It's not often that an NFL quarterback throws three interceptions and leaves the field with a win. It's even rarer that such a victory comes in blowout fashion. But thanks in large part to the sensational play of the Eagles' defense on Monday night, Sam Bradford can count himself amongst the lucky ones.
Philadelphia's defense held the Giants to just 247 yards of total offense, 80 of which came on an eight-play touchdown drive by New York that opened the game. That march down the field culminated in the team's only scoring play of the game, a 13-yard touchdown pass from Eli Manning to Odell Beckham Jr. Over the final 55 minutes and 23 seconds of the game, the Eagles' defense pitched a shutout, and Bradford and the offense were able to muster 20 points – seven more came via a Nolan Carroll pick-six – to come away with a 27-7 victory.
"Our defense was outstanding tonight," the veteran quarterback after a win that propelled Philadelphia into first place in the NFC East. "I think all the credit goes to them. ... They created a lot of turnovers tonight. That always gives us momentum, that always gives us juice."
The first points scored by the Eagles' offense came after a DeMeco Ryans interception in the first quarter, with Bradford orchestrating a seven-play, 78-yard scoring drive that ended with a 32-yard touchdown pass to Riley Cooper in the end zone.
"That was huge," he said of the early touchdown. "Great concentration, great catch by Cooper. I left that ball a little short, and he did a good job staying with it and making that play. ... For us to be able to come out and put a touchdown up on the second drive is something that we haven't done. ... It was big for us."
In fact, it was the first time the Eagles had scored a touchdown in the first quarter of a game all season. For all its potential, Philadelphia's offense has not lived up to the expectations hoisted upon it by preseason prognosticators. But in the past two weeks, the team has posted its two best offensive performances of the season, and although Bradford hasn't been flawless, he's done enough to manage 20-plus point victories in each game. In those two games combined, he's completed 56 of his 83 passes (67.5 percent) for 613 yards, three touchdowns and five interceptions.
That last number comes as somewhat of a surprise, especially to Bradford, who has thrown nine picks through six games this year after never throwing more than 1.0 per game in any of his previous four seasons.
"It's something that I never really had a problem with in my career," he said. "This is kind of new to me, but we're going to get it fixed. I am going to get it fixed. And hopefully we are going to eliminate that from our offense."
With a short week ahead of him, Bradford will look to bounce right back against the 5-0 Panthers when the team travels to Carolina this Sunday. Under defensive coordinator Sean McDermott, who is familiar to Eagles fans, the Panthers have allowed the second-fewest touchdown passes (5) and have notched the second-most interceptions (8).
"We've won our last two at home, we've won three of our last four, and that's really how we're handling the rest of the season," Bradford said. "Next week, we have a big one against Carolina, and that's really all that we are concerned with right now."
The Eagles faced the Giants for Monday Night Football, sporting their #BackInBlack uniforms. View the full gallery here...

Heading towards open field

The Eagles are ready to fly

BackInBlack

In focus

S Malcolm Jenkins gets the team fired up

TE Zach Ertz takes the field

QB Sam Bradford heads out for warm-ups

Young fans wait for their chance to see the Eagles

LB Brandon Graham makes his way around

Eagles Alum Brian Dawkins enjoys warm-ups

Eagles Alum Brian Dawkins

S Chris Maragos storms onto the field

CB Byron Maxwell is ready to go

It's go time

P Donnie Jones warms up

And the kick!

LB Brandon Graham starts the run

DT Bennie Logan has arrived

LB DeMeco Ryans comes up with the interception

Eagles' ball!

EaglesHOF inductee Brian Westbrook takes the field with fellow Eagles Alum Brian Dawkins

Black endzones for #BackInBlack

The Eagles take the field

FlyEaglesFly!

Challenger makes his entrance

LB Connor Barwin warms up

LS Jon Dorenbos prepares for the snap

RB DeMarco Murray makes his move

QB Sam Bradford makes the throw

WR Josh Huff takes flight

RB Darren Sproles stretches out

Catching up during pregame

Who's ready for some Monday Night Football?

Hanging out on the sidelines

EaglesHOF inductee Brian Westbrook on the sidelines during pregame

LB Mychal Kendricks takes a photo with a fan

LB DeMeco Ryans makes the stop

The Harder They Fall

RB Ryan Mathews pushes for more yards

Blocking for QB Sam Bradford

DE Fletcher Cox goes for the tackle

LB DeMeco Ryans lead the way

QB Sam Bradford gets the throw off just in time

RB DeMarco Murray runs the ball

QB Sam Bradford and WR Riley Cooper celebrate the touchdown

K Caleb Sturgis makes the extra point

LB DeMeco Ryans makes the catch tough

Wide Receivers Coach Bob Bicknell is fired up

RB DeMarco Murray finds his way around the defense

WR Riley Cooper makes the flying tackle

LB Connor Barwin gets the crowd into it

LB DeMeco Ryans is locked in

OLB Coach Bill McGovern is pleased with what he sees

Enjoying the game!

The stop

High-fives all around for DE Vinny Curry

This is #EaglesNation

Celebrations all around!

WR Riley Cooper holds onto the ball

WR Josh Huff in stride

T Matt Tobin squares up

Protecting the Nest

LB Brandon Graham stops the run

Giants QB Eli Manning is sacked

DE Vinny Curry takes over

Powering through

LB Brandon Graham puts pressure on Giants QB Eli Manning

BrotherlyLove

WR Jordan Matthews with the grab

Brace for impact!

K Caleb Sturgis

Another good kick for K Caleb Sturgis

Graham and Barwin hit hard

DE Fletcher Cox gets to Manning

DB Walter Thurmond

TE Zach Ertz carries the ball

Putting up protection

WR Josh Huff gets tied up

The pass is in the air

CB E.J. Biggers goes for the tackle

QB Sam Bradford scrambles

S Malcolm Jenkins breaks up the pass

BackInBlack Premiere with QB Sam Bradford

TE Zach Ertz keeps running

RB DeMarco Murray celebrates the touchdown

The Eagles soar!

QB Sam Bradford has time to throw

WR Miles Austin makes the catch

RB Ryan Mathews runs through traffic

...and the rockets' red glare

The defense recovers!

In the endzone!

Breaking it down!

The Eagles maintain their lead

The Eagles put the pressure on

Marking up

CB Nolan Carroll intercepts the ball

Pick 6!

WR Riley Cooper holds on

WR Riley Cooper defends on Special Teams

CB Byron Maxwell gets his grip

CB Nolan Carroll with the tackle

WR Riley Cooper for the touchdown!

WR Riley Cooper doesn't give up on the tackle

DE Fletcher Cox having a good time

Defense!

C Jason Kelce makes the tackle

DE Vinny Curry comes in strong

You know who it is!

WR Miles Austin charges