Eagles beat Giants, pull into first-place tie in NFC East despite sloppy Sam Bradford
PHILADELPHIA — They're atop the NFC East, for now, but there’s one problem the Philadelphia Eagles can’t ignore: Quarterback Sam Bradford has not played very well this year.
After defeating the New York Giants 27-7 Monday night in a sloppy game riddled with penalties, turnovers and poor play, the Eagles climbed into a tie for the divisional lead. But as the comedy of errors unfolded during prime time while the rest of the country watched (or eventually changed the channel to playoff baseball), one thing became clear: The NFC East is up for grabs.
Plenty of positive spin emanated from Philadelphia's locker room following the victory, but Bradford’s play continues to be an ominous uncertainty.
“No, it’s not even a question,” Bradford said when asked if he was happy with his performance. “It was just inconsistent, missing throws. There was some good, there was some bad. But I know for us to be where we want to be, I have to play much better.”
Against the Giants, Bradford threw three interceptions, which raised his season total to nine. He completed 24 of his 38 passes for 280 yards and one touchdown. The biggest concern is how he has repeatedly short-armed passes and sprayed them all over the field, missing wide-open targets.
Even when Bradford registered a big play Monday, he made it look bad. There was an underthrown 32-yard touchdown grab in the first quarter that receiver Riley Cooper needed to adjust to in order to haul it in. There was also a 43-yard completion to Cooper in the third quarter, again so woefully short, that it easily robbed the Eagles of a much bigger gain, if not a score.
Coach Chip Kelly classified Bradford’s interceptions as “miscommunications” that were the fault of both receivers and the quarterback.
The bright side for Philly is that running back DeMarco Murray, who's had a quiet year after signing a five-year, $40 million contract this offseason, posted his second productive game in a row. After he gained just 47 yards on 29 carries in his first three games, Murray has rushed for 192 yards and two touchdowns on 42 carries in Philadelphia’s last two contests, both victories. While those are hardly eye-opening numbers, it represents progress.
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Luckily for the Eagles, their defense has compensated for Kelly's highly touted up-tempo offense. Philadelphia is allowing just 18.3 points per game, quite an achievement considering the defense has been on the field an average of 34:03 per game — most in the NFL.
Giants quarterback Eli Manning had thrown just two interceptions in 197 attempts entering Monday. Philadelphia forced him to toss two more. New York’s offensive line was beaten for three sacks after allowing four in its previous five games.
“Thankfully, our defense is playing really well,” Eagles center Jason Kelce said. “They have kept us in it. They kept us in it all game long tonight. I’m happy we stuck with it offensively, and we never gave up. But at some point, we have to get this corrected.”
The Eagles and Giants are now both tied at 3-3. The Dallas Cowboys (2-3), still enjoying their bye week, must have watched with glee as Philly sputtered to the victory. Even though quarterback Tony Romo and receiver Dez Bryant both continue to be sidelined with injuries, Dallas is as viable in this race as anyone.
Philadelphia may end up winning the division, but Kelce is right. If the Eagles want to make some noise in the playoffs, the offense has to improve drastically. That must start with the man receiving Kelce's snaps.
“It is something that I never really had a problem with in my career,” Bradford said of the turnovers. “I have never thrown a lot of interceptions, so this is kind of new to me. But we’re going to get this fixed, and hopefully, we are going to eliminate that from our offense.”
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Follow Lorenzo Reyes on Twitter @LorenzoGReyes
PHOTO: Week 6 NFL action