NFL playoff picture: Eagles, Cowboys, 49ers scenarios, NFL standings - The Philadelphia Inquirer

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The Eagles can clinch a playoff spot Sunday with a win over the Dallas Cowboys, thanks to some help they received Sunday.

The Birds are 10-2 entering Week 14, and are all but guaranteed to land in the playoffs. Since the NFL expanded to a 12-team playoff format in 1990, only 12 teams have reached the 10-win mark and missed playing in the postseason, most recently the 10-6 Miami Dolphins in 2020. It’s actually happened twice to the Eagles, who didn’t reach the postseason after going 10-6 in 2014 and 1991.

Thanks to the Los Angeles Rams’ overtime loss to the Baltimore Ravens, all the Eagles need to do is defeat the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football and they’ll clinch a postseason spot.

The Cowboys entered Sunday with a long shot chance to secure a playoff spot, but thanks to wins by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and New Orleans Saints, Dallas will have to wait another week to officially punch their ticket to the postseason. Like the Eagles, the Cowboys are practically guaranteed a spot in the playoffs, regardless what happens tonight.

NFC East standings

The Eagles are just one game up on the Cowboys heading into Sunday’s monster game at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, which means the division is up for grabs.

If the Eagles win, they’ll be up two games on the Cowboys and hold the head-to-head tiebreaker heading into their final four games of the season. It would take a historic collapse against an easy schedule for the Eagles to end up losing the division, but the earliest the Birds would be able to officially clinch the NFC East would be Week 16 against the New York Giants (4-8).

If the Cowboys win, Dallas would slide into first place on a tie-breaker, thanks to their better divisional record. But it would still be an uphill climb for Dak Prescott and the Cowboys to win the NFC East.

Even if the Eagles lose, the Birds would still be in a better position to end the season with the NFC East crown, given the teams’ upcoming schedules. Despite the fact the Cowboys would win a tiebreaker, if both teams won out and ended the season tied, the NFC East would go to the Eagles because the Birds would have a better conference record.

NFC playoff picture

Eliminated from playoffs: Carolina Panthers (1-11)

The San Francisco 49ers (10-3) defeated the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday, and can clinch a playoff spot if the Green Bay Packers lose Monday night against the New York Giants (4-8)

Heading into Week 14, the race for the NFC’s top playoff spot remains crowded. While the Eagles are still the favorites, it’s possible the weekend ends with three teams — the Eagles, Cowboys, and 49ers — all tied for the No. 1 seed at 10-3. In that scenario, the 49ers would catapult to the top of the NFC.

The Lions (9-4) remain in control of the NFC North, but their chances of winning the No. 1 seed took a big hit Sunday, thanks to their loss to the Chicago Bears (5-8).

The NFC South has a three-way tie for first place after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (6-7) defeated the Atlanta Falcons (6-7) and the New Orleans Saints (6-7) defeated the miserable Carolina Panthers (1-12).

Despite it being their bye week, the Arizona Cardinals (3-10) faced playoff elimination. But Jonathan Gannon and company will remain mathematically alive thanks to the Rams’ loss to the Ravens.

AFC playoff picture

Eliminated from playoffs: New England Patriots (3-10)

No AFC team can clinch a playoff spot Sunday, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t interesting games that have a lot of postseason implications.

The Buffalo Bills (7-6) kept their playoff hopes alive by defeating the Kansas City Chiefs (8-5) at Arrowhead Stadium.

The Cleveland Browns (8-5) improved their playoff chances by defeating the Jacksonville Jaguars (8-5). Joe Flacco, 38, led the way for the Browns, throwing for 311 yards and three touchdowns. Despite the loss, the Jaguars remain in control of the AFC South after the Indianapolis Colts (7-6) lost on the road to the Cincinnati Bengals (7-6), who are fighting for a wild-card spot despite losing quarterback Joe Burrow to injury for the rest of the season.

Despite defeating the Pittsburgh Steelers (7-6) on Thursday, the New England Patriots (3-13) were officially eliminated from playoff contention thanks to the Bengals’ win over the Colts. It’s the earliest the Patriots have been removed from the playoff hunt since 2000, according to according to NFL playoffs analyst Joe Ferreira.

The Tennessee Titans (4-8) also faced elimination, but will remain mathematically alive for at least another week thanks to the Steelers’ loss.

When do the NFL playoffs start?

The NFL playoffs begin with the wild-card round, with the first game scheduled for 4:30 p.m. Jan. 13 on NBC.

There are six wild-card games that will air on Fox, CBS, NBC, and ESPN/ABC. The new wrinkle this year is one wild-card game will stream exclusively on Peacock, NBC’s subscription service.

Here’s the 2023-24 NFL playoff schedule:

Wild-card round: Jan. 13 to 15
Divisional round: Jan. 20 to 21
AFC and NFC championship games: Jan. 28
Super Bowl LVIII: Feb. 11, 6:30 p.m.

Week 14 schedule

Thursday

(3-10) Patriots 21, (7-6) Steelers 18

Sunday

Buccaneers (5-7) at Falcons (6-6), 1 p.m.
Rams (6-6) at Ravens (9-3), 1 p.m.
Lions (9-3) at Bears (4-8), 1 p.m.
Colts (7-5) at Bengals (6-6), 1 p.m.
Jaguars (8-4) at Browns (7-5), 1 p.m.
Panthers (1-11) at Saints (5-7), 1 p.m.
Texans (7-5) at Jets (4-8), 1 p.m.
Vikings (6-6) at Raiders (5-7), 1 p.m.
Seahawks (6-6) at 49ers (9-3), 1 p.m.
Bills (6-6) at Chiefs (8-4), 4:25 p.m.
Broncos (6-6) at Chargers (5-7), 4:25 p.m.
Eagles (10-2) at Cowboys (9-3), 8:20 p.m.

Monday

Titans (4-8) at Dolphins (9-3), 8:15 p.m., ESPN
Packers (6-6) at Giants (4-8), 8:15 p.m, ABC

Bye week: Cardinals and Commanders

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