Tampa Bay Buccaneers vs Philadelphia Eagles Match Player Stats On Nov 22, 2015

The Sports Xchange
Nov 22, 2015

PHILADELPHIA -- Quarterback Jameis Winston threw five touchdown passes -- including four in the first half -- and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers rolled past the Philadelphia Eagles 45-17 on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field.

The victory gives the Bucs (5-5) a shot at an NFC wild-card playoff berth, while the Eagles (4-6) fell a game behind the idle New York Giants in NFC East.

It was, by far, the best game of Winston's rookie year. The first overall pick in the 2015 draft completed 19 of 29 passes for 246 yards, with no interceptions, and the five TD passes tied the NFL rookie record set by Detroit's Matthew Stafford in 2009.

Winston was complemented by running back Doug Martin, who rushed for 235 yards -- the second-most ever against the Eagles -- and set up two of the Bucs' touchdowns with long runs, of 58 and 84 runs.

Eagles quarterback Mark Sanchez, subbing for injured starter Sam Bradford, completed 26 of 41 passes for 261 yards and two touchdowns, but he also threw three interceptions, including one that was returned by linebacker Lavonte David 20 yards for the Bucs' final touchdown.

The Eagles scored first, when Sanchez hit wide receiver Josh Huff on a short crossing pattern, and Huff eluded several would-be tacklers en route to a 39-yard touchdown that gave the Eagles a 7-0 lead with 11:35 left in the first quarter.

The Bucs answered late in the opening period, after a mental mistake by the Eagles gave Tampa Bay's drive new life. Winston's long pass on third down sailed incomplete, but linebacker Brandon Graham was flagged for lining up in the neutral zone. That made it third-and-1, and on the next play Martin took a pitch from Winston and ran for 58 yards before he was finally dragged down on the Eagles 8. Two plays later, Winston lofted a 4-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Mike Evans to make it 7-7 with 2:51 left in the first quarter.

The Bucs opened the second quarter in style, with Winston hitting wide receiver Vincent Jackson with a 13-yard touchdown pass. Then the Bucs' big-play magic struck again. Tampa Bay had a first down on its own 15 when Martin ran through a gaping hole in the middle and broke down the sideline for an 84-yard run, holding off cornerback Nolan Carroll for the last 25 yards. That led to Winston's 4-yard TD pass to wide receiver Russell Shepard and a 21-7 lead with 8:06 left in the second quarter.

The Eagles stopped the flood of Bucs' points with a big play of their own, when running back Darren Sproles turned a screen pass into a 35-yard TD that cut the lead to 21-14 with 6:04 left in the first half. But the Bucs added another touchdown on Winston's fourth TD pass of the half, a 14-yarder to running back Bobby Rainey, and Tampa Bay ran off the field at halftime leading 28-14.

The Bucs really asserted their dominance to start the second half, taking the kickoff and holding the ball for 15 plays and 9:47 and converting four third-down situations along the way. They cashed in when Winston connected with tight end Cameron Brate on an 8-yard TD pass that made it 35-14 with 5:13 left in the third quarter.

NOTES: Eagles LT Jason Peters was back in the lineup after missing the last two games with back problems. So, RT Lane Johnson, who had moved to Peters' side the last two weeks, was back at his old position. ... Eagles RB Ryan Mathews was deactivated because he didn't complete the NFL concussion protocol after being injured last week. ... The Bucs played without out two starters, RG Ali Marpet (ankle) and TE Austin Seferian-Jenkins (shoulder). They were replaced, respectively, by Evan Smith and Luke Stocker.