PHILADELPHIA — The Philadelphia Eagles scored touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams, a one-two-three punch that would knock out most opponents. But what should have been a laugher for the Eagles turned into a nail-biter before they edged the St. Louis Rams 34-28 on Sunday at Lincoln Financial Field.

The Rams, who trailed 34-7 at one point, scored three touchdowns in the space of four minutes and 44 seconds late in the game, and they had the ball near midfield with 42 seconds to play when quarterback Austin Davis’ fourth-down pass sailed incomplete.

“We didn’t play as well as we need to play, especially in the fourth quarter, when you should put teams away,” Eagles linebacker Connor Barwin said. “But the main goal is to win the game, and we did that and we’re 4-1, so even though we need to play better, today we played well enough.”

The Eagles won — and kept a share of first place in NFC East with Dallas — even though their offense struggled again. But the Eagles scored a touchdown on special teams and one on defense and that was the difference in the game.

“Take those plays away and we’re in control of things,” Rams defensive end Robert Quinn said. “We made other mistakes, too, and that has to be our goal now — eliminate those mistakes and we’ll be playing winning football.”

Special teams got the Eagles off and running. For the second straight week, they blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown. The Rams (1-3) had the ball on their 20 when James Casey, a reserve tight end, knifed through to block the punt attempt by Johnny Hekker. Chris Maragos scooped it up at the 10 and scored to give the Eagles a 7-0 lead with 14:37 left in the first quarter.

The Eagles’ lead grew to 13-0 before the Rams finally got on the board with 3:23 left in the first half, on a 10-yard pass from Davis to receiver Brian Quick. But the Eagles got that touchdown back to take a 20-7 lead into the locker room at halftime. Wide receiver Riley Cooper went high in the air to take the ball away from cornerback Janoris Jenkins in the end zone for a 9-yard TD reception with 30 seconds left in the first half.

That momentum carried them early in the second half. The Rams had a first down on their 11 when Eagles linebacker Trent Cole hammered Davis from the blind side and the ball came loose. After a frantic scramble, Eagles’ defensive end Cedric Thornton came up with it in the end zone, and the Eagles led 27-7 with 12:17 left in the period.

The Rams scored two fourth-quarter touchdowns to make it close, and then they got real close when Davis passed to Quick in the end zone for a 5-yard TD with 4:41 left to play, which made it 34-28. But that ended up being too little, too late.

Eagles quarterback Nick Foles finished the game 24-for-37 for 207 yards, two touchdowns and interception, while Davis was 29-for-49 for 375 yards, three scores and no interceptions.

What the Rams said:

“No team in the NFL can start like that and come back with a victory. But we had a chance and that’s one thing we can say – we had a chance.” – wide receiver Kenny Britt.

What the Eagles said:

“We have a lot of improving to do. We all know that, and that’s what really excites us. The NFL is a tough league and to win in this league is a blessing.” — quarterback Nick Foles.

What we learned about the Eagles:

1. The high-powered offense that led the NFL last year has disappeared and there are no guarantees it will come back. Quarterback Nick Foles has been erratic, and enemy defenses are stacking up to stop All-Pro running back LeSean McCoy. Both Foles and McCoy had terrific seasons last year, but times have changed and so have their fortunes.

2. The Eagles aren’t going anywhere unless they get better play from their starting cornerbacks, Bradley Fletcher and Cary Williams. They’re not the only reasons the Eagles’ pass defense has been bad this season, but they’re two of the biggest reasons. Rams quarterback Austin Davis, making just his third NFL start, torched the Eagles for 375 passing yards. That comes just two weeks after they gave up 427 yards to Washington quarterback Kirk Cousins.

–RB LeSean McCoy, who was held to just 17 and 22 rushing yards the last two weeks, did a little better on Sunday, rushing for 81 yards on 24 carries. “I thought there were a lot more lanes today,” McCoy said. “The guys up front did a great job. I think I have to do a better job of breaking more tackles. Today, there were too many times when one guy saved the play for them.”

–RT Lane Johnson returned to the lineup, which is one reason RB LeSean McCoy had more yards than he did the previous two games. Johnson missed the first four games because he was suspended after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug. “It felt good,” Johnson said of his return. “It’s definitely a different feeling being out there instead of sitting on the couch watching the games. This game was good to get under my belt. Next week, I’ll keep building and getting into game rhythm.” Said McCoy: “If felt good having Lane in there. Lane has always been the type of player who gets it done. He’s fast, physical and very intelligent. He helped us out today.”

–The Eagles’ offense has struggled getting the ball in the end zone, but luckily for them their special teams and defense have picked up the slack. For the second straight week they blocked a punt and scored a TD off of it, the first time in franchise history they scored special teams TDs in consecutive weeks. And they scored a TD on defense, too. The team record for most defensive TDs in a season is six, set in 1952, and this team has three of them in just five games. “That’s our mindset – take the ball away and score with it,” said defensive end Trent Cole, who forced a fumble.

What we learned about the Rams:

1. QB Austin Davis could be their quarterback of the future. The Rams can’t rely on oft-injured Sam Bradford, and Davis once again showed the poise and passing touch that all good NFL quarterbacks must have. The Rams may still look to add a quarterback in free agency or the draft next season, but if Davis continues to play the way he has in his three starts, they may already have the solution to their problem.

2. It’s going to be a long season for this team, which plays in the ultra-competitive NFC West. The Rams are 1-3 and in last place, and they haven’t even played anyone in their division yet. And their next six games are against San Francisco, Seattle, Kansas City, Arizona, Denver and San Diego. Coming into this weekend’s games those teams had a combined record of 14-7.

— QB Austin Davis struggled at times and was hit often, but he kept getting up and he almost rallied the Rams. He finished with a passer rating of 103.7, but it was his toughness that most impressed his coaches and teammates. “Of the bright things in this game, that probably is No. 1,” coach Jeff Fisher said. “He was calm and just so focused on what he needed to do. He was not flustered at all.”

— LB Ray Ray Armstrong made mistake on special teams that may not be easily forgotten by coach Jeff Fisher. Fisher was disappointed in some of his team’s mistakes, including 10 penalties, three lost fumbles and a blocked punt for a TD, but he was also angry over a couple. That included an illegal block by Armstrong on a punt return, when Armstrong just ran over an Eagles defender from behind in plain sight of the officials, not to mention both benches and everyone in the stadium. Fisher said a dumb penalty like that isn’t easily forgiven or forgotten. “Our special teams know, if you’re going to get another penalty after the [blocked punt], and it’s legit, then they’re going to go watch the game in the locker room,” he said. “I’m not going to tolerate that any more. So, that will be their message tomorrow.”

— DE Robert Quinn, who had 19 sacks last season, has none this season. The Rams failed to record a single sack Sunday and now have just one in four games. “There are some things you can’t control and sacks don’t always tell the whole story,” Quinn said. “But it’s just a fact that we have to do a better job getting pressure on the quarterback and the pass rush just wasn’t there today. We got decent pressure on [quarterback Nick] Foles at times, but we have to hit him and get him on the ground. I know we have the talent and the will to sack the quarterback, but we have to start doing it instead of just talking about it.”