Biggest Takeaways from Philadelphia Eagles' Week 13 Win
Few people seriously expected the Philadelphia Eagles to go into Foxboro and defeat the New England Patriots. Yet that's somehow what happened on Sunday, as the Birds upset the Tom Brady-led squad 35-28 in thrilling fashion.
The question now is, what does this mean exactly?
Well, it means the Eagles are not out of the playoff race. Depending on what happens in Washington's game against Dallas on Monday, there could be a virtual tie for first place in the NFC East, with the division's playoff spot still on the line—not at all what you would expect for a team with a 5-7 record.
With that said, this is not a time to get overly excited. Just because the Eagles stole a victory over a then-10-1 team does not mean they themselves are suddenly good.
We'll examine that and more in this week's biggest takeaways.
Team Didn't Quit on Chip
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Well, it's safe to say this locker room team didn't give its head coach anything less than full effort on Sunday, despite what many were suggesting after their last two blowout defeats.
If the Eagles had quit on Chip Kelly, there's no way they would've beaten a 10-1 Patriots team on the road with Brady under center. It took a total team effort to win this game.
The offense milked the clock, took care of the football and was able to put together a pair of touchdown drives. The defense pressured the quarterback, took care of its assignments and forced turnovers. Special teams made plays when it counted.
The Eagles got contributions from all three phases, the surest sign yet that Kelly's message is still being received in Philadelphia. Assuming it holds up over the final four games, it's a safe bet he'll be coming back for a fourth season.
Bradford Manages the Game
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In all honesty, Sam Bradford didn't have to do a whole heck of a lot to guide the Eagles to victory on Sunday—not with three defensive and special teams touchdowns. However, that should not take away from the fact that he did exactly what was needed to win.
Bradford completed 14 of 24 passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns against the Patriots. By no means is that a stellar line, although it was good enough for a 99.3 rating.
Most importantly, the sixth-year veteran did not turn the ball over and was sacked just once for a loss of no yards.
Over his last three games, Bradford is completing 68 percent of his passes with four touchdowns and zero interceptions for a 105.6 rating. In other words, despite criticism, he's getting the job done.
Special Teams Come Up Big
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It's no secret that the Eagles won several games last season in part on the strength of their special teams play. This season, the reverse had largely been true, as they were often losing as a result of their performance in that phase.
Not so on Sunday.
The Eagles' success on special teams began when they recovered a sneaky onside-kick attempt by the Patriots in the first half. From there, safety Chris Maragos blocked a punt, which linebacker Najee Goode recovered and ran into the end zone for a touchdown. Later, Pro Bowl return man Darren Sproles took a punt 83 yards to the house.
If the Eagles are suddenly good again at special teams, they'll win a few more games down the stretch.
This season, they've typically been on the wrong end of the blocked punts and touchdown returns. Against the Patriots, special teams turned out to be the edge they've so desperately needed.
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Defense Rebounds
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The Eagles defense had been a mess in the past two weeks, surrendering 391 yards on the ground and 10 touchdown passes while failing to record a single turnover.
Surely, Brady was going to continue picking over the remains of what was once a quality unit.
Not so. This looked much more like the defense the Eagles were used to over the previous 10 games. The front seven put consistent pressure on Brady, particularly early when everybody was fresh, sacking the quarterback four times.
The secondary often had tight coverage even when Brady had time to throw, coming away with two interceptions, including a 99-yard pick-six by safety Malcolm Jenkins.
Sure, the Patriots wound up producing big numbers in the end, but they possessed the ball for over 34 minutes due to the Eagles' non-offensive touchdowns. The Eagles defense hung in tough against an all-time great signal-caller and ultimately took care of business, which is an encouraging sign moving forward.
The Patriots Offense Was Short-Handed, Though
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For all the positives that can be taken away from this game for the Eagles defense, one simple fact remains: Brady or no Brady, the Patriots were extremely handicapped on the offensive side of the ball.
Three of New England's top four leading receivers missed the game due to injuries, including All-Pro tight end Rob Gronkowski and versatile receiver Julian Edelman. Those two players alone account for a significant portion of the club's production through the air, but they were unavailable on Sunday.
So while it was nice that the Eagles defense showed up and the team was able to steal a victory on the road, let's hold off on calling this a turning point. This was a gift of sorts, and Philadelphia took advantage of it.
That does not necessarily mean the Birds are finally rounding into playoff form.
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