The last time the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles played for the NFC title, was in 1980. Tom Landry still roamed the Dallas sideline, with Danny White as his signal-caller. Meanwhile, a young Dick Vermeil coached an upstart Philadelphia squad and Ron Jaworski to an upset of Dallas for a berth in Super Bowl 15.
Over four decades later, we might finally be setting up for another conference championship battle between two long-time, hated NFC East rivals.
With only a little over a month left in the 2022 NFL regular season, the modern iterations of the 11-1 Eagles and 9-3 Cowboys look like the clear two best teams in the NFC. Bar none. Case closed. There is no debate. There’s no other conclusion after watching Jalen Hurts and Philadelphia thoroughly embarrass the Titans, and Dak Prescott’s Cowboys put the Colts on a spit roast on national television.
Seeding and playoff matchups will have to break the right way for two divisional teams to meet up at the end of January. But even if the Cowboys and Eagles don’t battle in the actual NFC title game in the playoffs, it should be understood that any potential postseason duel between the two monsters of the NFC Beast will likely decide the conference winner anyway.
Dallas. Philadelphia. For all the marbles. Don’t you just love the prospect of that sheer chaos?
Here are For The Win’s power rankings for Week 14 of the 2022 NFL season — featuring the Cowboys and Eagles on a collision course.
32
Houston Texans
Last week’s rank: 32
The Texans have lost 35 football games since the start of the 2020 season. Thirty. Five. Bryce Young would have a lot of work to do to play superhero for this sad-sack franchise.
31
Denver Broncos
Last week’s rank: 31
If the Broncos had scored at least 18 points in regulation in each of their games, they’d be 10-2 right now. Instead, they’re 3-9. Russell Wilson has been outplayed by Sam Darnold and Tyler Huntley in consecutive weeks.
30
Chicago Bears
Last week’s rank: 30
If the Bears lose out, they are guaranteed to finish no lower than the No. 3 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. A potential top-three pick and over $100 million in cap space is the perfect way to build a contending team around Justin Fields. Now just don’t screw it up.
29
Indianapolis Colts
Last week’s rank: 26
Jeff Saturday’s last two games:
- Completely fails a time management test vs. the Steelers by sitting on his timeouts in what could have been a fourth-quarter rally.
- Somehow gives up 33 fourth-quarter points to turn a close game against the Cowboys into a laugher.
Welp, if Jim Irsay’s plan was to tank his way to a top-10 draft pick, things are going well.
28
Los Angeles Rams
Last week’s rank: 27
Without Aaron Donald, Cooper Kupp, and Aaron Donald for the likely rest of the season, the Rams’ roster is a barren husk. The future seems grim in L.A. as it plays out the string. Whether the Rams rebound in 2023 will depend on whether this trio returns with a bang.
27
Carolina Panthers
Last week’s rank: 28
The Panthers are 3-4 under Steve Wilks and 3-2 in games where Baker Mayfield doesn’t play, which suggests modest improvements could spark a turnaround in 2023. Carolina still needs a franchise quarterback, making this winter’s head coach hire a vital crossroads for a team that hasn’t had a winning record since 2017.
26
New Orleans Saints
Last week’s rank: 29
A 16-3 lead with just over three minutes to play against a division rival should be insurmountable, but Dennis Allen’s hopeless Saints are capable of plumbing seemingly bottomless depths. It would be a shock if Allen’s job survives the season.
25
Arizona Cardinals
Last week’s rank: 25
The Cardinals have five weeks to save Kliff Kingsbury’s job. Based on how his past Decembers have gone in Arizona, it may not be a terrible idea for him to keep his eye on college football coaching vacancies for 2023.
24
Atlanta Falcons
Last week’s rank: 22
The main priority for the Falcons this offseason should be finding a quarterback. It doesn’t matter if a QB comes through a big-time acquisition in the draft, through an aggressive move for a veteran in free agency, or a blockbuster trade. Arthur Smith’s crew can simply not afford to waste another year of Drake London, Kyle Pitts, and Cordarrelle Patterson with the uninspiring Marcus Mariota.
23
Jacksonville Jaguars
Last week’s rank: 19
Jacksonville’s defense allowed the Lions to score on every possession they had until Nate Sudfeld entered the game for a pair of kneel-downs in the final minute. That’s a real problem for a team that spent three different top-70 draft picks on defenders and dedicated $109 million in contracts on defensive free agents last spring. After shining in Week 12, Trevor Lawrence stared down a bad Lions secondary and … threw for 179 yards. Gross.
