The Carolina Panthers were far from their best today. They lost nearly 150 yards in penalties, their offense was sporadic and inconsistent and their defense was a tad too generous at times. Nevertheless, they managed to escape the "City of Brotherly Love" with a 25-14 win over the Philadelphia Eagles.

Oh, and the reigning NFC South champs got a little more comfy in the standings as a result.

Thanks to their victory and a 31-23 loss by the Atlanta Falcons, the Panthers increased their lead in the division by a game. Carolina, at 3-2, is now a game a half ahead of second-place Atlanta—who moved to 2-4 after falling to the Chicago Bears.

Elsewhere around the division, the New Orleans Saints just barely managed to squeak past the New York Giants—34-27. That improves their record to 2-4, putting them in third place on account of the blowout loss they suffered in Atlanta on Monday night a couple of weeks ago.

Finally, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers lost to the Pittsburgh Steelers in overtime, 26-19. They're now at 1-5 on the season, alone at the bottom of the NFC South.