Realistically we are 2 games back of NY Giants

[LarryCanadian]

Kinda stinks, but the Giants have both tie breakers on us right now, with the Division record (Tie Breaker after head to head) being one game better than us, and then common opponents being I think currently 2 games better than us. Unfortunately, that means that even if the Giants lose against KC and we beat Washington, the Giants would still win the division by beating Washington themselves and then a rebuilding Oakland. The Giants got lucky with the schedule this year, while the Cowboys seem to be playing motivated opponents every week.

Basically it comes down to this being a must win for the Cowboys again this weekend in a lot of ways. Washington gets back into the mix and has the 1st tiebreaker against Dallas for the Wildcard by beating us this weekend.

Unless we get some really good fortune I see Dallas as a Wildcard. The things working in our favour though are that Giants haven't been great on the road, are starting to finally get a little bit of the injury bug themselves, and that their QB is struggling a bit down the stretch here.

I really hate to think that that 2 minute collapse against Washington will end up costing us the Division this year, but it is very possible that may very well happen as that game and divisional record contribution are playing a huge roll in mix.

Kinda negative, but with 3 games left I'm not sure everyone realizes that the Giants effectively have a 2 game lead on us, and their losing to KC doesn't mean much if they can beat Washington and get a 5-1 Div record and then play an Oakland team that is using remainder of the season like a preaseason. Sux for us.

Larry

 

[Doomsday101]

Kinda stinks, but the Giants have both tie breakers on us right now, with the Division record (Tie Breaker after head to head) being one game better than us, and then common opponents being I think currently 2 games better than us. Unfortunately, that means that even if the Giants lose against KC and we beat Washington, the Giants would still win the division by beating Washington themselves and then a rebuilding Oakland. The Giants got lucky with the schedule this year, while the Cowboys seem to be playing motivated opponents every week.

Basically it comes down to this being a must win for the Cowboys again this weekend in a lot of ways. Washington gets back into the mix and has the 1st tiebreaker against Dallas for the Wildcard by beating us this weekend.

Unless we get some really good fortune I see Dallas as a Wildcard. The things working in our favour though are that Giants haven't been great on the road, are starting to finally get a little bit of the injury bug themselves, and that their QB is struggling a bit down the stretch here.

I really hate to think that that 2 minute collapse against Washington will end up costing us the Division this year, but it is very possible that may very well happen as that game and divisional record contribution are playing a huge roll in mix.

Kinda negative, but with 3 games left I'm not sure everyone realizes that the Giants effectively have a 2 game lead on us, and their losing to KC doesn't mean much if they can beat Washington and get a 5-1 Div record and then play an Oakland team that is using remainder of the season like a preaseason. Sux for us.

Larry

I still think the Giants are about to nose dive, Manning has not been looking good as of late and now big injuries look like that may hurt the giants even worse. If Dallas can win out I feel confident that we will win the East.

 

[jspchief]

You worry about the Commanders.

We've got the Giants covered.

 

[Doomsday101]

You worry about the Commanders.

We've got the Giants covered.

Any time you play a division foe there should be some concern and with playoffs hanging in the balance it becomes a bigger concern.

 

[jksmith269]

Kinda stinks, but the Giants have both tie breakers on us right now, with the Division record (Tie Breaker after head to head) being one game better than us, and then common opponents being I think currently 2 games better than us. Unfortunately, that means that even if the Giants lose against KC and we beat Washington, the Giants would still win the division by beating Washington themselves and then a rebuilding Oakland. The Giants got lucky with the schedule this year, while the Cowboys seem to be playing motivated opponents every week.

Basically it comes down to this being a must win for the Cowboys again this weekend in a lot of ways. Washington gets back into the mix and has the 1st tiebreaker against Dallas for the Wildcard by beating us this weekend.

Unless we get some really good fortune I see Dallas as a Wildcard. The things working in our favour though are that Giants haven't been great on the road, are starting to finally get a little bit of the injury bug themselves, and that their QB is struggling a bit down the stretch here.

I really hate to think that that 2 minute collapse against Washington will end up costing us the Division this year, but it is very possible that may very well happen as that game and divisional record contribution are playing a huge roll in mix.

