A first-round bye is still in play for Philadelphia.
The Philadelphia Eagles entered Week 15 with a chance to clinch the NFC East and being no worse than the No. 2 seed. With the Washington Commanders barely hanging on to beat the New Orleans Saints (missed game-winning two-point conversion attempt) in the early game window, those clinching scenarios were ruined.
The late game window went well for the Eagles, though! They beat the Pittsburgh Steelers AND they got help in the form of the Detroit Lions losing to the Buffalo Bills. The Eagles and Lions are now both 12-2 with Detroit holding the tiebreaker based on win percentage in conference games (8-1 over 7-2).
The Eagles can now clinch the No. 1 seed in the NFC playoff picture if the following conditions are met:
1) The Eagles win out (at WAS, vs. DAL, vs. NYG)
2) The Lions lose at least one game (at CHI, at SF, vs. MIN)
3) The Vikings lose at least one game (vs. CHI, at SEA, vs. GB, at DET)
That much is far from guaranteed to play out … but it’s hardly impossible!
Here are some additional (and less likely) scenarios outlined by the great Deniz Selman:
Updated NFC 1 seed scenarios: #Eagles are just one more DET loss + one MIN loss away from controlling their own fate for the NFC 1 seed. pic.twitter.com/BosS7e0guF
— Deniz Selman (@denizselman33) December 16, 2024
The Eagles will be able to clinch their division AND no worse than the No. 2 seed in Week 16 with either a win or tie against the Commanders in Landover, Maryland.
The Birds looked really good in their win over the Steelers. They’ve gotta keep their foot on the gas as they try to push for the No. 1 seed.
Here’s the entire current NFC playoff picture.
PROJECTED PLAYOFF TEAMS
DIVISION LEADERS
1) x – Detroit Lions: 12-2
2) x – Philadelphia Eagles: 12-2
3) Seattle Seahawks: 8-5+
4) Tampa Bay Buccaneers: 8-6
x = clinched playoff berth
+ Playing Green Bay on Sunday night.
WILD CARD TEAMS
5) Minnesota Vikings: 11-2*
6) Green Bay Packers: 9-4+
7) Washington Commanders: 9-5
*Playing Chicago on Monday night.
+ Playing Seattle on Sunday night.
…
ON THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN
IN THE HUNT
8) Los Angeles Rams: 8-6
9) Arizona Cardinals: 7-7
10) Atlanta Falcons: 6-7^
^Playing Las Vegas on Monday night.
UNSERIOUS TEAMS
11) San Francisco 49ers: 6-8
12) Dallas Cowboys: 6-8
13) New Orleans Saints: 5-9
OFFICIALLY ELIMINATED
14) Chicago Bears: 4-9*
15) Carolina Panthers: 3-11
16) New York Giants: 2-12
*Playing Minnesota on Monday night.
