The Eagles were in prime position at the start the second half of Sunday's eventual loss to the Saints. A two-minute drive at the end of the first half resulted in a field goal for the Eagles and they got the ball to start the second half down just 17-13.

Ellis Hobbs received the kickoff to start the second half and gained 20 yards before he was stripped by rookie cornerback Malcolm Jenkins. The Saints recovered and three plays later scored a touchdown when Drew Brees hit Heath Evans for an 11-yard strike.

The Eagles were never able to recover.

"The guy actually came from behind and made a good play," Hobbs said. "He just tomahawked the ball. I had it tight, he just made a good play and I didn't.

"You have to take the responsibility on yourself and understand that you have to make better plays. I was fortunate enough to go out there and get another chance to make up for it and we scored on that."

After the Saints padded their lead to 34-13 on a 25-yard John Carney field goal, Hobbs took the kickoff and returned it 63 yards to the Saints' 35-yard line. That return provided some hope as Kevin Kolb connected with Jason Avant on fourth-and-goal from the 3-yard line to cut the lead to 14 points.

However, it proved to be too little, too late for the Eagles. A series of special teams miscues from penalties to a shanked punt gave the Saints an overwhelming edge in the third phase Sunday.

"We have all the talent in the world (on special teams)," Hobbs said. "But if you kill yourself on the mental aspect, the penalties and mental errors ... This is a game of inches. What you see out there is a bunch of inches, just adding up."

-- Posted by Chris McPherson, 6:22 p.m., September 20