THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

PHILADELPHIA -- Brian Dawkins shakes, gyrates and looks like he's having an out-of-body experience when he runs on the field during pre-game introductions.

All that energy he keeps bottled up during the week comes out on game days. Dawkins stays charged-up until the final whistle no matter if it's the first preseason game or the Super Bowl.

The seven-time Pro Bowl safety goes all-out all the time. He's the heart and soul of Philadelphia's defence, and a key reason the Eagles have reached the second round of the playoffs.

Dawkins had nine tackles and one sack in Philadelphia's 26-14 victory over the Minnesota Vikings in last weekend's wild-card game. He swatted the ball out of Tarvaris Jackson's hand on the sack, but the quarterback fell on the ball. A week earlier in a do-or-die game against Dallas, Dawkins forced two fumbles that were returned for touchdowns.

Not bad for a guy who was supposed to be too old and too slow to make big plays anymore.

"I do feel like I'm in the zone," Dawkins said Wednesday. "The game has slowed down even more so than it usually is.

"I'm being able to recognize things a lot faster. For whatever reason, I don't know. I really feel good at this time of the year."

People have questioned Dawkins' skills for a few years, saying he's at the end of his career. Somehow, at age 35, he keeps performing at a high level. Dawkins doesn't make all the plays he used to and gets beat at times, but he finds a way to come through when it matters most in important games.

Dawkins had a tough time in a 41-37 loss at Dallas on Monday Night Football in Week 2. He allowed a couple big plays -- Cowboys tight end Jason Witten had seven catches for 110 yards -- and got beat for a short TD catch by Terrell Owens in one-on-one coverage.

Two days later during his weekly news conference, Dawkins repeatedly was asked about his age. He defiantly proclaimed he's far from finished.

"I'm 34 years old and proud of it," Dawkins said that day, less than a month before turning 35. "I'm going to continue to play this game at a high level as long as I can.

"I'm going to protect my body, make sure that I'm out there on the field for my guys, and I'm going to play ball. I'm going to play ball at 34. I'm going to play ball at 35, and whatever else comes after that, I'm going to play ball."

Motivated by the criticism, Dawkins responded with an outstanding effort in the Eagles' 15-6 win over Pittsburgh the next game. He made an acrobatic play to sack Ben Roethlisberger and strip him of the ball to seal the victory.

"He's so strong mentally. He's as tough as you can imagine," coach Andy Reid said. "I've got a lot of guys that love to play the game, but I would say there's nobody that loved to play as much as him.

"He loves every part of the game. You can tell by the way he comes out of that tunnel. When it's time to go, it's time to go. You have to love that from a coaching standpoint and I know his fellow players respect him for that."

Dawkins is admired by teammates and peers for his physical style on the field and his humble demeanour away from it. He's a spiritual guy who would rather psyche-out opponents with hard hits than trash-talking.

Drafted in the second round by the Eagles in 1996, Dawkins has helped change the perception of the safety position. In the past, players were moved to safety because they weren't fast enough to play cornerback or didn't have the hands to be receivers. Now, safeties are considered playmakers who can create game-changing turnovers at any time. Baltimore's Ed Reed, Pittsburgh's Troy Polamalu and Indianapolis' Bob Sanders fit that profile perfectly.

It's not fair to say Dawkins, Reed, Polamalu and Sanders have redefined the position because Hall of Famers Ronnie Lott and Kenny Houston came before them. However, Dawkins and the current crew are playing safety better than anyone has in a long time.

"We're talking about a guy that should be in the Hall of Fame when it's all said and done," Reid said. "Brian is very versatile.

"Brian is one of the guys that you don't see a lot of. You saw it with Ronnie Lott and Brian that if you needed him to play corner, he could go over and play corner for you. There aren't a lot of guys that are that versatile out there."

Dawkins is in the final year of a contract, so it's possible he could be playing his final game with the Eagles if they lose to the New York Giants on Sunday.

He's just focused on extending the season.

"Out is not in our vocabulary right now," Dawkins said. "We're playing for one another and giving everything we have for one another.

"We're worrying about what we need to worry about, and the only thing we need to worry about is us. We're making sure that we go into this game not making mental mistakes and giving ourselves the best opportunity to win the game."