How do you feel after the Cowboys’ pivotal win over the Eagles? For some, it’s infused hope back into this season. Others see it as fool’s gold: a cheap win against a broken Philly team that says little about Dallas’ prospects going forward.
Wherever you fall in the optimism spectrum, the fact remains that the victory kept Dallas in striking distance of the NFC East crown and even a wild card spot. As we near the midway point of 2026, let’s take a detailed look at the current NFC standings.
These are
all the teams with 3-4 records or better.
Current 2026 NFC Playoff Standings
1. Minnesota Vikings 6-0 (4-0 vs NFC)
2. San Francisco 49ers 6-1 (4-1)
3. New York Giants 4-2-1 (2-2-1)
4. Carolina Panthers 3-3 (3-2)
5. Chicago Bears 5-2 (3-2)
6. Detroit Lions 4-2 (3-1)
7. Green Bay Packers 4-3 (3-3)
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8. Seattle Seahawks 4-3 (1-2)
9. Atlanta Falcons 3-4 (3-2)
10. Los Angeles Rams 3-4 (2-2)
11. Dallas Cowboys 3-4 (2-3)
Clearly, Dallas’ best shot is to catch the Giants and enter the postseason as NFC East champions. But the wild card race is still there for them, especially once all those NFC North teams start cannibalizing each other as the season rolls along.
One team that isn’t on that list is the Cowboys’ next opponent, Arizona. Dallas returns home with an important task: getting to .500 and handling business against the 2-5 Cardinals. While they’re hardly the cream of the crop this year, Arizona has an 8-2 record against the Cowboys over the last 20 years. No matter what the teams look like on paper, they always seem to give Dallas fits.
For now, our rooting guides are staying playoff-focused. Beyond finally getting another win against the Cardinals, what can we hope for from the Week 8 schedule?
NFC East teams
- Commanders d. Eagles
Superficially, Philly (2-5) has a better record than Washington (1-4-1). While we don’t expect them to rally and contend without Jalen Hurts, they still have great talent on both sides of the ball. We want the Cowboys to be able to focus on catching up to the teams ahead of them, not looking over their shoulders.
Taking it a little deeper: if both the Eagles and Commanders are going to have rough years, we’d rather Washington get the better draft asset. Philly is much more likely to contend next season if Hurts returns and they get an offseason to retool the roster.
The Giants have their bye this week, so Dallas can at least inch a little closer to them in the standing with a win.
NFC vs. NFC
- Panthers d. Packers
- Vikings d. Lions
- Falcons d. Buccaneers
- Seahawks d. Bears
Tonight’s game between Carolina and Green Bay is an easy pick. Someone has to win the NFC South, so it might as well be the currently leading Panthers. They can help Dallas this week, as a Packers loss not only hinders them as a potential wild card team, but could improve the 2027 first-round pick that they owe the Cowboys.
Minnesota’s 6-0 record means they’re probably well out of Dallas’ reach in any scenario. Given that, the best thing for the Cowboys is that they keep right on winning and improving their chances of catching other NFC contenders, like Detroit.
Atlanta may be tied with Dallas in overall record right now, but it’s still just Week 8. Tampa has a head-to-head win over us and are only a game behind, plus they are about to get Baker Mayfield back. If they drop to 2-6 this week, it gives us a little more cushion with the Bucs and still plenty of time to get ahead of the Falcons.
Nothing complicated about picking the Seahawks over the Bears: just trying to slow down Chicago in the wild card race.
NFC vs. AFC
- Chargers d. Rams
The Battle for Los Angeles is the only interconference game this week, and the rooting interest for Dallas is obvious. Unfortunately, the Chargers’ 0-6 record makes it hard to think this one’s going our way.
AFC vs. AFC
- Jaguars d. Colts
- Browns d. Steelers
- Dolphins d. Patriots
The Cowboys are headed to Indianapolis next week, so you might want to keep an eye on them this Sunday. Indy’s already thrown up the white flag on 2026, trading away key players this week in a classic fire sale. A home loss to the rival Jags would only further demoralize them ahead of Dallas’ arrival.
The last two interest us solely for 2027 draft purposes, as we own picks from Pittsburgh (3rd round) and New England (7th round).
