The Giants didn't play a pretty game on Sunday while hosting the division rival Eagles, but fortunately for them, Philadelphia had an even uglier outing. Looking to win their third straight in a bid for relevance in the NFC Wild Card picture, the Eagles instead stumbled all over themselves, turning the ball over four times behind a dysfunctional day for Jalen Hurts through the air. New York, meanwhile, capitalized on the miscues with just enough from Daniel Jones and Co., claiming a 13-7 home upset to muddy the NFC East further.
Here are some immediate takeaways from Sunday's sloppy Giants victory:
Why the Giants won
They were the lesser of two evils? No disrespect to Joe Judge's squad, but neither team seemed too interested in winning this game. In all seriousness, though, the Giants' defense deserves most of the credit here. Patrick Graham's unit had trouble stopping the run pretty much anytime the Eagles decided to keep it on the ground, but his secondary was lights-out against Jalen Hurts' passing "attack," picking off three passes and nearly snagging another two or three, while also recovering a fumble in crunch time. Julian Love and Xavier McKinney were particularly active on the back end. Offensively, Daniel Jones and Co. practically begged the Eagles to come back by failing to finish drives or control the clock late, but Jones still managed a couple of key throws -- including back-to-back first downs to Kenny Golladay and a highlight-reel dump-off to tight end Chris Myarick -- to keep the G-Men in front.
Why the Eagles lost
Hurts fell apart. Sounds simple, but that's easily the biggest reason Philly failed on the road. On the ground, No. 1 was dynamic as usual, nearly willing the Eagles to victory with his legs. Through the air, however, he lacked timing, rhythm, touch -- everything -- after a promising second series ended with a pick near the red zone. Jalen Reagor didn't help matters with a few blatant drops, including one on fourth-and-10 that could've won the game. Neither did Boston Scott coughing up the ball late despite gaining steam as Miles Sanders' relief. Defensively, the Eagles never really bowed down to New York despite entering halftime with a 10-0 deficit, keeping pressure on Jones to stay in contention. But their efforts were largely negated by their own offense's shortcomings.
Turning point
Down six with 2:54 to go, the Eagles looked primed to steal a game they didn't deserve, proceeding all the way to midfield after a couple of quick gains on passes to Reagor and handoffs to Scott. But then Scott lost control of the ball with just 1:39 to play, and the Giants recovered, delaying their comeback attempt. New York returned possession pretty quickly, but the Eagles were just a bit too rushed on their final series as a result of their final turnover, with Hurts nearly throwing a couple more picks to close things out.
Play of the game
Not even Giants fans would've predicted a huge TD catch for Myarick, but his concentration to haul in a bobbled pass ended up being a deciding factor in a one-score game, extending New York's lead to 10-0 ahead of halftime:
What's next
The Giants (4-7), one step closer to getting out of the NFC East basement, will hit the road in Week 13 to take on the Dolphins (5-7), who routed the Panthers on Sunday. The Eagles (5-7), meanwhile, will return to East Rutherford to match up with the Jets (3-8), who survived the Texans in Week 12.