22
Pittsburgh Steelers
Last week’s rank: 23
Kenny Pickett has thrown for less than 200 yards in six of nine starts and boasts a completely non-threatening 6.1 yards per pass attempt on the season. That’s a huge problem for a guy who offers little to nothing with his legs. The numbers and eye test with Pickett feel more like red flags about his NFL viability as a starter rather than a rookie enduring growing gains. If the Steelers weren’t already considering moving on and starting over at quarterback again, they probably should be.
21
Green Bay Packers
Last week’s rank: 21
Aaron Rodgers overcame a 16-3 deficit to beat the Bears in Chicago because, even in a lost season, nothing brings him more joy than taunting Bears fans to their faces. Green Bay has some slim postseason hopes, but the rest of the year should be focused on seeing which members of a disheveled defense need replacing and whether or not Christian Watson can be the WR1 the Packers desperately need him to be.
20
Cleveland Browns
Last week’s rank: 20
Deshaun Watson — who played his first game in 700 days after more than 20 accusations of sexual misconduct and what the NFL described as “predatory behavior” — was awful from the jump. A Browns defense that forced three turnovers and scored two defensive touchdowns against Houston was not.
19
Las Vegas Raiders
Last week’s rank: 24
Josh McDaniels is off the hot seat after winning three straight games, two of which came against division rivals. His Raiders still aren’t as good as they should be, but they appear to have stopped giving up 17-point leads and are now almost trustable in clutch moments. That won’t lead to a playoff berth in 2022, but it should build some badly needed optimism for 2023.
18
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Last week’s rank: 17
Just when you’re ready to count the Buccaneers out, the NFL’s greatest wily vet of all time, Tom Brady, shows, once again, that all he needs is the slightest opening. It’s hard to see this patchwork Tampa Bay team making much of any noise in January. But it sure is something to see the elder statesman in Brady somehow still leading game-winning drives against impossible odds.
17
Los Angeles Chargers
Last week’s rank: 13
Los Angeles has no identity but tragedy. The pieces were put in place for a playoff push after last year’s 9-8 season. Instead, injuries, regression, and awful luck have taken over, leading to another “what if” season for a franchise filled with them.
16
Detroit Lions
Last week’s rank: 18
Don’t look now, but the Lions have won four of their last five games, with their sole defeat coming at the hands of the AFC-leading Bills. Provided Detroit stays hot, if matters break the right way down the stretch, it could find itself in the postseason. Even if the Lions fall short of that goal, this growing dominant closing run in a rebuilding campaign bodes well for a bright future in the Motor City.
15
New England Patriots
Last week’s rank: 16
New England pairs a useful but vulnerable defense with an offense that threatens no one downfield. The Patriots are a tough out for anyone, but that doesn’t mean they’re a playoff team.
14
Washington Commanders
Last week’s rank: 14
Taylor Heinicke was awfully jubilant about the Commanders being able to tie the Giants in a pivotal divisional game. A win would’ve kept D.C. in the NFC playoff picture. As it stands, 7-5-1 Washington is the first team out — just barely — with three of four games remaining coming against current playoff contenders. It sure would’ve been nice to have that New York win in the back pocket!
13
New York Jets
Last week’s rank: 15
Mike White couldn’t seal the deal in Minnesota, but he remains a viable option where Zach Wilson wasn’t. New York’s defense held the Vikings to fewer than 300 total yards and set the stage for what would have been an epic comeback in the Twin Cities. It didn’t pan out — but it didn’t damper our faith in New York’s playoff hopes, either.
12
New York Giants
Last week’s rank: 12
At this stage in the season, the Giants — who own the second-hardest strength of schedule over their last five games — can ill afford any missteps. We’ll call their friendly tie with Washington an embarrassing trip over a small hole in the ground that, fortunately, no one saw. Though any more non-results will be far more glaring for a team that, for now, still controls its own playoff destiny.
11
Baltimore Ravens
Last week’s rank: 10
Baltimore refused to prop up Lamar Jackson with viable receivers and effectively asked him to handle the entire offense and figure things out on the fly. Now he’s hurt, and Tyler Huntley’s in the driver’s seat for an undisclosed stretch. Huntley is a useful but ultimately immemorable backup quarterback. He’ll be tasked with guiding this team through a relatively easy stretch of games while the Ravens work to fend off a surging Bengals team in the AFC North.
10
Seattle Seahawks
Last week’s rank: 11
Excitement has cooled down some over the past month or so in Seattle, as the Seahawks are 2-2 over their last four. This past weekend, they needed an embarrassing interception from John Wolford to avoid losing to a thin Rams team already looking ahead to next September. Seattle remains in the NFC postseason for the time being, but Pete Carroll and Geno Smith will need to do a heck of a lot more if the Seahawks are to stay there by mid-January.
