PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Even when they're not at their best, the Philadelphia Eagles are tough to beat.
The Eagles are heading into their bye week with a 4-0 record for the first time since 1993. They've led for all but 7:36 this season. They're the only team to win each of its games by double digits, including a 19-9 victory over the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Sunday.
Still, they haven't played a complete game where the offense, defense and special teams excel.
"You're not going to be 100-percent sharp every week," Eagles coach Andy Reid said Monday. "But you want to make sure you have it down to where when things aren't clicking, you are pushing through with great attitude, great work ethic and so on. You push through the mistakes and come out with a win. This is a unique group. They have a great energy about them."
The Eagles weren't sharp against the injury-riddled Bears, but never really were challenged. The offense scored just one touchdown and settled for six field-goal attempts - four were made by David Akers.
"We did some good things, but we weren't good enough in the red zone," Reid said. "We need to go back to the drawing board on that and just look and see what they did to us and figure it out so we have an answer for the next game.
"We had too many penalties. Once we got to the red zone, we did some things that we normally don't do, penalty-wise and we have to take care of that."
The Eagles had 10 penalties against Chicago, but still managed to outgain the Bears 376 yards to 224 and controlled the ball for 37:21. Donovan McNabb threw for 237 yards and one TD, Brian Westbrook ran for 115 yards and caught nine passes, and Terrell Owens had eight receptions for 110 yards and a score.
"We're getting some things going," Owens said. "It's getting there. It's not where we need to be."
The defense was dominant against the overmatched Bears, who were led by backup quarterback Jonathan Quinn. Chicago had just 90 yards in the first three quarters, and went three-and-out six times.
"It feels good to be 4-0 right now, but there is a long way to go," defensive tackle Corey Simon said. "Right now we're playing well, but we've got to continue to go out and improve each game."
After the bye, the Eagles will host the Carolina Panthers in a rematch of last season's NFC championship game. The Panthers beat the Eagles 14-3, before losing to New England in the Super Bowl.
"Having Carolina at the end of the bye is a good thing because our guys will maintain that focus," Reid said. "They know that they're going to be in for a heck of a game when they get back. That will help drive them through the next couple weeks."
