NFL Playoff Scenarios: Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, Washington Can Win NFC East

The NFC East is still up for grabs heading into the final week of the 2020 NFL regular season. The Washington Football Team, Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants all have a real chance to win the division in Week 17, while the Philadelphia Eagles are the only division team that has nothing on the line.

Dallas visits New York Sunday afternoon in a de facto elimination game as the loser is done for the season. Washington visits the Philadelphia Eagles Sunday night with a chance to clinch the division title.

If Washington loses to Philadelphia, the winner of the matchup between Dallas and New York becomes the NFC East champion.

Washington is the only team in the division that controls its own destiny. Washington and Dallas enter Week 17 tied for first place with a 6-9 record. Washington has beaten the Cowboys twice, giving them the head-to-head tiebreaker over Dallas.

The Giants are a game behind both teams with a 5-10 record. New York has beaten Washington twice. If the Giants beat the Cowboys Sunday, they’ll split the season series with Dallas and have the better divisional record.

The Cowboys are playing the best football of all three NFC East contenders. Dallas has won three straight games, averaging 36 points per contest. Andy Dalton has settled in at quarterback, utilizing one of the NFL’s best receiving corps.

New York has lost three straight games with one of the NFL’s worst offenses. The Giants are scoring fewer than nine points per game during their skid. Coming off an injury, Daniel Jones has struggled mightily under center.

Washington has lost two straight games since a calf injury sidelined quarterback Alex Smith. The team is hopeful he can return for the season finale.

No matter what happens Sunday, the NFC East winner will have a losing record and earn the No. 4 overall seed in the conference. Every other division winner has at least 10 victories.