PHILADELPHIA _ Maybe the Eagles just needed to play in Philadelphia. The Eagles broke a two-game losing streak with a 24-15 win over the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday, improving to 5-4 and 4-0 at Lincoln Financial Field. They have now beaten three teams that visited with winning records.
The Falcons entered the game with the NFL's second-ranked offense, but they were outplayed by an Eagles defense that kept the Falcons to 303 yards and one touchdown. On offense, the Eagles showed a more balanced attack than in recent weeks, rushing for 207 yards. They had 428 total yards.
Ryan Mathews led the Eagles with 19 carries for 108 yards and two touchdowns and became the first 100-yard rusher for the Eagles since October 2015. Carson Wentz finished 25 of 36 for 231 yards. The defense held Matt Ryan to 18 of 33 for 267 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
The Eagles came out with a commitment to their ground game. They went on a 12-play, 81-yard drive with only four passing plays. Mathews, who was relegated to part-time duty in recent weeks, started the drive and finished it with a 4-yard touchdown.
That was the last time either team reached the end zone until the fourth quarter. The Eagles defense limited the Falcons to four field-goal attempts in the first three quarters. Falcons kicker Matt Bryant hit three of them, and Eagles kicker Caleb Sturgis was 1 for 3 on his first-half field-goal attempts to make it a 10-9 Eagles lead entering the fourth quarter.
The Eagles could extend their lead only to four points at the start of the fourth quarter even though they drove all the way to the Falcons' 1-yard line. Pederson declined to challenge a second-down run at the goal line that might have been a touchdown, instead hoping they could punch the ball in on third down. But Mathews ran horizontally on that play, and the Falcons stuffed him for a 1-yard loss. The Eagles settled for a field goal.
The Falcons needed only two plays to take a lead. Matt Ryan found Taylor Gabriel for a 76-yard touchdown pass after Leodis McKelvin bit on a double move. Atlanta missed the extra point, but they had a 15-13 lead.
The Eagles could not chip into that margin on their next drive, although the empty possession did not come without controversy. On a third and 12, Wentz passed to Jordan Matthews down the middle of the field. Matthews appeared to be struck with helmet-to-helmet contact on an incomplete pass, but the officials did not throw a flag. Sturgis missed a 55-yard field goal, and the Eagles still trailed.
After forcing a punt, the Eagles did not need to rely on the kicking game. They drove 76 yards on eight plays, helped by a pass interference that brought them to the 5-yard line. Mathews rushed for his second touchdown of the game on the next play to give the Eagles the lead, and he followed with a two-point conversion run to make the score 21-15.
The Eagles defense continued its stellar afternoon by keeping the Falcons from even threatening to score. The offense got the ball back, Sturgis hit a game-clinching field goal, and Leodis McKelvin added a late interception to seal the victory.
The Eagles will visit the Seattle Seahawks next week, but the good news is they have more home games remaining than road games.
