Maclin gathers first NFL touchdowns

Former Missouri football standout Jeremy Maclin scored his first two NFL touchdowns Sunday in the Philadelphia Eagles' 33-14 victory over the visiting Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Maclin, the Eagles' first-round pick in the 2009 who was starting for the injured Kevin Curtis, finished with six catches for 142 yards, third most by an Eagles rookie.

"With the talented group of guys we have, big games are going to rotate between different guys," Maclin told the Associated Press. "I expect to make plays."

Philadelphia quarterback Donovan McNabb, returning from injury to start the game, fired a perfect 51-yard TD pass to Maclin on the Eagles' second play from scrimmage. Maclin also scored on a 40-yard pass from McNabb late in the second quarter.

"It felt good to get my first NFL touchdown," said Maclin in a post at philadelphiaeagles.com. "I still am excited. I'm going to cherish that for sure."

The post said that Maclin was able to take advantage of the Buccaneers' defense, which was focusing attention on Eagles receiver DeSean Jackson.

"You saw them roll to the strong side and play inside-out on DeSean with man coverage and safety help," said head coach Andy Reid after the game. "They were pushing a lot towards the strong side, so we mixed things up a little bit and we were able to utilize some mismatches there with Jeremy because of the coverage."

"I think that big games are going to rotate from receiver to receiver and running back to running back," Maclin said. "That's the fortunate thing about playing in this offense.

"You want guys out there who can take the pressure off each other and we've ot a long list of guys who can do that, and hopefully I can add to that list."