4 WEEKS HAVE PASSED , WHERE DO THE EAGLES STAND NOW??

We wanted to revisit the article we wrote a month ago, see that article below, to see how our predictions were and where the Eagles stand going in to the home stretch. We will take a look at the Eagles, Cowboys and the resurgent Giants.

First the Eagles, we called the Giants game a MUST WIN and the Eagles lost, however, they were able to steal a game back by beating the Aaron Rodgersless Packers in Green Bay. We called for wins over Oakland and Washington and they got both of those. The bottom line is they go the 3 wins out of 4 games just not how we expected them. The Eagles still have games against three teams with 6-4 records, Arizona, Detroit and Chicago as well as 2-8 Minnesota before the final showdown with the Cowboys in Dallas. We see the Eagles needing to go 2-2 at a minimum, preferably 3-1 going to Dallas. That would give them a 9-6 or 8-7 record.

As far as the Cowboys, they got hammered by the Saints and lost to Lions while beating the Vikings. We said that would happen, however, losing to the Lions means they must beat the Bears in Chicago. They still have the Packers on December 15 so Rodgers should be back. We still call that a loss. They still have the Raiders and Redskins, both games they should win. That brings us to this weeks game against the Giants. Dallas must win to stay tied at the top of the NFC East with the Eagles and move the Giants 2 games back of The Birds with 5 to go. A Dallas loss and Giants win puts them in a tie one game behind the Eagles. Lets go with this scenario for Dallas, wins against the Raiders and Redskins, a loss to the Packers and a loss to the Bears, that makes them 7-7 not including the Giants and Eagles. A loss to the Giants this weekend puts the Cowboys in big trouble. They will have to beat the Bears or Packers to stay on pace.

That bring the Giants back in to the discussion. They’ve now won 4 in a row. Their schedule still shows a trip to San Diego and a home game against Seattle that will both be tough. They also have the Redskins twice, Detroit and this weeks game against Dallas. The Giants definitely have the toughest road. They will have to win 5 of the final 6 games to reach 9-7. We don’t see that happening with the remaining schedule. A loss to Dallas this week means the Giants will have to win out to stay in the mix.

Our conclusion: The Eagles are in the drivers seat. The schedule is in their favor among the three remaining teams. A Giants win Sunday would sure be helpful. The other key team in this mix is the Detroit Lions. The Lions are 6-4, tied for the NFC North lead, and play all three teams, the Eagles, Cowboys and Giants. This team is no pushover for anyone. It should be a fun final 6 weeks in the NFC East!!!!

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Here’s our view from the Philly Pressbox:

The Eagles have won 3 games going in to today. They’ve beaten the Redskins, Giants and Buccaneers who are a combined 3-17. They’ve lost to the Kansas City Chiefs who are leading the AFC West at 7-0, the Denver Broncos who are 6-1, and possibly the best team in football, the San Diego Chargers who are 4-3 and the Cowboys who are 4-3 and leading the NFC East. The combined record of those teams is 21-7.

What does that tell us? The Eagles are a middle of the road team. They can beat the bad teams and not the good teams!!! So lets run with that thought for both the Eagles and the Cowboys through the rest of the season by looking at the schedules of both teams and see how it sorts out.

First, today is a MUST win for the Eagles! If they don’t beat the 1-6 Giants this conversation is over.

So let’s assume that the Eagles beat the bad teams:

Here’s the schedule, Giants (1-6) win, at the Oakland Raiders (2-4) win, home against the Green Bay Packers (4-2) loss, home against the Redskins (2-4) MUST WIN, home against the Arizona Cardinals (3-4) win, the 4-3 Detroit Lions and the 4-3 Chicago Bears, they have to win one of the those two home games. Those games are wrapped around a trip to the 1-5 Minnesota Vikings, win. That bring us to a season ending MUST WIN in Dallas.

This is doable but only because the schedule is so weak. If the Eagles are to accomplish this they will have to go 7-2 from here on out and MUST WIN the 3 remaining NFC East game. If so, they will finish 10-6. They may be able to absorb one more loss but only if the Cowboys slip up.

Here’s the catch, the Cowboys play almost the same schedule so a few of these bad teams will have to beat them. If we make the same assumptions with their schedule here’s what we come up with. They play the New Orleans Saints on the road and the Packers at home, 2 losses. If we assume they split with the Lions and Bears and beat the Giants, Redskins, Vikings and Raiders that would make them 9-6 going in to the final game against the Eagles in Dallas.

So is it possible for The Birds to make the playoffs as the NFC East Champion? Yes. Can they stumble anywhere along the line? No. Are they good enough to win 7 of the last 9? Not likely, but we will see. Is Dallas good enough to win 7 of their last 9? Probably not.

This we do know for the Eagles, it starts today with a MUST WIN against the Giants.

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