The Eagles’ chances to make the playoffs got a huge boost Thursday night when the Lions beat the Cowboys in Detroit.
NFL NextGen Stats gave the Cowboys a 21 percent chance to win the NFC East before the game, but that fell to just 9 percent when the Lions won 43-30 at Ford Field.
If the Cowboys had won, the Cowboys’ playoff chances would have improved to 39 percent.
With the Cowboys’ loss, the Eagles’ magic number to clinch the division title dropped to three. Any combination of three Eagles wins or Cowboys losses the rest of the season eliminates the Cowboys.
The Eagles are 8-4 despite losing their last two games. The Cowboys had won three straight after a 3-5-1 start, including a 24-21 win over the Eagles, who blew a 21-point lead in the second quarter.
The Cowboys finish with the Vikings (4-6), Chargers (8-4), Commanders (3-9) and Giants (2-11). The Eagles have the Chargers, Raiders (2-10), Commanders, Bills (8-4) and Commanders.
If the Cowboys win out, they’ll finish 10-6-1, and three wins gets the Eagles to 11-5. And considering how easy the Cowboys’ schedule is, the Eagles may have to go 3-2 the rest of the way to reach the playoffs.
If the Eagles do win the NFC East, they’ll become the first team to win consecutive NFC East titles since the Eagles won four straight from 2001 through 2004.
That would also make Nick Sirianni only the sixth coach in NFL history to take his first five teams to the playoffs. Paul Brown, Chuck Knox, John Robinson, Bill Cowher and John Harbaugh are the first five.