The further we go down this 2025 playoffs pipe dream, the increasingly clearer path is through the NFC East. But nothing is officially off the table yet for the Cowboys, meaning we still need to keep an eye on the rest of the conference as we get into the final four weeks of the regular season.<\/p>\n
With the Eagles dropping three in a row and still only two games ahead of Dallas, they have become the most catchable playoff hopeful. Even the seventh-seeded Bears are 9-4, a game better than Philly overall. That means our division rivals are not only closest in mathematical range, but also the only NFC contender currently trending downward as we near the postseason.<\/p>\n
Still, technically, no NFC team is out of the Cowboys\u2019 reach yet. Even the fantastic scenario of the 10-3 Rams, the current number-one seed, dropping four straight games means Dallas could catch them if it wins out. Unlikely? Of course, but still another way that our team is alive and worth monitoring.<\/p>\n
Current 2025 NFC Playoff Standings<\/p>\n
1. Los Angeles Rams 10-3 (5-3)
2. Green Bay Packers 9-3-1 (7-2-1)
3. Philadelphia Eagles 8-5 (7-3)
4. Tampa Bay Buccaneers 7-6 (5-4)
5. Seattle Seahawks 10-3 (6-3)
6. San Francisco 49ers 9-4 (8-2)
7. Chicago Bears 9-3 (6-2 vs NFC)
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8. Detroit Lions 8-5 (5-4)
9. Carolina Panthers 7-6 (5-3)
10. Dallas Cowboys 6-6-1 (3-5-1)<\/p>\n
Obviously, Dallas has to do its part by making last Thursday\u2019s loss to Detroit its last of the year. That\u2019s not to say they couldn\u2019t still make it with a 9-7-1 record, but the odds drop dramatically. Even at 10 wins they\u2019re going to need luck, but not nearly as much.<\/p>\n
This week is pretty simple: most of the teams we need to lose are all playing against teams that are either already out of the race or play for the other conference. Let\u2019s look at each game. starting with the one we need most.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s hard to imagine Philly returning home and dropping this one to the hapless 2-11 Raiders. But we saw this same cast, mostly, go 1-5 to close the 2023 season. When the Eagles collapse, they do it big. At the very least, Vegas kept it close against Denver last week. They have an aged head coach and quarterback who aren\u2019t worried about the future. As long as they still have some fight in them, the Raiders could be a trap for Philly as they prepare for a two-game road trip in Washington and Buffalo.<\/p>\n
But yeah, all that said, this probably isn\u2019t one of the two losses that Dallas needs from Philadelphia.<\/p>\n
Given their current 10 wins, Los Angeles is much less relevant to Dallas\u2019 playoff chances than the 8-5 Lions. While not currently in a wild-card spot, Detroit still stands between the Cowboys and the tournament. They\u2019re more likely to make trouble for us down the road.<\/p>\n
Dallas has to have one more win than Green Bay to pass them in the playoff race, so the Packers can\u2019t win another game if we have any chance. While they tied earlier in the year, the Packers would beat the Cowboys out on a stronger record against NFC opponents. At worst, Green Bay\u2019s NFC record could fall to 7-4-1 for the year. At best, Dallas can get to 6-5-1.<\/p>\n
An unlikely one, but also with trap potential. Chicago has a tough stretch coming with the Packers, 49ers, and Lions, so it could easily dismiss 3-10 Cleveland. But with Shedeur Sanders heating up as the new starter, it\u2019s another opportunity for an NFC contender to be caught sleeping.<\/p>\n
Perhaps the most unlikely upset of any of these lopsided matchups. The Niners are still clinging to hopes in the NFC West, while Tennessee appears fully committed to having the first pick in the 2026 Draft. But hey, \u201cany given Sunday.\u201d<\/p>\n
This one felt a lot better before Indy QB Daniel Jones was lost to injury. Now it looks more like a steamroll for 10-3 Seattle, especially at home.<\/p>\n
Someone\u2019s going to win the NFC South between Carolina and Tampa Bay, but we need the runner-up to not make the playoffs. They\u2019re both 7-6. so we really don\u2019t care who. If one of them could lose this week, while Dallas beats Minnesota, the Cowboys would move ahead of that team in the NFC standings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The further we go down this 2025 playoffs pipe dream, the increasingly clearer path is through the NFC…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":592868,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[86550,7,6,84],"class_list":{"0":"post-592867","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-nfl-playoffs","8":"tag-dallas-cowboys-playoffs","9":"tag-football","10":"tag-nfl","11":"tag-nfl-playoffs"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/115702522555036671","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592867","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=592867"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/592867\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/592868"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=592867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=592867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=592867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}