Five Big-Picture Takeaways From Eagles Week 5 Win Vs. Saints

Oct 11, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver Josh Huff (13) dives into the end zone as he scores on a 41-yard touchdown catch against the New Orleans Saints during the second quarter at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

The Eagles kept themselves in the thick of the NFC East race Sunday with a 39-17 win over the New Orleans Saints. Coming off a disheartening division loss to the Washington Redskins, the term ‘must-win’ had made the rounds quite a bit in league circles when it came to discussing the week five matchup. Though the rest of the division had done little to strike much doubt into whether the Eagles could potentially contend by season’s end, the Eagles had played at a level that could not factor in other teams’ performances. That’s how bad things looked at certain points.

By no means was Sunday’s win a fix-all when it comes to this year’s team. Some of the same issues that have plagued the team through four weeks reared their ugly heads, while some other new ones presented themselves. First and foremost, a win will allow the team to operate without the distractions that have followed in the weeks after losses. The days leading up to Sunday’s game were riddled with stories about the status of the locker room and whether or not Chip Kelly had started to second-guess his affinity for coaching in the NFL. While the latter of those two narratives may never go away, one would think to media might give the Eagles a break as they get set for a Monday night matchup with the Giants.

Until they prove otherwise, the Eagles will continue to carry with them the label of a team that has undergone substantial turnover and is still trying to figure it out. Though Sunday’s game did not alleviate that necessarily, the win was certainly a step in the right direction. The offense had its most complete effort of the season, albeit with little resistance from New Orleans. The defense continued its run of strong performances, and managed to tack on some more big plays that had eluded them in weeks past. Finally, the Eagles managed to put away a game they had control of without making things unnecessarily interesting.

There was a lot to like about Sunday. There were also a few issues worth taking note of. Here’s what stood out as it projects to the rest of the season.