NFC playoffs tracker: Cowboys hope to take advantage of recent upsets

In the National Football Conference’s upper half, things are starting to become crowded. There isn’t much separating the two sides of the postseason bubble anymore following some unexpected losses by the presumptive front-runner over the past two weeks. Even as early as Week 8, it sets up for a thrilling rest of the 2023 regular season.

The San Francisco 49ers, who were once regarded as the “best team in football,” have lost two games to the Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns in the past two weeks. There’s significantly more suspense at the top of the NFC rankings than one may have predicted after the Philadelphia Eagles lost in Week 6 and the Detroit Lions dropped their second game last week.

The Lions currently have a “strength of victory” tiebreaker over the 49ers, which will shift with more game results to come. Seattle tops Dallas in the wild card race thanks to their superior record against NFC teams. And in the cluster of 3–4 teams looking through the window, differences in their records within the conference are all that currently divide them.

With no byes in Week 8, everyone will be in action to potentially help or hurt their causes. What game outcomes would most benefit the Cowboys’ playoff positioning?

Rams vs. Cowboys

This is a big one for many reasons. A win keeps Dallas in the top tier of NFC contenders and improves that losing record so far within the conference. It also gives them a potentially important head-to-head tiebreaker against the Rams, who, if they get hot down the stretch, could easily be a factor in the wild card race. The Cowboys can’t afford to look ahead to next week’s first meeting with Philadelphia; this one could be crucial to their playoff hopes as well.

Eagles @ Commanders

Can Washington help us out here? They took the Eagles to overtime a few weeks ago in Philly, but that could also mean that now they’ll be taken more seriously. The Commanders have been unpredictably scrappy at times but surprisingly impotent at others, making it hard to project just what kind of challenge the Eagles are in for this week. Obviously, a ding to Philadelphia’s overall, divisional, and conference records would benefit the Cowboys.

Bengals @ 49ers

After their unfortunate two-game road trip, San Francisco returns home hoping to stop the bleeding. Cincinnati hasn’t been as good as expected so far this year, so this could be the right matchup for the Niners to work out their issues. But if QB Brock Purdy misses this one due to a concussion, asking Sam Darnold to outduel Joe Burrow might be too much. Dallas would love to see San Francisco keep on sliding.

Raiders @ Lions

Since beating the Chiefs in their season opener, Detroit’s only quality win has been over Tampa Bay in Week 6. Losses to the Seahawks and Ravens, especially getting blown out by Baltimore last Sunday, call the Lions’ legitimacy into question. The Cowboys would love to see them drop this one to an AFC opponent, but Vegas is the kind of team that Detroit’s been preying on most of the year.

As of right now, the Cowboys are only 1.5 games behind.

In the National Football Conference’s upper half, things are starting to become crowded. There isn’t much separating the two sides of the postseason bubble anymore following some unexpected losses by the presumptive front-runner over the past two weeks. Even as early as Week 8, it sets up for a thrilling rest of the 2023 regular season.

The San Francisco 49ers, who were once regarded as the “best team in football,” have lost two games to the Minnesota Vikings and Cleveland Browns in the past two weeks. There’s significantly more suspense at the top of the NFC rankings than one may have predicted after the Philadelphia Eagles lost in Week 6 and the Detroit Lions dropped their second game last week.