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The Dallas Cowboys picked up a ton of help with regards to their playoff position on Sunday afternoon when the New Orleans Saints defeated the Philadelphia Eagles. As a result the Cowboys are still alive not only for the NFC East title, but for the number one seed in the NFC as well.
At the time of this writing we do not know when the Cowboys or Eagles will play in Week 18 which obviously will impact things. In addition to Dallas and Philadelphia, the Minnesota Vikings and San Francisco 49ers will both have a hand in the seeding situation in the NFC, but their Week 17 games have just kicked off at the time that we are putting this together.
In case you could not tell there is a lot that can change in the NFC Playoff Picture but one thing is now for certain:
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers have won the NFC South and will be the #4 seed in the NFC.
The Bucs defeated the Carolina Panthers on Sunday afternoon to take the NFC South for a second year in a row. Given their record relative to the other top teams in the conference, they cannot improve their playoff position and are locked in at the #4 seed in the conference entering Week 18.
This means that the Bucs could, if they choose obviously, rest starters in Week 18. This is important as it related to the Cowboys because if they do not win the division (meaning a Dallas loss or Philadelphia win in Week 18) they will visit Tampa Bay in the Wild Card Round.
It is unlikely that the NFL will schedule the Cowboys after the Eagles next week as doing so would allow the potential for Dallas to rest their starters. This means that the Cowboys will likely play to win next week against a Washington Commanders team that may be eliminated from playoff contention (a Green Bay Packers win in Week 17 eliminates them). They could win while still winding up with the top wild card in the conference only to face the only team in the conference that was able to rest their starters in the final week of the regular season.
In case you could not tell, it is going to be a rather interesting week.
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