Dallas Cowboys playoff picture: The Cowboys can clinch the NFC East a number of ways in Week 16

There are officially three weeks left in the 2021 NFL regular season and what a ride it has been. Week to week there have been different teams who showed up and shocked the world by taking down would-be contenders. Things may seem a little bit predictable with less than a month to go until the playoffs, but we are so often reminded that the NFL is a land of parity and a place where anything can happen.

While few things are predictable, we enter a week where it is far more likely than not that the Dallas Cowboys will formally punch their playoff ticket. Week 15 came and went without the Cowboys officially securing their first NFC East title since 2018, but the good news is that they fully control their own destiny with regards to celebrating a division championship.

Here is how the Dallas Cowboys can clinch the NFC East in Week 16

Dallas has three more wins to their name than the second-place team in the division (the Philadelphia Eagles) and as the Cowboys have already beaten Philly this season they have all of the control against their rival.

Some quick math tells you that Dallas only needs to secure their 11th win of the season (they host Washington on Sunday night) to crown themselves winner of the NFC East, but there are a few other ways that they can lay claim to the throne. Here are all three.

The Eagles square off against the New York Giants during the early round of games on Sunday so it is possible that Dallas wins the division several hours before their own game kicks off. They simply need an Eagles loss for that to happen, although on Monday the Giants ruled out Daniel Jones for the remainder of the year so we are relying on Mike Glennon. or Jake Fromm, to get the job done.

Of course the job could also get done by 1.5 more wins coming from any of six different teams: Las Vegas Raiders, Jacksonville Jaguars, Los Angeles Chargers, New England Patriots, Minnesota Vikings, Atlanta Falcons. These all factor into the strength of victory part of the formula so again the Cowboys could very well be NFC East winners before they even step foot inside of AT&T Stadium on Sunday night.

Odds are high that the Cowboys celebrate the first of what is hopefully three different championships this season on Sunday night. Let’s get it done.