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It's official: the Philadelphia Eagles are in first place in the NFC East.
With the Dallas Cowboys having lost to the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football, the Cowboys' record dropped to 7-6, which is one whole game behind Philadelphia. Here's a new look at the NFC East standings:
First place: Eagles (8-5)
Not first place: Cowboys (7-6)
Third place: New York Giants (5-8)
Last place: Washington LolSkins (3-11)
Monday night's result has significant impact on both team's playoff aspirations moving forward. If the season were to end today (it won't), the Eagles would be the third NFC seed in the NFL playoffs. The Eagles essentially need to maintain a one game lead over the Cowboys in order to win their division. If the Eagles and Cowboys finish with an identical record, Dallas will likely own the tiebreaker (division record) and win the division.
Here's a look at each team's remaining schedules:
Dallas: Packers, @Redskins, Eagles
Philadelphia: @Vikings, Bears, @Cowboys
It will be interesting to see how things play out, but for now, Philly has the advantage. The NFC East can be clinched with an Eagles win over the Bears in two weeks from now IF: 1) the Eagles beat the Vikings this week, 2) the Cowboys lose to the Packers this week.
The Eagles a dangerous team. They're red hot: five game winning streak, 7-2 in their last nine games, and nine straight games with 21 points or less allowed.
As good friend Jimmy Kempski put it:
The Eagles are the best team in the NFC East, and I'm not sure it's close.
— Jimmy Kempski (@JimmyKempski) December 10, 2013
The Eagles are in the driver's seat with three games to go.
No looking back.