Baskett helps Eagles win opener with 90-yard TD

PHILADELPHIA — Clovis’ Hank Baskett caught a 90-yard touchdown pass Sunday to help the Philadelphia Eagles beat the St. Louis Rams 38-3.

Pinned at their own 8 with less than two minutes left in the first half, the Eagles seemed content to run out the clock after two short runs.

Then Quarterback Donovan McNabb found Baskett streaking down the left side on third down. Baskett caught the ball in stride near the 40 and ran untouched the rest of the way.

That score gave the Eagles a 21-0 lead.

Baskett finished the day with two catches for 102 yards.

Coming off their second last-place finish in three years, the Eagles played like a team that expects to make a championship run. The offense racked up 522 total yards and the defense was dominant.

McNabb, the five-time Pro Bowl quarterback, is starting a season healthier than he’s been in years. He picked apart the Rams’ secondary, spreading the ball around to a group of receivers that didn’t seem to miss injured starters Kevin Curtis (sports hernia) and Reggie Brown (hamstring).

Greg Lewis had five receptions for 104 yards and each of the four wideouts had a catch longer than 30 yards. McNabb also tossed TD passes of 5 yards to L.J. Smith and 1 yard to Brian Westbrook.