Eagles playoff scenarios: How the Birds can still win the NFC East, No. 1 seed
The Eagles have already clinched a playoff spot, and are in position to win the NFC East, despite the Cowboys currently sitting in first place.
Despite their demoralizing loss to the Seattle Seahawks (7-7) on Monday night, the Eagles (10-4) still remain in the driver’s seat in the NFC East with three regular-season games to go.
Unfortunately, the San Francisco 49ers (11-3) and Detroit Lions (10-4) also won in Week 15, hurting the Birds’ chances of winning the No. 1 seed and the first-round bye in the playoffs that comes with it.
Here are all the playoff scenarios facing the Eagles:
How can the Eagles win the NFC East?
It’s pretty straightforward. If the Eagles win their remaining three games — one against the Arizona Cardinals (3-11) and two against the New York Giants (5-9) — they’ll win the NFC East for the second straight season, despite currently being in second place behind the Dallas Cowboys (10-4)
If the Birds and Cowboys both end the season with a 13-4 record, the tiebreaker would fall to strength of victory, where the Birds currently hold an edge — the Eagles’ wins have come against teams with a combined 69 wins (49.2 win percentage), while the Cowboys’ victories have been against teams with a combined 53 wins (37.8%).
NFC East standings
How can the Eagles land the No. 1 seed in the NFC?
That scenario is a bit trickier. The 49ers defeated the Eagles earlier this month, meaning the Eagles would need to win out and hope the 49ers lose at least two of their final three games.
The top seed also remains in play for the Lions, who have a similar path as the Eagles — win out and hope the 49ers drop at least two games. However, if both the Lions and Eagles win out, Detroit would hold the tiebreaker with a better record in common games. So the Eagles also have to root for the Lions to lose at least one of their final three games to have a shot at landing the top seed.
Are the Eagles still in the playoffs?
Yes, the Eagles clinched a playoff spot before even taking the field Monday night, thanks to the 49ers win over the Cardinals on Sunday. It’s the third straight season the Eagles have advanced to the postseason under head coach Nick Sirianni.
Two other NFC teams also have clinched playoffs berths — the 49ers and Cowboys. So four playoff spots remain up for grabs with three weeks remaining.
What seed would the Eagles be if the playoffs started this weekend?
If the season ended today, the Eagles would have the No. 5 seed and the Cowboys would win the NFC East.
In that scenario, the Eagles would have to face the No. 4 seed Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7) on the road during the wild card round.
If the Eagles end up winning the division and landing the No. 2 seed, they would face the No. 7 seed, which, at this point, is the Los Angeles Rams (7-7)
NFC playoff picture
The 49ers remain in the driver’s seat in the NFC. They’ll take on the Baltimore Ravens (11-3) on Christmas needing just two wins to clinch the No. 1 seed.
The Lions need to win one of their final three games to win their first-ever NFC North title. The last time the Lions won their division was in 1993 when they still played in the NFC Central.
Clinched the playoffs: San Francisco 49ers (11-3), Dallas Cowboys (10-4), Philadelphia Eagles (10-4).
Eliminated from playoffs: Carolina Panthers (2-12), Arizona Cardinals (3-11), Washington Commanders (4-10).
AFC playoff picture
The Ravens currently hold the top playoff spot in the AFC, and will lock up the AFC North with a win against the 49ers and a loss by the Cleveland Browns (9-5) against the Houston Texans (8-6).
The Miami Dolphins (10-4) are two games ahead of the Buffalo Bills (8-6) in the AFC East and will clinch the division with a win against the Cowboys and a Bills loss to the Los Angeles Chargers (5-9). The Bills and Dolphins face one another in Week 18.
Eliminated from playoffs: New England Patriots (3-10), New York Jets (5-9), Tennessee Titans (5-9).
Clinched the playoffs: Baltimore Ravens (11-3).