Despite the Dallas Cowboys not playing on Sunday, they still come away from the day as winners.
After their win on Thursday night over the Tennessee Titans, the Cowboys needed a Philadelphia Eagles loss on Sunday to keep their NFC East hopes alive.
The New Orleans Saints beat the Eagles, and Dallas has plenty to play for in Week 18.
So with the upcoming season’s final week, here are the playoff seeding scenarios for the Cowboys.
If the Cowboys win at Washington next week and the Eagles lose to the Giants, the Cowboys win the NFC East.
The Giants already clinched a playoff spot, so they won’t have much to play for. If the Eagles win, they are the NFC East champs. Cowboys would then be the No. 5 seed.
— Jon Machota (@jonmachota) January 1, 2023
Which Seed Will The Cowboys Be?
If Dallas beats the Commanders, they need an Eagles loss to the New York Giants to win the NFC East.
Also, if the San Francisco 49ers lose to the Arizona Cardinals, the Cowboys can still be the number one seed.
This seems like the most unlikely scenario though as the Eagles and 49ers are both double-digit favorites.
But, if the 49ers win on Sunday, paired with a Cowboys win and an Eagles loss, the Cowboys will be the second seed.
The most likely scenario is that Dallas, Philadelphia, and San Francisco all win.
Leaving the Cowboys as the fifth-seed, and first-wild-card team.
If that is the case, Dallas will travel to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the wild-card round.
Any scenario in which the Cowboys lose in Week 18 will keep them as the fifth seed.
No matter how the seedings play out in Week 18, the NFC looks wide open.
There has not been a dominant team in the conference this year and anyone in the playoffs could make a run.
Ultimately, the Cowboys are going to be either the first, second, or fifth seed in the NFC playoffs.
So they should play to win in Week 18 and hope for some help across the league.
