NFL Playoffs 2018: Handicapping the NFC East race

Someone must win the NFC East and make the NFL Playoffs 2018, but none of the four teams appear on track to finish with a winning record. Who wins this thing? We handicap the race for the most frustrating division in football, the NFC Least.

Thanks to the buzz surrounding the prime time games in NFL Week 11, the close finishes and shaping of the NFC East was easy to ignore. But Week 11 was a game-changing week for this division. It is hard to know who has the edge and who should be the favorite to win. But someone will win this thing and make the NFL Playoffs 2018.

Prior to the season, Philadelphia was the heavy favorite to win the East, for good reason. Eleven weeks later, the Eagles are in disarray. Carson Wentz took part in a terrible performance in a dominating loss to New Orleans that dropped Philly two full games out of first place. This team now hasn’t looked good and hasn’t looked anything like a defending champion at any point this year.

Simply put, the NFC East is anyone’s division. Every team is on par with one another, so we handicap the race for the most frustrating division in football.

Two brothers from New York, Dan Salem and Todd Salem, debate the NFL Playoffs 2018 in today’s NFL Sports Debate.

Todd Salem:

Philly’s struggles allowed Washington to grab an early division lead, but the Redskins are now in massive trouble as well. In the midst of their second loss in three weeks, the Skins also lost quarterback Alex Smith to a broken leg. Washington never looked dominant even when it was winning. Now, with Colt McCoy the option behind center, three straight divisional games coming up, and four road games in the next five weeks, a massive tumble could be in store.

That opens the door for the two remaining squads. Dallas may be in the best shape of anyone, even having been at or below .500 at every point this season. The Cowboys’ first two-game winning streak of the season has coincided with what has happened in Washington, likely making them the favorites moving forward. Besides hosting New Orleans, their schedule also appears favorable the rest of the way.

Dallas doesn’t have a single win over a winning team, but beating the teams you are “supposed’ to beat is sometimes enough, if everything else falls right.

The putrid stench of the NFC East is so strong that not even the 3-7 New York Giants can be ruled out. After two straight victories, Big Blue is only three games out of first place. It also is tied for one of the five worst records in the sport, but those other three-win teams aren’t in such favorable divisional homes. Even still, it’s more likely New York loses every game the rest of the way than it getting back into the playoff hunt.

More from NFL Spin Zone

That leaves the East up for grabs between a defending champion having a year from hell, a mediocre squad with a backup quarterback, and America’s Team in the middle of a very ho-hum season. Dallas is pretty bad on offense, yet kind of good on defense thanks to playing one of the weakest slates of opposing offenses of anyone in the sport. Sometimes being fortunate is better than being good.

Is Dallas your pick to win the division? Does the division winner finish with a better record than 8-8? Do the Giants still have any chance? Is Philly done? The NFC Least is back!

Dan Salem:

If there’s one thing I know about the NFC Least in terms of who makes the NFL Playoffs 2018, it’s that the division winner will in fact finish 8-8. It would be a major upset if any of these four teams reaches 9-7, because all lack consistency and only the Cowboys have shown flashes of something resembling brilliance in recent weeks.

Dallas and New York both have three divisional games remaining of their final six matchups, playing their NFC East foes each once. Philadelphia and Washington have four divisional games in their final six matchups, playing one another twice. Let’s set aside the division games for a moment, because the other games are mostly losses for all of these teams.

The Cowboys lose to New Orleans and Indianapolis (currently crushing it), but defeat Tampa Bay. The Giants lose to Chicago and Indianapolis, but defeat Tennessee (maybe, but let’s assume it happens). The Eagles lose to Los Angeles and Houston. The Redskins split with Tennessee and Jacksonville.

That puts Washington at 7-5 with four division games, Philadelphia at 4-8 with four division games, Dallas at 7-6 with three division games, and New York at 5-8 with three division games. We shall assume the Eagles and Redskins split. Here are the standings, with remaining opponents in parentheses.

Washington 8-6 (Dallas, New York)
Dallas 7-6 (Washington, New York, Philadelphia)
New York 5-8 (Washington, Dallas, Philadelphia)
Philadelphia 5-9 (Dallas, New York)

The Cowboys are playing the “best” football right now, because their defense is not an atrocity like the remaining three NFC Least teams. They also have a reliable running game. Dallas beats the Redskins, but loses to New York and Philadelphia (I’m being generous). The Giants beat Dallas and Washington, but lose to Philadelphia (more generosity for New York, but what the heck). Here are the final standings for the NFC East division.

Washington 8-8
(3-3 in division, 1-1 vs. Dallas, 5-6 common games, 7-5 NFC games)
Dallas 8-8
(3-3 in division, 1-1 vs. Washington, 5-6 common games, 6-6 NFC games)
Philadelphia 7-9
New York 7-9

Next. One Player Each NFL Team Must Sign in 2019. dark

The Redskins “win” the NFC East in this scenario, after four tie breakers. All Dallas has to do is beat the Giants or Eagles and they win this thing, but I’m not confident in that happening. Colt McCoy knows Washington’s offense well, and with four division games and two pushover AFC matchups, they are in control. My pick is the Redskins to “win” the NFC East and make the NFL Playoffs.

Home/Dallas Cowboys