Cowboys’ playoff hopes continue to rely on NFC foes

Falcons (4-8) over Seahawks (9-3)

The Seattle Seahawks are playing inspired football behind their suddenly dominant defense, which so happens to include former Cowboy DeMarcus Lawrence.

Fresh off of a shutout victory over the hapless Minnesota Vikings, the Seahawks are currently the top Wildcard team, but are tied for the NFC West division lead with the Los Angeles Rams.

Cowboys fans should be rooting against Sam Darnold and the Seahawks this weekend, and put their hopes on the shoulders of Kirk Cousins and the Atlanta Falcons.

At 4-8, hoping for the Falcons to pull off the upset against a Seahawks team playing so well is not a good bet.

However, this is the NFL after all, and the Falcons have the offensive firepower to make it a shootout. They (and Cowboys fans) just might get lucky.

Saints (2-10) over Bucs (7-5)

Here is another game that is unlikely to go in the Cowboys’ favor.

The Saints, behind rookie QB Tyler Slough, have lost six of their last seven, and there doesn’t appear to be any help coming.

For the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, they are in a slump of their own, having dropped four out of their past six games.

The four losses came to Detroit, New England, Buffalo, and the Los Angeles Rams; all winning teams.

Cowboys fans can pray for a miracle, but it’s not likely the Saints can take care of business on the road unless they are extra motivated by a division game.

Bears (9-3) over Packers (8-3-1)

Thanks to a big win over the Eagles last Friday coupled with a Rams’ loss to the Panthers, the Chicago Bears jumped to the top of the NFC playoff picture.

If the playoffs started today, Chicago would earn a first-round bye, but the Packers are right on their heels.

Since the Cowboys lost a head-to-head matchup with Chicago, but managed to tie Green Bay, it’s better if the Bears continue with the better record and the Packers drop in the standings.

Should the Bears win this weekend and the Cowboys pull off a road win against Detroit, Dallas would pull within one game of the Packers for one of the final Wildcard spots.

Cardinals (3-9) over Rams (9-3)

The NFC is jammed at the top of the standings with four teams already notching nine wins on the season.

Three of those teams are in the NFC West, and the Rams lead the charge sitting as the second seed by virtue of tiebreaker.

Los Angeles will host Arizona this weekend in what should be an easy win for the Rams at home, with extra motivation coming off of the loss to Carolina.

For the Cowboys, they can only hope the Cardinals play with grit and toughness versus their division rival.

Dallas’ best hopes for a playoff berth besides taking care of their own schedule is for one of the three NFC West teams in the playoff hunt to stumble along the way.

Chargers (8-4) over Eagles (8-4)

Personally, I am thoroughly enjoying the downfall of the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles.

Philadelphia has dropped their last two games to Dallas and Chicago in embarrassing fashion: A complete collapse against the Cowboys after being up 21-0, followed by a blowout loss to the Bears after giving up 281 yards rushing.

The Eagles now must travel to Los Angeles to face the Chargers, who might not have Justin Herbert at full strength, if they even have him at all.

Herbert got his hand stepped on in a victory over the Raiders, breaking a bone and requiring surgery early this week.

Did the Eagles get lucky enough to face Trey Lance and save their season? Or does Herbert play hero and deal the Eagles their third loss in a row?

Cowboys fans know who to root for, and an Eagles loss combined with a Dallas victory over Detroit will bring the NFC East standings a little too close for comfort for Philadelphia.