Matt Donovan also assisted

[Cl11234566]

PHILADELPHIA -- This was more like last years Eagles. Nick Foles threw one touchdown pass and led Philadelphias starting offence to three first-half scores in a 31-21 victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Thursday night. "I feel were improving every week," Foles said. "We have to keep moving forward." Steelers running backs LeVeon Bell and LeGarrette Blount both played one day after they were arrested for marijuana possession shortly before Pittsburgh (1-2) travelled to Philadelphia (1-2). "Im sorry to be a distraction to the team but Im only going to answer football questions now," Bell said. Blount also would only answer football questions. "I just want to apologize to my team, to the coach and the organization for causing that distraction," he said. Eagles All-Pro running back LeSean McCoy left the game with a right thumb injury after a 22-yard TD catch gave Philadelphia a 7-0 lead. X-rays on McCoys thumb were negative, but he didnt return. McCoy showed no effects of a toe injury that forced him to miss one practice earlier in the week. "Its no big deal," Eagles coach Chip Kelly said. The Eagles first-team offence had only one touchdown on six drives in road losses to Chicago and New England. But they looked more like the unit that set several franchise records in 2013. "We have a lot we can improve on," Foles said. "Its important not to get complacent." Foles was 19 of 29 for 179 yards and threw one interception. He led the offence to 17 points and 251 total yards before giving way to Mark Sanchez in the third quarter. Starting wide receivers Jeremy Maclin and Riley Cooper played their first game together, combining for nine catches for 68 yards. The Steelers couldnt get going against Philadelphias first-team defence. Ben Roethlisberger tossed a 27-yard TD pass to Heath Miller in the third quarter against the backups. "Were not worried about it. Its preseason," Blount said. Roethlisberger finished 15 of 24 for 157 yards, one TD and one interception. Bell had nine carries for 23 yards and Blount ran seven times for 32 yards. Rookie linebacker Ryan Shazier had six tackles after an impressive debut last week against the Bills. The Steelers werent happy with their defensive effort. "Im just ticked," end Cameron Heyward said. "We all have to look at each other in the mirror. Were not going to settle for anything less. We know when we put on this jersey, it represents a lot. We might not be the same players but we have to step up, make plays and focus." Foles got the offence rolling on the second possession. He connected with Maclin for 7 yards on third-and-5 and then hit Brent Celek for a 23-yard catch-and-run. A holding call on William Gay kept the drive alive when Foles threw incomplete on third down. Foles then tossed a screen pass to McCoy on third-and-10 from the Steelers 22. McCoy did the rest, following a takeout block by Todd Herremans into the end zone. Foles completed seven straight passes after misfiring on six of his first 10 throws. He was 6 for 6 for 56 yards on the third drive, which ended with Darren Sproles running in from the 1 for a 14-0 lead. Foles threw his third interception of the preseason when Troy Polamalu picked off a pass in the second quarter. The Pro Bowl MVP quarterback threw only two interceptions on 350 pass attempts last year, including the playoffs. He had 27 TD passes in the regular season, setting an NFL record for best TD/interception ratio. Matthew Tucker had a pair of 1-yard TD runs for the Eagles in the second half. Pittsburghs Bruce Gradkowski threw a 33-yard TD pass to Darrius Heyward-Bey and a 3-yard TD pass to Martavis Bryant in the fourth quarter. NOTES: Sanchez was 7 of 9 for 85 yards. ... Gradkowski was 8 of 11 for 105 yards and two TDs. ... Steelers K Shaun Suisham missed a 46-yarder wide left. ... Eagles K Alex Henery made a 36-yarder, but missed from 31. "Obviously, you have to make a field goal like that," Kelly said. ... Rookie K Cody Parkey, acquired from Indianapolis on Wednesday night, made an extra point and had a couple long kickoffs. ... Nolan Carroll picked off Roethlisberger in the second quarter. Philadelphia 76ers Shirts . Parnell will be out much longer if it turns out he needs surgery. But first, he will try resting for two weeks before beginning a throwing program that could last up to a month, general manager Sandy Alderson said. Kyle OQuinn Jersey . For the first time all night, as the Raptors were on the clock to make the 20th overall selection, no one had the slightest idea what was about to happen. No leaks, no whispers, nothing. https://www.cheap76ers.com/1006e-raul-n ... 