Eagles thwart T.O.

PHILADELPHIA – The two quarterbacks on the field combined to make Terrell Owens’ return to Philadelphia a miserable experience for the wide receiver.

His own quarterback, Drew Bledsoe, couldn’t get him the ball. And his nemesis, Donovan McNabb, upstaged him, throwing two touchdown passes to lead the Philadelphia Eagles to a 38-24 victory over Owens and the Dallas Cowboys at Lincoln Financial Field on Sunday.

Owens was limited to three catches for 45 yards, all in the second half, as the Cowboys (2-2) fell 1 1/2 games behind the first-place Eagles (4-1) in the NFC East. Bledsoe had a dismal performance in which he was sacked seven times, lost a fumble and threw three interceptions, the last of which was returned 102 yards for a touchdown by Eagles cornerback Lito Sheppard with 16 seconds to play.

A pass-interference penalty on a fourth-and-18 heave toward wideout Terry Glenn had given the Cowboys a first down at the Eagles 6-yard line with 35 seconds left. But on second and goal, Bledsoe and tight end Jason Witten were on different wavelengths and Bledsoe’s pass sailed wide of Witten and went directly to Sheppard. Bledsoe’s second interception, also by Sheppard, had come when he badly underthrew an open Owens deep in Eagles territory on the Cowboys’ previous possession.

McNabb was the difference-maker in the sloppy game, throwing for 354 yards. His 40-yard touchdown strike to wide receiver Reggie Brown on a flea-flicker with just more than nine minutes remaining put the Eagles ahead for good.

“The pleasure I get out of it is the chance we get to sustain our position at the top,” McNabb said. “Every win we get is important for us, especially a division game … . It’s not T.O. versus Donovan. It’s the Dallas Cowboys against the Philadelphia Eagles.”

But the focus was on Owens, who was double-teamed for much of the game and showed his exasperation by ranting on the sideline and storming off the field after Sheppard’s clinching interception.

“They were truly focused on taking him out of it,” Bledsoe said. “We did have some opportunities to make some plays with him and we didn’t do it.”

Owens clearly was unhappy after Bledsoe misfired on a few passes to the star receiver. At one point, Owens was screaming as he walked off the field and took a seat alone on the bench.

As he ran into the locker room, an animated T.O. was yelling and asking why the Cowboys bothered signing him in the offseason, according to a stadium employee who witnessed the tirade but didn’t want to be identified because he is not authorized to talk about team matters.

“I’m not going to sit up here and point a finger, so you guys can create a story,” Owens said later during the press conference, refusing to blame Bledsoe for the loss. “It’s not about that.”