Dallas keeps playoff hope alive, Eagles near NFC East crown

With under a third of a season left to be played, there are still a few things to be settled in the NFC East.

Can the Philadelphia Eagles close out the division? They hold a comfortable lead and have a somewhat favorable schedule ahead.

Philadelphia could close out the division as soon as Dec. 15th with wins over Carolina and then Pittsburgh coupled with a Commanders’ loss to New Orleans on Dec. 15th.

Even if Washington wins their next game, they’d have to beat the Eagles at home on the 22nd to stay alive.

The Dallas Cowboys are in a position where just one loss in the next five weeks might be enough to miss the post-season. The Cowboys are on a surge right now.

But they are already in playoff mode, even with five games left to play.

The Giants aren’t even playing for pride right now. They need to finish with the No. 1 pick and will head for the draft needing players at every position.

Here’s how Week 13 shook out in the NFC East:

Dallas Cowboys (5-7)

The Cowboys have their second, two-game winning streak in 2024.

Now they get a 10-day break before trying for their third-straight victory.

However, they’ll be facing a Joe Burrow-led Bengals team that is a lot better than their (4-8) record indicates.

Over the last two weeks, the Cowboys’ defense and special teams’ units have really stepped up. While the offense hasn’t been high scoring, they haven’t hindered the team.

Rico Dowdle’s recent resurgence has been key.

With Cooper Rush not having to carry the team, the Cowboys turnovers are down. In the last two wins, Dallas has lost just one fumble.

Rush hasn’t thrown an interception in the last 11 quarters. That covers his last 117 pass attempts.

If this formula is continued, Dallas’ long-shot hopes for the playoffs just might come to fruition.

Next game: hosting Cincinnati, Monday, 7:15 p.m.

New York Giants (2-10)

The Giants are clearly going to be in the market for a quarterback for the 2025 season.

They have a very good chance to have the No. 1 pick in April. One wonders if the Giants are on Deion Sanders’ list of teams that he’ll allow Shedeur Sanders to play for?

If Sanders does play for New York, they’ll need to address their offensive line.

The Cowboys had six sacks of Drew Lock on Thanksgiving Day.

Still, the Giants had a chance near the end, had they recovered an onside kick, to pull out a win.

For New York, who seems to have last place in the NFC East all locked up, these next five weeks can’t pass fast enough.

Next game: hosting New Orleans, Sunday, Noon.

Philadelphia Eagles (10-2)

Justin Tucker’s yips all but served up a win on a silver platter for the Eagles on Sunday.

The win keeps the Eagles 2.5 games ahead of the Commanders in the race for the division title. It also keeps them just one game behind the Detroit Lions for the NFC’s top seed in the playoffs.

The combination of Vic Fangio’s defense and the free agent signing Saquon Barkley has made Philadelphia a force to be reckoned with.

But they still have to hold off Washington for the Division title and the No. 2 seed. With Green Bay only a game behind, if the Eagles slip, they would fall all the way to the seventh seed.

It seems an unlikely scenario given the way Philadelphia is playing right now.

Man, it must be nice to be a fan of a team that has a competent front office.

Not that we’ve known what that’s like for going on 30 years now…

Next game: hosting Carolina, Sunday, Noon.

Washington Commanders (8-5)

No one was happier to welcome the month of December than the Commanders.

Washington went 1-3 in November, losing three straight games. Then December arrived and delivered the Tennessee Titans.

The Commanders scored 21 points in the first quarter against the Titans.

They extended it to 28-7 by halftime. Washington won the game running away to keep the pressure on the Eagles for the division crown.

The win also helped the Commanders’ push to make the playoffs for the first time since 2020.

With just four games left, and one at home against the Eagles, Washington can still win the division. But they are going to have to win out and get at least two other losses by the Eagles to pull it off.

Next week: Bye week. Next game: at New Orleans, Sunday, Dec. 15th, Noon.