Despite having only played three games so far this season, it is not too early to be excited about the way the Eagles have played this season. Quarterback Donovan McNabb looks as good as he ever has, despite being without his top two receivers. Rookie wide receiver DeSean Jackson has put the entire league on notice that the Eagles do, in fact, have a serious threat at that position and that they will be just fine without Terrell Owens. After getting shreaded on Monday Night Football against the Dallas Cowboys, a game in which they allowed 41 points to the hated rival, the Eagles' defense, led by the apparently not so old veteran Brian Dawkins, responded this week against the Pittsburgh Steelers by sacking quarterback Ben Roethlisberger eight times, recovering two fumbles, and made one interception. Oh, and they're the top rushing defense in the National Football League. After three weeks, the Eagles are first in the NFL in rushing yards allowed per game (45.7) and yards allowed per carry (2.4). They are second in rushing first downs allowed with eight. This is a defense that just two years ago allowed 200 rushing yards or more in a game five different times. During this offseason, the Eagles retooled a bit, making their defense one of the quickest and fiercest in the league. And they're young too, but that only means they're going to just get better. "To be honest, I'm a little surprised," cornerback Sheldon Brown said. "When you've got young players, especially at linebacker, you may have some guys not in the right gap in Jim's defensive scheme. But so far, everybody's been mentally sound. If you watch the films, you've got guys in the correct gaps doing what they're supposed to be doing." Even more impressive is that the Eagles defense has shutdown three of the league's premier running backs: St. Louis Rams' running back Stephen Jackson (40 yards on 14 carries), the Cowboys' Marion Barber (63 yards on 18 carries) and the Steelers' Willie Parker (20 yards on 13 carries). All three of those guys are top ten fantasy picks, but not against the Eagles. The Eagles' defense faces another challenge on Sunday against the Chicago Bears, with rookie running back Matt Forte, who is third in the league with 304 rushing yards through three games. "The d-linemen and that whole rotation in the middle [at tackle] . . . they're getting after those cats," Dawkins said. "And then Stew and those guys are coming downhill. I don't know if you think this is a 'just now' thing. But those cats are coming up front." According to an article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, there is very reason to believe that this is not a "just now" thing. There is every reason to believe this is not a "just now" thing. [Mike] Patterson, the Eagles' 2005 first-round pick, and [Broderick] Bunkley, their '06 first-rounder, have developed into one of the league's better run-stopping tackle tandems. Bunkley had three tackles for losses on Sunday against the Steelers. Under defensive coordinator Jim Johnson, the Eagles' philosophy has always been that the only two numbers that matter are points allowed and takeaways. During his nine years as the head of the defense, the Eagles have regularly been in the top 10 in points allowed. Add to that list rushing yards allowed.