Why The Dallas Cowboys Might Win NFC East, Make Playoffs In Disappointing 2019 NFL Season

The Dallas Cowboys aren’t dead yet. Despite blowing a chance to clinch the NFC East and handing over control of the division to the Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas still has a very realistic path to the playoffs.

All it takes is a win for the Cowboys at home against the Washington Redskins and a road loss for the Eagles against the New York Giants. Both games are scheduled for 4:25 p.m. EST Sunday.

Dallas is a heavy favorite against Washington, who owns the worst record in the NFC. Philadelphia is one of the smallest favorites in Week 17, laying 4.5 points against a team that nearly beat the Eagles a few weeks ago.

The Cowboys have better than 5/2 odds to win the division.

Before hoping they can get some help from New York, Dallas has to take care of business themselves. Considering how inconsistent the team has been in 2019, that’s far from a given.

But the Cowboys have largely gotten the job done against inferior competition. Six of Dallas’ opponents enter Week 17 with a worse record than the Cowboys. Dallas went 5-1 in those games with its victories coming by an average of 16 points.

The Cowboys beat the Eagles 37-10 at a time when Philadelphia wasn’t playing its best football. The Los Angeles Rams aren’t going to the playoffs, and Dallas blew them out 44-21 just a couple of weeks ago.

This has been such a disappointing Cowboys’ season because of how impressive Dallas has looked in its wins. The Cowboys have the NFL’s No.1 ranked offense. They have scored more than 30 points in all seven of their victories.

Philadelphia was an even bigger disappointment before beating Dallas in Week 16. A string of three straight close wins doesn’t mean the Eagles have all of a sudden turned into the Super Bowl contender they were supposed to be this season.

A Monday night victory over New York in Week 14 started Philadelphia’s current winning streak. The Eagles were lucky to avoid an upset, needing overtime to beat Eli Manning and the Giants 23-17. Philadelphia was losing 17-3 at halftime, and they held New York to 29 yards of offense in the second half.

With Daniel Jones back at quarterback, the Giants’ offense should be better in the rematch. Jones just became the first rookie to pass for 350 yards with five touchdowns and no interceptions in one game. Saquon Barkley finally looks recovered from his high ankle sprain, coming off a career-high 189 rushing yards.

The Giants have scored 77 points in their last two games. Jones’ penchant for turnovers could prevent them from having another offensive outburst, but there’s no question that New York will have more talented playmakers on the field in the regular-season finale.

Nelson Agholor is unlikely to play, meaning the Eagles are expected to be without their top three wide receivers for yet another week. Tackle Lane Johnson is expected to sit again. A rib injury could force tight end Zach Ertz to miss Sunday’s game.

Ertz has easily been Carson Wentz’s top target, leading the team with 88 catches for 916 yards. Tight end Dallas Goedert is second on the Eagles with 54 receptions for 542 yards.

Philadelphia only scored 17 points in the Week 16 win over Dallas.

The Eagles have a tendency to play down to their competition. Philadelphia beat Washington by five points in the season opener. They followed that up with losses in Week 2 and Week 3 to the Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions, neither of which is going to the playoffs. The Eagles lost to the Miami Dolphins in Week 13. They beat the Redskins in a nailbiter two weeks ago.

The Giants would love to play spoiler and keep the Eagles out of the postseason. You can bet Philadelphia will get New York’s best effort in Week 17.

If Dallas does what it’s done against bad teams all season long, the Cowboys could find themselves overcoming last week’s disastrous loss.