Battle-tested

PHILADELPHIA — As he mentioned all the things said about the Washington Redskins and all the things stacked against them during their rugged stretch to start the season, right guard Randy Thomas kept slapping his hands together for emphasis.

Injuries to three defensive starters. Three NFC East road games in the opening five weeks. Another new system for the quarterback. The age of the offensive line. An inexperienced coach.

Throw it all together, and the end result shouldn’t be a 4-1 record.

But there was Thomas in the locker room Sunday after the Redskins rallied from two touchdowns down to defeat the Philadelphia Eagles 23-17 for their fourth consecutive victory, laying out the key reason why the Redskins are one of the NFL’s biggest surprises.

“We … keep … battling,” Thomas said, stressing each word. “That’s what we do.”

And since the opening night debacle against the New York Giants, the Redskins have battled regardless of the circumstances.

A week after stunning Dallas on the road, the Redskins rebounded from a horrific first quarter to gash a previously stingy Eagles run defense and build a nine-point advantage. Then, with the lead cut to six points, they held the ball for the final seven minutes.

In winning at Dallas and Philadelphia during the same year for only the second time since 1990 and moving to 4-1 for the first time since 1999, the Redskins enter the soft part of their schedule knowing the toughest part is behind them.

“We’ve put ourselves in a great spot,” said tight end Chris Cooley, whose career-high 109 receiving yards included an 18-yard touchdown from Antwaan Randle El. “Even though we’re 4-1, we know it’s going to be very tough to win the division.”

The division will play itself out over the next three months as the four teams slug it out while dominating their non-NFC East competition. But the way the Redskins defeated Philadelphia - 203 rushing yards, only 58 allowed - suggests this team is built for the long haul regardless of the competition or elements or circumstances like injuries.

The Redskins played without defensive starters Jason Taylor, Shawn Springs and Marcus Washington and got no catches from receiver Santana Moss. But Clinton Portis picked up the slack with 145 rushing yards, Cooley finished with eight catches and the defense controlled Philadelphia after an opening-drive touchdown.

All this after the Eagles led 14-0 on Brian Westbrook’s 9-yard touchdown run to cap the opening drive and rookie DeSean Jackson’s dynamic 68-yard punt return 39 seconds later.

“They shocked us a little bit,” linebacker London Fletcher said. “We exhaled, settled down and played solid.”

The Eagles’ first drive was perfect on third down (3-for-3) for 80 yards.

The Eagles’ next six drives were woeful on third downs (1-for-7) for 97 yards.

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