NFC Playoff Picture: Eagles loss to the Seahawks puts Cowboys in No. 2 seed, 49ers in control of No. 1 seed

The Philadelphia Eagles dropped their third straight game last night to the Seahawks, spoiling a perfect opportunity in the final minutes of the game to separate themselves from the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC East standings while keeping their hopes alive of earning the No. 1 seed in the playoffs over the San Francisco 49ers.

The Eagles are the current No. 5 seed in the NFC playoff picture. The 49ers have won the NFC West and own the head-to-head tiebreaker against the Birds following their Week 13 victory. The Cowboys remain in first place in the NFC East and the No. 2 seed in the playoffs. The Lions (10-4) are right behind Dallas at No. 3. 

The Ravens (AFC), Eagles, Cowboys, and 49ers have all clinched playoff berths and 10 more spots are still up for grabs. Here’s how the NFC playoff picture currently stands heading into Week 16. 

NFC Playoff Picture: 

1. San Francisco 49ers (11-3, clinched)

2. Dallas Cowboys (10-4, clinched)

3. Detroit Lions (10-4)

4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7)

Wild Card

5. Philadelphia Eagles (10-4, clinched)

6. Minnesota Vikings (7-7)

7. Los Angeles Rams (7-7)

Outside Looking In

8. Seahawks (7-7)

9. New Orleans Saints (7-7)

10. Atlanta Falcons (6-8)

11. Packers (6-8)

Dead Teams Walking

12. Giants (5-9)

13. Bears (5-9)

14. Commanders (4-10)

15. Cardinals (3-11)

16. Panthers (2-12)

NFC Playoff Picture with 3 weeks left 👀 pic.twitter.com/whaN3rTIt4

— PFF (@PFF) December 19, 2023

Eagles can Kiss the No. 1 Seed Goodbye 

I understand that the Eagles securing the No. 1 seed in the playoffs was a long shot to begin with after losing to both the San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys but technically, they still have a very long shot of winning the NFC, although extremely unlikely.

For the Eagles to secure the No. 1 seed in the NFC Playoffs, both of the following scenarios need to happen over the final three weeks of the regular season. 

How the Eagles can still clinch the No. 1 Seed in the NFC if both things happen:

• San Francisco loses twice (BAL, @WAS, LAR) 
• Detroit loses once (@MIN, @DAL, MIN) 

San Francisco clinched the NFC West with their win over Arizona. They also hold the head-to-head tiebreaker over Philly and Dallas. Their conference record now sits at 9-1. If the 49ers lose to Baltimore next week, they can still earn the No. 1 seed by beating the Commanders and the Rams in the final two weeks of the season.

The Cowboys are back in the No. 2 seed after the Eagles loss to the Seattle Seahawks. Dallas has the better division record which is the tiebreaker. The Cowboys clinched a playoff spot thanks to the Falcons and Packers losing along with the Lions winning on Saturday. 

How the Eagles can clinch the NFC East 

The Eagles lost their half-game lead over the Dallas Cowboys in the NFC East standings following last night’s loss to the Seahawks. They still have a great shot of winning the division, but have now lost full control of their destiny, falling back to 10-4 on the season and tied with the Cowboys record-wise.

The Cowboys remaining schedule is much more difficult than the Eagles. They will face the Miami Dolphins on the road, the Detroit Lions at home, and the Washington Commanders on the road to end the regular season.

On paper, the final three games are winnable but after dropping three straight and the team in complete disarray, who knows how they’ll rebound at home against the Giants and Cardinals before closing out the regular season on the road against the Giants. 

The Birds can still clinch the NFC East if either of these two things happen: 

• Eagles SOV (Strength of Victory) tiebreaker over Dallas 
• Dallas loses (@MIA, DET, @WAS) 

Note: The NFC will only come down to strength of victory if both the Eagles and Cowboys win out or if they each drop one division game. If it’s a tie at 12-5 and Dallas loses to Miami or Detroit, Dallas wins the tiebreaker regardless of the Eagles loss before SOV comes into play.

Wild Card Standings 

• No. 5: Philadelphia Eagles
• No. 6: Minnesota Vikings 
• No. 7: Los Angeles Rams 

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