9
Tennessee Titans
Last week’s rank: 8
We knew about the Titans’ first fatal flaw — a limited passing game in the hands of Ryan Tannehill. We were less aware of a Tennessee defense — particularly on the back end — run absolutely roughshod on by A.J. Brown and the Eagles. The Titans’ calling card is physicality, a brutal power running game, and tough, disciplined defense. We saw none of that in Philadelphia. It’ll have to return very soon if the Titans are to make more of this season than “Default AFC South Champion.”
8
Minnesota Vikings
Last week’s rank: 9
Minnesota gave up a bunch of yards to Mike White’s Jets but slammed the door shut when it needed to — New York had seven drives pushed into Vikings territory and scored just one touchdown. That’s been a calling card for a defense that ranks 31st in yards given up but just 20th in points allowed. This could be a recipe for disaster in a season where Kirk Cousins has backslid as a passer. Then again, Minnesota could simply opt to spam passes to Justin Jefferson and find a way to stay afloat in a postseason shootout.
7
San Francisco 49ers
Last week’s rank: 7
After already losing Trey Lance, Jimmy Garoppolo’s injury is a devastating blow to a 49ers team ready to compete for the Super Bowl right now. Barring an addition of someone like Baker Mayfield, San Francisco will turn its title hopes to its third quarterback, Brock “Mr. Irrelevant” Purdy. It’s unlikely the rookie UDFA takes the 49ers to the promised land, but it’s also unlikely they let him sink entirely. San Francisco might have the one roster capable of still succeeding with a third-string QB in the NFL. Watch this space.
6
Miami Dolphins
Last week’s rank: 2
Tua Tagovailoa finally regressed in a big way, though if it was going to happen against anyone, it makes sense it would be vs. the 49ers’ top-five defense (Full disclosure: We ranked Miami ahead of San Francisco despite the head-to-head loss thanks to the Brock Purdy of it all). Miami’s offense failed to convert a single third down, with its MVP candidate QB (0-for-5, two sacks taken) the most egregious offender in that unit. The Dolphins’ defense was mostly fine despite giving up 33 points, but now this team has to regroup and respond after suffering its first loss in a game Tagovailoa started and finished in 2022.
5
Buffalo Bills
Last week’s rank: 5
Josh Allen didn’t have to do much against a Patriots team that couldn’t move the ball on its home turf, but he reclaimed some of the efficiency he’d lacked in a mid-season slump. After throwing seven interceptions between Weeks 8 and 12 — five in the red zone — he had a clean sheet in a two-touchdown, zero-INT performance in New England. Of course, even if he’d struggled, his defense was there to pick him up; Buffalo, playing with a depleted secondary, was still good enough to make Mac Jones sling f-bombs at his own coaching staff Thursday night.
4
Cincinnati Bengals
Last week’s rank: 6
What may have felt like a Cincinnati fluke last year was clearly just the start of a sustained run. Joe Burrow’s playing the best football of his career, Lou Anarumo seems to be the only defensive coordinator in the NFL that knows how to actually stop Patrick Mahomes, and the Bengals look like an AFC heavyweight that’s here to stay. Don’t be surprised in the event they repeat as AFC champions.
3
Dallas Cowboys
Last week’s rank: 4
No one ever won a Super Bowl with style points, but the Cowboys seem to be raking those in a lot lately. After pulling away from the Colts with a mind-boggling 33-point fourth quarter, Dallas looks like a juggernaut. The only team that might be capable of keeping Mike McCarthy from coaching the Big Game in February for the first time in over a decade is the fateful team from Philadelphia that wears dark green.
2
Kansas City Chiefs
Last week’s rank: 1
The Bengals just find ways to beat the Chiefs; Patrick Mahomes is 0-3 against Cincinnati in his last 17 games and 12-2 vs. everyone else. That’s a tragic blind spot for a team with Super Bowl aspirations, but it shouldn’t obscure the fact this Chiefs team is still pretty dang good. The question now is whether this embattled secondary can rise up and get the key stops it failed to generate in Week 13’s come-from-ahead defeat.
1
Philadelphia Eagles
Last week’s rank: 3
After a few weeks of flirting with disaster, the Eagles looked like the “EAGLES” against the Titans on Sunday. Philadelphia’s offensive line absolutely bullied Tennessee’s front seven, in particular, as Jalen Hurts could’ve probably stood in the pocket, gone through his texts and Instagram notifications meticulously, and still thrown a touchdown pass with comfort. Suffice it to say: These were the early-year Eagles we were growing accustomed to. That’s horrible news for the rest of the NFC playoff hopefuls.
