On Sunday, the Cowboys gave the Eagles their best shot. Dallas came up short.
The Eagles moved to 8-1. The Cowboys fell to 5-3. Until they meet again.
They meet again in 34 days.
Week 14. Sunday Night Football. NBC and Peacock.
The Cowboys will play four games between now and then. The Eagles will play three.
For Dallas, each is winnable: Giants, at Panthers, Commanders, Seahawks. Three at home, where the Cowboys have won 11 in a row.
The best of the bunch is Seattle. But the Seahawks are becoming the NFC’s version of the Dolphins; beat bad teams, lose to good ones.
It’s not unreasonable to think the Cowboys will win all four of them, moving to 9-3 before the Eagles come to AT&T Stadium.
For the Eagles, a much-needed bye comes this weekend. Then, they go to Kansas City for a Super Bowl rematch before heading home to face the Bills and 49ers in consecutive weeks.
Lose two, and the Eagles will be 9-3, as well, when they meet in Dallas.
Although the Cowboys could have commanded the driver’s seat in the NFC East if they’d managed to win on Sunday in Philly, the Cowboys still can make it very interesting. Even if the Eagles lose only one of the next three games, the Week 14 rematch could result in a tie for first place in the division, with both teams at 10-3 and four games to play.
So, yes, the Cowboys are very much alive in the race for the NFC East crown. Which could make all the difference when it’s time to play single-elimination games, especially since the Cowboys are a very different team at home than they are on the road.
