Philadelphia Eagles: Lamar Jackson’s Week 13 return is great news
Lamar Jackson could help the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 13.
Somehow, in quite possibly the weirdest twist of 2020, the Philadelphia Eagles are not eliminated from from playoff consideration despite their 3-7-1 record.
Call it an indictment of the league’s playoff format, or a cruel byproduct of playing in a salary capped league, but with all four of the team’s divisions within a game of first place, all the Eagles need to do to represent the (L)East in the Wildcard Round is win one more game than either Washington, Dallas, and New York and boom, they’re in.
I don’t make the rules folks, I just report them.
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Now granted, winning more than three of the team’s final five games is going to be pretty gosh darn tricky, as the Green Bay Packers, New Orleans Saints, and Arizona Cardinals are no joke, but with a pair of contests against Dallas and Washington on the books to close out the 2020 NFL season, the Eagles very well could find themselves playing for either a top-10 pick or a playoff berth in Week 17 – with a well under .500 record to boot.
And in a rare twist of fate, it looks like luck may actually be on the Eagles’ side in Week 13.
… what? Do I think the Eagles have a good chance to beat the Packers at Lombardi Field? Oh god no. Even the most homer-y fan has to admit this weekend’s contest is the toughest left on the Eagles’ schedule. No, we’re talking about how the Dallas Cowboys‘ Tuesday Night Week 13 bout against the Baltimore Ravens just got a whole lot harder.
After being sidelined with a COVID-19 diagnosis on November 26, it looks like Jackson will officially be eligible to return on Sunday, December 6th, a full two days before the Cowboys-Ravens game is scheduled to go down in Baltimore.
That’s right, after having to suffer through a Wednesday afternoon with RGIII and Trace McSorely under center against the still-undefeated Pittsburgh Steelers, it looks like John Harbaugh and company will finally have their MVP back in a borderline must-win battle against Andy Dalton and company.
Now granted, does Jackson place a bit of a ceiling on the Ravens’ offensive potential? Most definitely, he’s (probably) never going to be even an above-average passer and the team’s play-calling options have to be heavily adjusted accordingly. But when he’s firing on all cylinders and given a chance to run the option against a less than elite defensive front, Jackson is one of the hardest players to bring down in the entire NFL.
With the Ravens currently stuck in third place in the AFC North behind the Steelers and Cleveland Browns, a win over Dallas could significantly impact the team’s chances of landing a Wildcard berth a month from now – especially in the league’s new, expanded playoff format.
And as for the Cowboys? Well, it seems like they’re just waiting for the season to be over.
dark. Next. Passing on Justin Jefferson could lead to some firings
Had the Cowboys been tasked with taking on Trace McSorely for a full 60 minute contest, maybe things would be different. Maybe Dallas would record their first elite win of the post-Dak Prescott-era and could parlay that success into a string of wins over the Bengals, the 49ers, the Giants, and Philadelphia Eagles. But with Lamar Jackson back, the chances of that happening become a whole lot less likely; if anything a blowout loss may be enough to eliminate the team once and for all. As a fan of the Philadelphia Eagles, you hate to see it.