The Philadelphia Eagles recovered from two difficult passing plays and hustled against a Pittsburgh Steelers team that lost star pass rusher TJ Watt to a high ankle sprain.

The Eagles took an early lead despite several turnovers and never trailed with a 27-13 win, their 10th straight win.

Philadelphia improved to 12-2 and tied the Detroit Lions for most wins in the NFC. At 10-4, the Steelers are still one game ahead of the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC North. If Pittsburgh wins in Baltimore next week, the Steelers will win the division.

The Steelers hope their offense can better support their defense and special teams by then. And they’re hoping Watt, whose two Sunday sacks improved his total to 11.5 this year, will be healthy enough to play against the Ravens after suffering what appeared to be a non-contact injury during a fourth-quarter pass rush.

After the game, head coach Mike Tomlin said, “At this point you could call it a lower ankle injury.”

Pittsburgh managed just 163 total offensive yards compared to the Eagles’ 401 yards.

Pittsburgh hopes its offense will be better able to support its defense and special teams by then. Against a talented Eagles defense, Pittsburgh managed just 163 total offensive yards.

In Pennsylvania’s unofficial battle between teams with double-digit wins, the Eagles quickly dampened tensions between quarterback and receivers while the Steelers showed how much they needed their top receiver, George Pickens, who missed the game with a hamstring injury.

It didn’t matter that AJ Brown had publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with the passing game a week earlier. Hurts found Brown for seven yards on the second play and again later in the first quarter on a 24-yard back-shoulder fade that cornerback Joey Porter Jr. couldn’t handle.

Brown also reached the end zone first in the game – just the second time in the last seven games – and capped a varied drive with a seven-yard scramble by Jalen Hurts, a well-cut 22-yard carry by Saquon Barkley and a fake handoff that ultimately freed Brown.

The Steelers’ defense and special teams were strong.

Watt beat Hurts on a scramble and linebacker Mark Robinson’s hit triggered a punt return fumble by Cooper DeJean. But the Steelers struggled to capitalize on the gifted possessions. An anemic offense without Pickens needed more than 20 minutes of play before it managed a first down.

Hurts would rush to DeVonta Smith for a two-yard touchdown before the Steelers managed to sustain a drive. Philadelphia outgained Pittsburgh 148 yards to 2 in the first quarter.

Then Pittsburgh began to settle into its rhythm without Pickens. Russell Wilson hit tight end Ben Skowronek for a 17-yard catch-and-run, starting a drive that was ultimately dominated by quarterback keepers. Backup quarterback Justin Fields scored a first down with a penalty on a scramble, and Wilson moved the chains twice more with his legs. On third-and-goal, Wilson marked his most reliable target in the end zone: Tight end Pat Freiermuth caught the wrong pass for a nine-yard score, making Freiermuth’s sixth touchdown of the season the most for his team.

A sack by Watt that Hurts didn’t see coming quickly got the ball back to Pittsburgh, but the Steelers couldn’t recover from a sack by Nolan Smith that set them back 10 yards. As the second quarter ended, Chris Boswell’s 49-yard field goal cut Philadelphia’s lead to 17-13.

The Eagles pulled away in the second half as the Steelers missed their chances

The Eagles came out of halftime with good news: Barkley was healthy enough to return despite a red-zone flip that sent him to the medical tent and an extended sideline visit in the second quarter. Head coach Nick Sirianni told Fox sideline reporter Erin Andrews that Barkley’s use in the second quarter was more about Kenneth Gainwell’s two-minute ability than Barkley’s health (play-by-play analyst Kevin Burkhardt promptly disagreed).

Philadelphia ran out the clock with a 13-play drive early in the second half and extended its possession after a unnecessary roughness penalty by the Steelers on Jake Elliott’s 48-yard field goal gave the Eagles an automatic first down. Ultimately, Philadelphia failed to score more points – just to take more time. Five plays later, Elliott hit a 41-yard field goal to extend Philadelphia’s lead to 20-17.

The Steelers came out with a bang and a flea flicker. Wilson handed the ball off to running back Jaylen Warren, who then threw back to Wilson…who sailed a 31-yard pass to Calvin Austin. But three games later, the Steelers were doomed. Running back Najee Harris fumbled a throw after Wilson yelled “can, can” to change play calls. Eagles cornerback Darius Slay recovered the fumble.

With a lead and a strong running game, Philadelphia leaned heavily on Barkley to wear down defenders with his own runs and create misdirection as Hurts eventually took advantage of an open lane for 23 yards. Barkley, Gainwell and Hurts continued to hit until Hurts scored with a brotherly shove.

The Steelers failed to reduce the deficit on their next drive as center Zach Frazier’s tripping penalty set them back more than they could recover. They hit the ball – and shortly afterwards the victory.

Hurts completed 25 of 32 passes for 290 yards and two touchdowns, as well as 45 rushing yards and a score on 15 carries. Brown and Smith played a deadly one-two punch: Brown caught eight passes for 110 yards and a touchdown, while Smith had 11 for 109 yards and a score.

Watt continued his disruptive streak with seven tackles, including two sacks and a forced fumble.

Wilson completed 14 of 22 passes for just 128 yards and a score, while the Steelers managed just 56 rushing yards.

Overall, the Eagles held the ball almost twice as long as the Steelers, 39:52 to 20:08.