If Eagles win the NFC East, who will they face in the playoffs?

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The Eagles haven’t made it to the playoffs just yet but for the first time in a while, they’re in the driver’s seat in the NFC East. 

If they win next Sunday against the Giants (or if the Cowboys lose to the Redskins), the Eagles will clinch the NFC East and the fourth seed in the playoffs. 

So who would they play in the wild card round? 

If the Eagles make the playoffs, they’ll be the fourth seed and would host a wild card round game at the Linc against the fifth seed. Right now, there are technically four teams in play for that fifth seed: Seahawks, 49ers, Vikings and Packers. But the Packers aren’t going to happen because that scenario (it’s below) involves a tie. 

But the Packers-Vikings game in Minnesota tonight matters.  

Here’s what would need to happen for the Eagles to face each of these teams: 

Vikings: In order for the Vikings to end up as the fifth seed, they would need to beat Green Bay tonight + beat Chicago next weekend + Green Bay would have to beat the Lions in Week 17. 

Packers: This isn’t going to happen, but I’ll list it here anyway for the die-hards. For the Packers to get the fifth seed, they would need to lose to Minnesota on Monday night + tie the Lions in Week 17. But the Vikings would also have to beat the Bears + the 49ers would have to beat the Seahawks. (Thanks to the ESPN playoff machine for this one.)

Seahawks or 49ers: This is probably the most likely scenario. Simply put, if the Vikings’ scenario doesn’t unfold, the Eagles will play the loser of the Week 17 matchup between the 49ers and Seahawks in Seattle. One will win the division and the other will win a wild card spot. 

Tonight’s Monday Night Football game will tell us a lot. If the Packers win, we know the winner of the NFC East (it’s not the Eagles yet) will host either the Seahawks or 49ers in the wild card round. 

If the Vikings beat the Packers on Monday Night Football, they’re still a possibility. 

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