76ers.html. The Argentina striker has not played for the Premier League leaders since September when he refused to warm up during a Champions League match and only returned last week from a three-month unauthorized absence at home. City coach Roberto Mancini had initially told Tevez he would never play for City again after his act of public insubordination, but later softened his stance and only asked for an apology. Lavoy Allen Jersey . -- Valentin Zykov scored in overtime as the Baie-Comeau Drakkar rallied to a 3-2 victory over the Blainville-Boisbriand Armada on Sunday in Quebec Major Junior Hockey League playoff action. Darryl Dawkins Jersey . -- Michael Phelps is 0 for 1 in his comeback to the pool. UNIONDALE, N.Y. -- With points at a premium for the playoff-chasing Washington Capitals, rookie Evgeny Kuznetsov was the difference for his struggling team. Kuznetsov scored in regulation and had the only goal in the shootout to lift the Capitals to a 4-3 win over the New York Islanders on Saturday and keep Washingtons flickering playoff hopes alive. Nicklas Backstrom and Joel Ward scored to tie the game midway through the second after the Islanders took a 3-1 lead. Capitals goaltender Braden Holtby stopped all three Islander attempts in the shootout after making 35 saves and Washington snapped a five-game losing streak to move within two points of Columbus for the final Eastern Conference playoff spot. The Capitals are 9-2-0 in their last 11 games at Nassau Coliseum. "We battled back, thats the key," said Backstrom, whose 15th goal of the season at 12:45 of the second made the score 3-2. "We had to do whatever was necessary to get those two points." Both teams had chances in overtime. Holtby denied Brock Nelson point-blank at 3:35 and Evgeni Nabokov stopped Alexander Ovechkin in the closing seconds of the five-minute extra session. John Persson and Frans Nielsen had given the Islanders a 3-1 lead midway through the second, but the Capitals fought back to tie it 3-3 heading into the third. Perssons goal was his first in the NHL, coming in his fifth game since being recalled from AHL Bridgeport on March 27. The goal at 4:16 of the second was assisted by defencemen Travis Hamonic and Calvin de Haan. "Its a great feeling, thats for sure," said the 21-year-old Persson, one of nine rookies in the Islanders lineup. "I wish we had come out on top, but we played a strong game. The effort was there." The Islanders came out swarming, playing the same hard-edged game theyve exhibited in recent weeks with the rookie-laden lineup. Despite playing without its top two forwards, John Tavares and Kyle OOkposo, New York came in with a three-game winning streak.dddddddddddd New York is 5-0-2 in its last seven games and 7-2-2 in its last 11 contests. But once again, the Islanders allowed a two-goal lead to slip away as they fell to 31-35-11, last in the Metropolitan Division. Cal Clutterbuck opened the scoring at 12:55 of the first, firing his 12th of the season past Holtby with assists from Casey Cizikas and Michael Grabner, who returned after missing nine games with concussion symptoms but left again after only seven shifts. The Islanders kept the pressure on the Capitals throughout the first, outshooting the visitors 17-8. Washington tied the game at 2:36 of the second on Kuznetsovs goal. The 21-year-old Russian centre was the Capitals first-round draft pick in 2010 and made his NHL debut on March 29. Nielsen put New York ahead 3-1 with a power-play goal at 9:55 of the second, one-timing a slick pass from Josh Bailey past Holtby from the top of the right circle. Matt Donovan also assisted on Nielsens career-best 24th of the season. But Backstrom cut the lead in half before Ward tied it was his 23rd at 15:01 after a giveaway in front by Islanders defenceman Thomas Hickey. The Capitals (35-30-13) have been struggling to stay in the playoff race. They lost 2-1 to the Devils in New Jersey on Friday and are 2-3-3 in their last seven games. "All we can worry about is ourselves," Backstrom said. "You cant control anything else, but how you play as a team. We feel like we have our confidence back after this win." The Capitals have four games remaining. NOTES: Ovechkin needs one goal for 50 this season. He would be the 11th player in league history to score 50 goals or more five times. . The Islanders are 25-10-4 when they score at least three goals and are 6-25-7 when they do not. ... Following the game, the Islanders recalled defenceman Scott Mayfield from Bridgeport after de Haan left the game with an upper body injury. ' ' '