhammad, Delhomme's heave into the end zone was well short of Muhammad. But the receiver came back for the ball against passive double coverage for the score.
US track and field athletes have about four dozen pieces to choose from when assembling their uniforms at the Olympics. The one grabbing the most attention is a high-cut leotard that barely covers the bikini line and has triggered debate between those who think it is sexist and others who say they do not need the Internet to make sure they have good uniforms. Among those critical or laughing at the uniforms included Paralympian Femita Ayanbeku, sprinter Britton Wilson and even athletes from other countries such as Britain’s Abigail Irozuru, who wrote on social media: “Was ANY female athlete consulted in
Forget Real Madrid, Manchester City or Paris Saint-Germain, the world’s best soccer team — statistically speaking — might be a little-known outfit from the closed central Asian nation of Turkmenistan. Founded last year, Arkadag, named in honor of former Turkmen president Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow, have been unstoppable, notching up 36 consecutive domestic victories in a run still ongoing. The side have not lost a single competitive match and swept to a league and cup double in their inaugural season — success unthinkable almost anywhere else. However, in Turkmenistan, it could hardly have gone any other way. The energy-rich country is one of the most closed
Former US Masters champion Zach Johnson was left embarrassed after a foul-mouthed response to ironic cheers from spectators after a triple bogey at Augusta National on Friday. Johnson, the 2007 Masters winner, missed the cut after his three-over-par round of 75 left him on seven-over 151 for 36 holes, his six on the par-three 12th playing a big role in his downfall. Television footage showed Johnson reacting to sarcastic cheers and applause when he tapped in for the triple bogey by yelling: “Oh fuck off.” Such a response would be considered bad form in any golf tournament, but is particularly out of keeping
Taiwan’s Lee Jhe-huei and Yang Po-hsuan on Saturday won the men’s doubles bronze medal at the Badminton Asia Championships in Ningbo, China, after they were bested by the hosts in their semi-final. The Taiwanese shuttlers lost to China’s Liang Wei Keng and Wang Chang, who advanced to yesterday’s final against Malaysia’s Goh Sze Fei and Nur Izzudin. The Chinese pair outplayed Lee and Yang in straight games. Although the Taiwanese got off to a slow start in the first game, they eventually tied it 14-14, before Liang and Wang went on to blow past them to win 21-17. In the second game, Lee and