Eagles 49, Raiders 20
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Quarterback Nick Foles threw an NFL-record-tying seven touchdown passes, and the Philadelphia Eagles rolled to a 49-20 victory Sunday over the Oakland Raiders at the O.co Coliseum.
Foles became the seventh quarterback in NFL history to throw seven touchdown passes in a game, joining Sid Luckman, George Blanda, Joe Kapp, Y.A. Tittle, Adrian Burk and Peyton Manning, who tied the record earlier this season against the Baltimore Ravens.
Foles completed 22 of 28 passes for a career-high 406 yards with no interceptions and posted a perfect passer rating of 158.3. Wide receiver Riley Cooper caught five passes for 139 yards and three touchdowns, burning Raiders rookie cornerback DJ Hayden on all three scores. Wide receiver DeSean Jackson caught five passes for 150 yards and one score.
In order, Foles threw touchdown passes to tight end Brent Celek (2 yards), Cooper (17), Cooper (63), tight end Zack Ertz (15), running back LeSean McCoy (25), Jackson (46) and Cooper (5).
Foles tied the NFL mark with 4:28 left in the third quarter when he hit a wide-open Cooper with a 5-yard dart in the end zone.
Foles' seven TD passes are the most the Raiders have allowed in franchise history. He broke former Chargers quarterback Dan Fouts' mark of six set on Nov. 22, 1981, at Oakland.
Any thoughts of Foles throwing eight TD passes ended with 9:23 left to play when Matt Barkley replaced him.
Foles made his ninth career start and third start of the season, filling in again for Michael Vick, who aggravated a hamstring injury last week in a 15-7 loss to the New York Giants.
Foles had never thrown more than three touchdowns in an NFL game before Sunday.
The Eagles' offense had gone back-to-back games without a touchdown before facing Oakland. But with Foles picking apart the Raiders' secondary, Eagles coach Chip Kelly's offense got back up to warp speed. Three of the Eagles' TD drives took less than a minute and another took just 1:18. Their longest scoring drive lasted 3:58.
The Eagles (4-5) rolled up 542 total yards of offense against the Raiders (3-5), who were coming off a 21-18 victory over Pittsburgh but failed miserably in their attempt to reach .500 at their season's midpoint.
The Raiders offense netted 560 yards -- the third most in team history -- but reached the end zone only twice, on Rashad Jennings' 8-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and Jeremy Stewart's 2-yard run late in the fourth.
Raiders quarterback Terrelle Pryor completed 22 of 41 passes for 288 yards with two interceptions before leaving the game with a knee injury midway through the fourth quarter. Backup Matt McGloin took over with 7:56 remaining. Jennings carried 15 times for 102 yards, carrying most of the load after Darren McFadden aggravated a hamstring injury in the first half, forcing him to miss the second half.
Foles had a nightmare performance in his previous start two weeks ago in a 17-3 loss against the Dallas Cowboys. He completed just 11 of 29 passes for 80 yards and missed the final quarter with a concussion that forced him to miss last week's game.
Against the Raiders, Foles had a dream game. He led the Eagles to touchdowns on their first four drives as they built a 28-13 halftime lead. During those four TD drives, Foles went 14 of 16 for 256 yards and four touchdowns with a perfect passer rating of 158.3.
On the Eagles' first possession, Foles completed 6 of 7 passes for 94 yards and a 2-yard touchdown to Celek as Philadelphia grabbed a 7-0 lead.
The Raiders countered with Sebastian Janikowski's 24-yard field goal, but the Eagles marched 82 yards in just 2:45 for another touchdown, Foles hitting Cooper on a 17-yard scoring strike with 14:17 left in the half. Cooper, lined up left, beat Hayden's man-to-man coverage with a stop-and-go move and broke wide open in the end zone.
After forcing a punt, the Eagles needed just one play to increase their lead to 21-3 as Foles hit Cooper with a 63-yard touchdown pass. Cooper beat Hayden's man coverage again, this time on a deep post. Hayden slipped and hit the turf as Cooper hauled in Foles' pass. The Raiders had no safety in the middle, and Cooper cruised into the end zone.
The Raiders cut Philadelphia's lead to 21-10 on Jennings' 8-yard touchdown run with 7:34 remaining in the half, but Foles quickly answered, hitting Ertz on a 15-yard scoring strike.
Janikowski nailed a 53-yard field goal three seconds before halftime, but the Eagles opened the second half with a 61-yard touchdown drive that took only 46 seconds. Foles threw a pass to McCoy in the right flat, and he raced untouched for a 25-yard score, increasing Philadelphia's lead to 35-13.
Then, with 11:33 still remaining in the third quarter, Foles threw his sixth touchdown pass of the game, this one for 46 yards to Jackson, who beat cornerback Mike Jenkins. Jackson's TD gave the Eagles a 42-13 lead. Riley's third TD reception of the day increased the lead to 49-13.
NOTES: Eagles FS Patrick Chung (shoulder) was active, but Earl Wolff started in his place. ... Eagles RB Matthew Tucker, LB Jake Knott (hamstring), OT Matt Tobin, OT Dennis Kelly, WR B.J. Cunningham and Vick (hamstring) were inactive. ... Raiders rookie WR Brice Butler was inactive for the first time this season, and second-year WR Juron Criner suited up for the first time this year. ... Raiders starting RT Tony Pashos (hip) and SS Tyvon Branch (ankle) were inactive. Matt McCants filled in for Pashos and Brandian Ross for Branch. ... Raiders rookie OT Menelik Watson and third-year linebacker Martez Wilson suited up for the first time this season. Watson made his Raiders debut in the second quarter, taking over after McCants suffered a foot injury.
