Eagles' DeSean Jackson looked valuable in win over Rams

Here are some observations and ruminations about the Eagles' victory over the Rams:

 There was some question about DeSean Jackson's state of mind going into the opener.

The Eagles wide receiver still doesn't have the contract extension he yearns for, leading to speculation that he may not have been ready to give a 100 percent effort.

At least according to one pair of eyes in the press box, Jackson looked fully integrated into the game.

He had a splendid, 41-yard grab in the first quarter that got the Eagles offense on track. Then he added three shorter catches before halftime. He was back to field two punts but didn't get an opportunity to return either.

It was too bad he couldn't hold on to what would have been a highlight-worthy catch in the end zone before halftime. Maybe even the Eagles front office would have been impressed.

Jackson finished with six catches for 102 yards and one touchdown.

The Eagles had historically one of the worst red-zone defenses last season. So how did new defensive coordinator Juan Castillo's unit hold up on Sunday?

Pretty good, all things considered, although there was only a small sample. The Rams didn't drive inside the 20 until late in the third quarter, when they advanced to the Eagles 1. But the Eagles defense held and forced a chip-shot field goal and kept St. Louis from getting to within one score.

Some of the blame can be attributed to the dome and the noise and the rookie center and the first game, but clock management woes plagued the Eagles again.

In the first half, they had to burn three timeouts because it appeared that plays weren't coming in quickly enough. Those timeouts would have come in handy late in the first half when Michael Vick led the offense into the Rams' red zone.

Rather than try one more time for the end zone with nine seconds left, the Eagles had to kick a field goal on third down and settle for three points rather than seven.

Which has wider lanes - the Eagles defensive line or the Roosevelt Boulevard?

Rams running backs Steven Jackson and the appropriately named Cadillac Williams raced through gaping holes early in the game as Eagles linebackers had difficulty filling them up.

The wide-nine technique that has the Eagles ends split out wide gives opposing offenses more room to run inside. That means the linebackers are often responsible for filling gaps against the run.

That was an obvious problem in the first quarter as linebackers Casey Matthews, Jamar Chaney, and Moise Fokou were eaten up by Rams linemen. Matthews, to put it plainly, was overwhelmed.

Jeremy Maclin and Mike Patterson were two of the Eagles' three team captains Sunday, along with Jon Dorenbos. Maclin and Patterson, of course, both had significant health scares in the offseason. Maclin was back in his hometown for his first game since the end of last season.

Jason Kelce showed early on what the Eagles like in him. On a third and 1 on the first drive of the game, LeSean McCoy took a direct snap and followed blocks by Kelce and Evan Mathis, who each pulled to get out in front of the back. Kelce blocked a linebacker in space, opening room for Shady.

Ex-Eagle Quintin Mikell might have saved a TD on the Eagles' first drive. On a first-down run, McCoy reversed field and beat every Ram to the sideline - except for Mikell, who dragged Shady down after a 3-yard gain. If he hadn't made the stop, McCoy might have gone all the way.

After Dion Lewis ran the opening kickoff back from 6 yards deep, the Eagles put Riley Cooper back with him for their second return. Cooper looked like he was ready to tackle the rookie to stop him from returning that one. Lewis took a knee.