NFL Playoff Picture 2020: Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles Face Elimination In Week 15

The Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles entered the 2020 NFL season as the favorites in the NFC East, but they could be eliminated from playoff contention with multiple games left on their schedules. Both teams are in must-win situations in Week 15 if they hope to keep their postseason hopes alive.

Dallas would have no path to get back into the playoff picture with a loss to the San Francisco 49ers Sunday. Even a victory doesn’t guarantee that the Cowboys will stave off elimination.

The Cowboys are out of the postseason race if both the Washington Football Team and Arizona Cardinals are victorious Sunday. Washington hosts the Seattle Seahawks and Arizona hosts Philadelphia in a contest that has plenty of postseason implications.

The Eagles can keep their playoff hopes alive by upsetting the Cardinals. A Philadelphia loss combined with a Washington victory would knock the Eagles out of contention.

Week 15 Elimination Scenarios assuming 7 playoff teams/conf (NFC East):

DALLAS eliminated from playoff contention:
- DAL loss
- DAL tie WAS win/tie
- DAL tie PHI win NYG loss
- WAS win ARZ win/tie

PHILADELPHIA eliminated from playoff contention:
- PHI loss WAS win pic.twitter.com/8p3BZgJlZq
— Joe Ferreira (@JoeNFL) December 14, 2020

Sitting atop the NFC East, Washington is two games ahead of the last-place Cowboys. Washington owns the tiebreaker over Dallas because the first-place team has already beaten the Cowboys twice.

With a tie on their record, the Eagles are 1.5 games behind Washington in the standings. Philadelphia will host Washington in the season finale.

Philadelphia upset the New Orleans Saints in Week 14 when Jalen Hurts got his first NFL start at quarterback. Dallas defeated the Cincinnati Bengals, though it will probably end up being too little too late.

The Eagles and Cowboys will meet in Week 16. Philadelphia won their first matchup earlier this season when Dallas was forced to start third-string quarterback Ben DiNucci.

The New York Giants are the biggest threat to Washington in the NFC East. New York is a game behind Washington and they own the tiebreaker with two head-to-head wins over the Football Team.

Dallas won the NFC East in 2018 and Philadelphia took the division title last year. It’s been 16 years since a team repeated as the NFC East champion.