Eagles fail to receive help from Redskins against Cowboys to clinch NFC East title early
By Dan Parzych
The Philadelphia Eagles were hoping to clinch the NFC East early on Thursday with some help from the Washington Redskins, which unfortunately didn’t happen after their loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
Even though they don’t play until Sunday night against the Seattle Seahawks, the Philadelphia Eagles were hoping to receive an early Week 13 gift from the Washington Redskins on Thursday with the possibility to clinch the NFC East title. When looking at how things are playing out in the division, the Eagles could have locked up the division title if the Redskins defeated the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday, but unfortunately that wasn’t the case, as Jason Garrett‘s squad held on for the 38-14 victory to keep them in good shape for the NFC playoff race.
Obviously, there’s no reason to make a huge deal over this situation since Philadelphia can still clinch over the weekend with a win over Seattle, but also a win by Washington would have helped take some of the pressure off moving forward. With all due respect to the Cowboys, the NFC East seems to be a lock for the Eagles when looking at their comfortable lead over their division rivals, and with the team only needing one more win to clinch, it’s only a matter of time before it actually happens.
In a way, Dallas having their way against Washington was kind of expected after seeing all of the frustrations surrounding this team over the last three games, all of which Dak Prescott failed to record a single touchdown pass. Keep in mind the Cowboys were one of numerous teams that were considered heavy favorites early on to make a run at the Super Bowl after finishing with the best record in the NFC a year ago at 13-3, so falling short of making the postseason this year would be viewed as a complete let down, even if they are dealing with numerous issues from injuries to Ezekiel Elliott‘s suspension.
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At least for the Eagles and their 10-1 record, the Redskins failing to help them out shouldn’t be viewed as that big of a deal since, as mentioned before, it seems like only a matter of time before the division title officially belongs to them. Philadelphia may have struggled on the road a year ago when facing Seattle, but the circumstances are completely different this time around when looking at how the two teams compare from the 2017 season. Never in a million years would football fans expect to see the Eagles be favored to win on the road against the Seahawks like they are for Week 13, and here’s to hoping they come through with the win to clinch the division so they can focus on their next goal of earning the No. 1 seed in the NFC.