Eagles Beat Giants: Five Big Picture Takeaways

Oct 19, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Eagles head coach Chip Kelly and running back DeMarco Murray (29) walk off the field after win over the New York Giants at Lincoln Financial Field. The Eagles defeated the Giants, 27-7. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

The Eagles will take the practice field this week as the leaders of the NFC East and, despite a pedestrian 3-3 record, a reason to feel a sense of accomplishment. Coming off a 27-7 win on Monday Night Football against the New York Giants, the Eagles have seemingly waded their way through the mercurial start to the 2015 campaign and established some form of footing in what appears to be the NFL’s worst division. Having finally collected a long-awaited win over a division opponent, Chip Kelly’s team can cross off another item that doubters would point to as a point of contention for 2015.

With fans already conditioned to reserve excitement for the Eagles until proven otherwise, the start of Monday’s game seemed to warrant a lukewarm approach from those in attendance at Lincoln Financial Field. The Giants moved the ball at will over their opening scoring drive and did the same for the better part of their second possession before the game shifted on its axis. When DeMeco Ryans intercepted Eli Manning in the early stages of the first quarter, it was almost as if the play made by one of the locker room leaders calmed every member of the team down and allowed them to settle into the game.

Save for New York’s touchdown drive on the opening possession of the game, Monday night’s performance looked an awful lot like last year’s matchup between these two teams in Philadelphia. The Eagles defense dictated the storyline of the game and, despite coming out with a victory, there was quite a bit to be desired by the home team. That being said, the primary goal of this team after how the season started was to collect wins in any fashion. They have accomplished that goal and are once again in the conversation for a potential postseason run in 2015. They cannot sell themselves as anything beyond that until they are able to show they can win a game without so many question marks.

Not many NFL teams go through what the Eagles have both on and off the field and manage to keep their head above water throughout. Through good times and bad, they have been among the most discussed teams in the league and their head coach is constantly being mentioned as wanting to carry out his profession elsewhere. For the time being, Kelly is still roaming the Eagles sidelines and he has navigated the team to an acceptable record in a division ripe for the taking. Here’s some of what stood out in Mondays’ game as it translates to the remainder of the season.