Too little, too late

Depth perception gave Jim Zorn the wrong impression after LaRon Landry and Fred Smoot stopped Philadelphia Eagles receiver Reggie Brown near the goal line.

From where he was standing on the Washington Redskins’ sideline, Zorn thought it was a no-brainer that Brown was denied from scoring what would have been the game-tying touchdown.

When officials decided to review the call on the field, Zorn needed confirmation.

He got it from Landry.

“No. No way,” Landry told the Redskins’ coach. “I hit the [crud] out of him.”

Landry was right on both accounts - Brown in no way crossed the goal line, and Landry indeed hit the crud out of him to preserve Washington’s 10-3 victory on Sunday, which snapped a three-game losing streak.

But while they dealt Philadelphia (8-6-1) a crushing defeat, the Redskins’ long-shot postseason aspirations ended when Atlanta beat Minnesota.

“It’s nobody else’s fault but ours,” Zorn said. “There were a couple of games we’ll look back on and be very frustrated about for years to come.”

This win won’t be one of them, partly because it capped a week in which Zorn said he felt like the “worst coach in America” and a few prominent veteran players - and seemingly the entire metropolitan area - speculated on his job status.

Now Zorn and the Redskins (8-7) can travel to San Francisco for the finale without the distraction of another regime change looming. The Redskins, after all, finished 3-3 in the brutal NFC East, which included a sweep of the Eagles.

“I said last week some of those losses can make you feel like a failure and pretty bad,” Zorn said. “Last week was a downer, so you can’t describe the emotion of toughing out and actually coming through with a win.”

Added linebacker London Fletcher: “We showed how we felt about Coach Zorn with the way we came out and played today, the way we fought, the way we approached this game. We’re going to fight until the end.”

And it took until the end.

Three times in the fourth quarter, the Redskins couldn’t run down the clock as they failed to make a first down. Philadelphia regained possession at its 9-yard line with 3:48 remaining and one timeout. By the one-minute mark, the Eagles had marched to the Washington 40. DeSean Jackson got a step on DeAngelo Hall but couldn’t corral McNabb’s throw into the end zone.

Five plays later, McNabb converted a fourth-and-4 from the 23 by throwing 5 yards to Brian Westbrook. After McNabb spiked the ball to kill the clock, 12 seconds remained and the Eagles were at the 18.

What the Redskins expected: at least two and possibly three shots into the end zone.

What the Redskins got: McNabb threw to Brown, who had made an inside move on Smoot to break free. Brown leapt to make the catch, and Landry took advantage by forcefully hitting Brown away from the end zone. Officials rushed to spot the football, but time ran out.

“I knew it was close, so I tried to carry him away [from the goal line],” Smoot said. “As long as he didn’t come down, I thought it was OK. I knew he wasn’t in.”

Said Landry: “I saw him turn his shoulders, and I just broke on the ball. I was on the goal line, and I knew if I kept him in front of me, it wouldn’t be a touchdown.”

The play capped a tremendous effort by the Redskins’ defense. Before the final drive, the Eagles, who finished with 275 yards, ran only eight plays in Washington territory. A variety of players helped contain Westbrook, and Jason Taylor exceeded his sack total entering the game (1.5) by taking down McNabb twice.

On Saturday night, defensive coordinator Greg Blache showed the players a highlight video of themselves as a pick-me-up.

“I thought they needed some emotional Viagra - we needed to get a spike from them today,” Blache said. “I wanted to show them what we have done. It was good for them to see themselves have success.”

The success came immediately. For the first time in four weeks, the Redskins didn’t dig themselves a huge hole. Philadelphia punted on its first four possessions, and the Redskins took a 3-0 lead on Shaun Suisham’s 33-yard field goal, which capped a season-best 16-play drive.

The Redskins extended the lead to 10-0 (their largest since Week 8) thanks to Taylor’s sack and forced fumble. Playing left end, Taylor beat right tackle Jon Runyan and simultaneously chased down, sacked and stripped McNabb. Fletcher scooped up the fumble and returned it 12 yards to the Philadelphia 18.

Three plays later, Zorn didn’t hesitate when the Redskins reached the 5-yard line to use his best back (Clinton Portis) instead of his biggest back (Mike Sellers) near the goal line. Sellers got two shots from the 1 last week in Cincinnati and fumbled on the second. Portis carried it three consecutive times, finally scoring over the left side from 1 yard out.

The touchdown was Portis’ first since Week 7, a span of 150 carries.

The Eagles quickly shaved the Redskins’ lead to a touchdown. Westbrook - covered by defensive tackle Lorenzo Alexander, who because of a busted coverage had no over-the-top help - caught a 47-yard pass and ran to the Washington 12. But Chris Horton blew up a quick pass to Westbrook on third down from the 5, and the Eagles settled for a 22-yard David Akers field goal with 4:18 remaining in the third quarter.

Philadelphia, which had gained control of its playoff fate when Tampa Bay lost to San Diego, needs to beat Dallas (9-6) and have Tampa Bay (9-6) lose to Oakland and Chicago (7-7) lose one of its final two games in order to qualify.

The Redskins finish against the 49ers with a chance for a second consecutive 9-7 season, albeit one that will end out of the playoffs. But the Christmas week mood around Redskin Park promises to be more upbeat.

“We want to finish by playing good, strong football,” center Casey Rabach said. “We wanted to get the heat off Coach Zorn a little bit because he’s been getting a lot of flak, and maybe this can get people off his back and we can build toward next year.”