The Falcons are 6-4, one-half game ahead of the Eagles, but they lost an October matchup to Philly. Atlanta has a brutal remaining schedule and could easily finish with a losing record, or at best, 8-8.
The New Orleans Saints have split their first 10 games. They have a 2-4 conference record and will just not be good enough to compete for a playoff spot.
The Cowboys and Redskins have each defeated the Eagles already. Neither is a great team—combined they have scored 411 points and allowed 411 points.
The Packers, Bears, and Vikings all have major holes. Green Bay is clearly the best team, but all three are 5-5. The Bears hold a head-to-head advantage over the Birds.
However, neither of these teams will win more than nine games this season, eliminating the possibility of a wild-card team from the NFC North.
The Eagles stand one-half game behind the collection of 6-4 teams in the NFC. They have a difficult remaining schedule (38-22 combined record), with three divisional games in the final month of play. They play two winning teams in five days, thanks to a Thanksgiving matchup.
Their only game against a team with a losing record is Dec. 15, at Cleveland—the only team to defeat the New York Giants this season.
Call me crazy, but I think the Eagles are going to the playoffs. This team is so good that in its worst games, it only loses by a handful of points. In the worst game I have ever seen this team play, we didn't lose.
You know how good teams get beat by really bad teams and it's like a wakeup call to them? The Browns beating the Giants. The Rams beating the Cowboys. The Rams beating the Redskins.
We just had our wakeup call. And we didn't even lose.
The Eagles also know that they might be playing for quarterback Donovan McNabb's job—possibly even Head Coach Andy Reid's.
The Eagles ended last season with three straight wins. They ended 2006 on a miraculous five-game winning streak, including three straight road wins against the division. They earned five straight wins in 2002 after the injury to quarterback Donovan McNabb. They are one of the best December teams in football.
They need to likely finish at 9-6-1 to reach the playoffs. This means four wins in the final six games. The Cleveland game is a virtual lock for a win. That means that Andy Reid, Donovan McNabb, and the rest of the Philadelphia Eagles need to win three of their five games.
It could happen, Eagles fans. It might happen. I think it will happen.
Get your finger off the panic button. Have faith. We're going to the playoffs.
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