Less than 24 hours after the Dallas Cowboys’ win over the Detroit Lions, Week 17 got even better for America’s Team.
They now control their destiny for the NFC’s second seed and are in the driver’s seat of the NFC East. Why? The Philadelphia Eagles lost on Sunday to the Arizona Cardinals 35-31.
This means the Cowboys now need to beat the Washington Commanders to become divisional champions and secure a home playoff game in the Wild Card round. If they win then, they’d also play at home in the Divisional Round.
The Cowboys beat the Eagles in the tiebreaking criteria because of conference games won, which is the FOURTH tiebreaker within a division. Both teams are tied in head-to-head, division games, and common games. However, Dallas’ 8-3 conference record beats Philly’s 7-4.
Playing at home would be massive for this team as they’re still undefeated at AT&T Stadium for the season. They haven’t lost at home since 2022. Meanwhile, road struggles have been a big issue for the Cowboys this season.
The Cowboys winning in Week 18 would mean the no-repeat champion trend in the NFC East would stay alive: No team has won it in back-to-back years since the Eagles did in 2004. Right now, the division is trending toward one more year of the remarkable streak.
However, the Cowboys can’t let up just yet. They get the Washington Commanders in Week 18. While they’re the inferior team on paper, they punched Dallas in the mouth in the regular season finale. They’ll need to bring their A-game for the final road trip of the season.