What was once a stretch of hope and joy for the Dallas Cowboys and their fans after a three-game winning streak turned into disappointment, as a three-game losing streak ended their playoff aspirations and resulted in four losses in their final five games.
And for the Philadelphia Eagles, they turned their own three-game losing streak into back-to-back wins over two of the NFL’s worst teams to secure an NFC East title, the division’s first repeat champion since the Eagles did it from 2002–04, while winning three of their final four games.
The NFL can be a comical beast when it comes to predicting season outcomes, as so much can change on a week-to-week basis.
Just over a month ago, I wrote about the NFC East race heating up. Since then, Dallas was outscored 146–90 in losses by Detroit, Minnesota, Los Angeles, and New York, allowing 34 or more points in each game.
While the Cowboys have collapsed in disappointing fashion with little hope for a deep playoff run, the Eagles picked up key wins in the final month of the season to clinch the third seed in the NFC playoff bracket.
Now, heading into the postseason, the Eagles have locked up the division with their sights set on another Super Bowl appearance, while the Cowboys are already turning their attention to mock drafts.
Dallas Looks to Make Noise in the Offseason
The Cowboys’ playoff hopes were slim to begin with, and while the NFL trade acquisition of Quinnen Williams briefly gave the league’s worst defense a renewed sense of hope, it quickly ran out.
In my last article, I mentioned that I had little hope the team could muster five more wins while relying on an Eagles collapse, and it seems I was right.
“Let me start by saying I doubted Dallas could make the playoffs, simply because they put themselves in such a hole. I still believe that losses to Arizona and Carolina, two teams they are clearly better than, will end up being the most costly when the season concludes.”
It was clear from the start that this team wouldn’t have serious playoff hopes, especially with all the offseason drama surrounding Micah Parsons. Simply put, the defense just isn’t good enough.
The Cowboys have essentially become the NFC’s version of the Cincinnati Bengals: a fun-to-watch, high-powered offense paired with a horrific defense.
Dallas allowed 377 yards per game this season, the third-most in the NFC behind Cincinnati and Washington, including 251.5 passing yards per game, the most in the league.
The run defense has been slightly better, addressing one of the team’s main offseason concerns, but it’s still only average at best. Overall, they allowed the most points per game in the NFL, giving up 30.1 PPG.
This will be the first season since 2020 that Dallas doesn’t have a player with 10 sacks. Jadeveon Clowney led the team with 8.5, including three in the season finale against the Giants.
Clowney, who joined the team in late September, should be a priority to re-sign this offseason, as he proved at 32 that he still has plenty of juice left in the tank.
Along with the lack of quarterback pressure, Donovan Wilson was the only player with multiple interceptions, recording two on the season.
Also, in my last article, I wrote, “With the defense’s improvement, Matt Eberflus looks like he just needed the right personnel and talent to succeed and thrive in his job.”
I was dead wrong.
That said, I do think Eberflus has been something of a scapegoat for the defense’s shortcomings. It’s easy to blame the coordinator when a unit struggles, but I firmly believe that if the personnel were even halfway decent, Eberflus’ scheme would at least look feasible.
In the coming days, his firing is expected to make headlines.
The pass rush can’t get home, the linebacker corps is simply bad, and the secondary is exactly what everyone expected, unable to cover or communicate.
Hitting on both first-round picks, currently 12 and 20, though that could change depending on the Packers’ postseason performance, is a must, and both selections should focus on shoring up the defense.
I’d expect one of those picks to go toward a linebacker, with potential targets including Arvell Reese or Sonny Styles from Ohio State, David Bailey from Texas Tech, Anthony Hill Jr. from Texas, or CJ Allen from Georgia.
It is a shame the defense has been so bad, losing games left and right because they can’t get stops and make every opposing quarterback look like an All-Pro, because the offense led by Dak Prescott has been humming, has a .276 EPA/play, ranked third.
Dallas ranked in the top seven in points scored, and for the first time since the merger, they made the playoffs without doing so 16 times before.
Prescott threw for 4,000 yards, Javonte Williams rushed for 1,000 yards, and both George Pickens and Ceedee Lamb also surpassed the 1,000-yard mark.
This is only the second time in Cowboys history that players have reached those milestones; in 2019, they also failed to make the playoffs.
It’s almost comical to see the offense being blamed, while they sometimes struggle to capitalize in the red zone, expecting them to be perfect in every game is unrealistic.
Brian Schottenheimer has had his share of questionable play calls and game management, but this is his first season as head coach, and I expect him to learn from these early mistakes. I believe in him for the long term.
The offensive core has the potential to be a contender, but the defense needs to catch up quickly in the coming years to maximize this window while Dak is playing at an MVP level.
But for now, let’s move on to the mock drafts…
Could Philadelphia be going back-to-back?
My simple answer? I highly doubt it.
My analysis from the start of the season still holds true heading into the postseason.
Wins against the 1st overall pick Raiders, a Commanders team without Jayden Daniels or Marcus Mariota, and a narrow victory over Buffalo don’t convince me to rethink my earlier assessment of this team.
Yes, the offense looked better against Las Vegas and Washington, but that was against two teams that have been struggling since early October.
As I’ve said countless times, this Eagles squad gives me 2023 vibes, winning games by the skin of their teeth, somehow stealing victories, only to collapse late in the season and face an early playoff exit.
During their three-game losing streak against the Cowboys, Bears, and Chargers, they averaged just 18 points per game, committed nine turnovers, threw only three passing touchdowns, and allowed 23 points per game on defense.
This shows that the offense struggled against playoff-caliber teams, as evidenced by scoring just 13 points in the win over Buffalo.
Similar to Eberflus being a scapegoat, OC Kevin Patullo has taken some of the heat as well. However, since the winning streak, talk of his job has mostly died down.
Even with their offensive struggles, I can see Philadelphia winning a game or two in January.
They’ll face the 49ers at home in the Wild Card Round, and San Francisco is dealing with several injuries.
Brock Purdy doesn’t play well in cold weather, so I can see Vic Fangio’s defense leading the Eagles to take this game.
In the second round, they’ll likely face the Chicago Bears, a team they’ve already lost to this season.
It’s always tough to beat a team twice in one year, but I could see this game swinging in Philadelphia’s favor against an inexperienced Ben Johnson-led squad.
But after the Divisional Round, they’d likely face Seattle on the road or host the Los Angeles Rams, two teams I don’t see them beating, given their dominant offenses and lockdown defenses.
Final Thoughts
Both the NFC and AFC races are wide open; there isn’t a single team clearly above the rest this season, which is unusual for any sport at playoff time.
The parity is unmatched, and January is shaping up to be very interesting.
If I had to predict the conference champions, I’d say the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Los Angeles Rams will face off in Santa Clara, California.
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