Eagles rooting guide for Week 9 games

Now that the ninth Sunday of the 2021 NFL regular season is here, it’s time to run through a Philadelphia Eagles-focused rooting guide for all of the Week 9 games. This exercise will be especially interesting this year since the Birds have more things to care about than usual due to owning picks from the Miami Dolphins and Indianapolis Colts in the 2022 NFL Draft.

EAGLES GAME

LOS ANGELES CHARGERS at PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: The Eagles aren’t going to be winning the NFC East but a wild card berth isn’t out of the realm of possibility. Carolina is currently the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoff picture with a 4-4 record. The Eagles can stay in the hunt by beating the Bolts and advancing to 4-5 before facing one of the league’s easiest schedules in the second half. Root for the Eagles.

NFC EAST

DENVER BRONCOS at DALLAS COWBOYS: The Eagles probably can’t win the division. But they can root for the Cowboys to not end up with the No. 1 seed. Would be nice to see Dallas stumble at some point. Denver winning also keeps their pick behind Indy in the draft order, which is preferable for Philly. Root for the Broncos.

LAS VEGAS RAIDERS at NEW YORK GIANTS: A Giants win only serves to damage their draft positioning. Root for the Giants.

NFC PLAYOFF PICTURE

ATLANTA FALCONS at NEW ORLEANS SAINTS: A Saints loss helps the Eagles in two regards. 1) It moves New Orleans closer to losing their grasp on a wild card spot. 2) It keeps Atlanta behind Philly in the draft order. Root for the Falcons.

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS at CAROLINA PANTHERS: The Panthers losing gives the Eagles a better chance of making a wild card spot. Root for the Patriots.

GREEN BAY PACKERS at KANSAS CITY CHIEFS: Really need the Packers to win this game to help keep Dallas away from the No. 1 seed. Root for Jordan Love to pull off the upset against Patrick Mahomes. Root for the Packers.

ARIZONA CARDINALS at SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS: The Cardinals winning helps to keep Dallas away from the No. 1 seed. The 49ers losing also helps Philly when it comes to chasing a wild card spot. Root for the Cardinals.

TENNESSEE TITANS at LOS ANGELES RAMS: The Rams winning helps to keep Dallas away from the No. 1 seed. The Titans losing also gives Indy more motivation to keep playing Carson Wentz. Root for the Rams.

DRAFT PICK WATCH

MINNESOTA VIKINGS at BALTIMORE RAVENS: The Vikings winning doesn’t help the Eagles’ playoff chances but it does move them behind Indy in the draft order. Root for the Vikings.

CLEVELAND BROWNS at CINCINNATI BENGALS: The Browns winning keeps their pick behind Indy in the draft order. It also adds more competition for a wild card spot in the AFC, which is good for keeping Indy out of the playoffs. Root for the Browns.

BUFFALO BILLS at JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS: Rooting for the Jags in this spot is probably just a waste of time but an unexpected upset would be nice to see. Need to ensure that Jacksonville stays ahead of Miami’s pick that’s owed to Philly. Root for the Jaguars.

HOUSTON TEXANS at MIAMI DOLPHINS: The Dolphins are currently picking at No. 2 overall while the Texans are picking at No. 3 overall. Thus, this is a big game when it comes to the draft order. Really need Tyrod Taylor to come up big and hand the Dolphins another loss. Root for the Texans.

CHICAGO BEARS at PITTSBURGH STEELERS: The Giants own the Bears’ 2022 first-round pick, which is currently slated to be at No. 10. Need Chicago to pick up some wins to make that worse. Root for da Bears.