Kinda negative, but with 3 games left I'm not sure everyone realizes that the Giants effectively have a 2 game lead on us, and their losing to KC doesn't mean much if they can beat Washington and get a 5-1 Div record and then play an Oakland team that is using remainder of the season like a preaseason. Sux for us.

Larry

I see the G-Men losing to KC and Washington....

 

[InmanRoshi]

I still think the Giants are about to nose dive, Manning has not been looking good as of late and now big injuries look like that may hurt the giants even worse. If Dallas can win out I feel confident that we will win the East.

Truly, Manning is horrible. It amazes me that people fall over themselves to point out how inaccurate Michael Vick is with his 55% completion rating, but fail to notice that Manning completes 50% of his passes. This is a 50% completion rating with a 6'5" possession WR, a terrific safety valve TE and probably the best pass receiving RB in the NFL to dump it off to. And at least Vick badly misses his throws with something that resembles a spiral. But he's a drop-back QB with "Manning" in his last name, so people just think he's a surgeon back there. People think stats are misleading, but they're nowhere near as misleading as perception.

Luckily for the Giants, and unlike the Cowboys, they can get by with a running game and defense.

 

[AmericasTeam31]

You worry about the Commanders.

We've got the Giants covered.

I love it!!!!!

 

[Doomsday101]

Truly, Manning is horrible. It amazes me that people fall over themselves to point out how inaccurate Michael Vick is with his 55% completion rating, but fail to notice that Manning completes 50% of his passes.

This is a 50% completion rating with a 6'5" possession WR, a terrific safety valve TE and probably the best pass receiving RB in the NFL to dump it off to. And at least Vick badly misses his throws with something that resembles a spiral.

I agree however I will say I think in the end Manning will be a better QB than Vick. Manning has 20 starts as an NFL QB so he still has a lot to learn. I think the pressure is starting to get to Manning a little bit right now in large part because of his youth and inexperience.

 

[Doomsday]

Pretty sad that the division is going to be decided by them getting an extra home game.

 

[StanleySpadowski]

I don't see the Cowboys catching the Giants because of the schedule.

If Dallas beats Washington and a few other things happen, Washington will be mathmatically eliminated. I can see Danny Bonaparte throwing the towel in for the Giants game just to put it to Dallas.

Plus, Turner's lost the Raiders and they threw the towel in already, witness the pitiful display they showed against a woeful Jets team.

 

[trickblue]

You worry about the Commanders.

We've got the Giants covered.

Thank you sir...

 

[Dale]

I really like Manning's poise toward the end of games. In a very short career, he has already had several solid come-from-behind drives late in games.

I do not, however, like his accuracy, or propensity for turning the ball over. As mentioned above, he's terribly inaccurate at this point. Just imagine what his completion percentage would be if he didn't have two extremely talented 6-foot-5 targets to bail him out on a number of ordinary throws.

 

[AmericasTeam31]

I don't see the Cowboys catching the Giants because of the schedule.

If Dallas beats Washington and a few other things happen, Washington will be mathmatically eliminated. I can see Danny Bonaparte throwing the towel in for the Giants game just to put it to Dallas.

Plus, Turner's lost the Raiders and they threw the towel in already, witness the pitiful display they showed against a woeful Jets team.

While I don't agree on the Commanders part I do think that the Giants will win the division, just based on the fact that they are better than the Commanders, and Raiders. That's all that really matters. Our goal is to make the Super Bowl, regardless what road we have to take. Bottom line is you can't make it there if you don't make the playoffs. That is step #1, as a wild card or division champs, it doesn't matter. If we win out we're in the playoffs, and likely will play either the Bears or Giants, both teams are beatable for us. Focus on winning our games, and the rest will take care of itself.

 

[DMX690]

Just concretrate on our own game. If we win out we're in. If we don't our chances of being in the playoff are slim to none. Let's not worry about the other teams. This team has enough on its plate.

 

[Doomsday101]

Just concretrate on our own game. If we win out we're in. If we don't our chances of being in the playoff are slim to none. Let's not worry about the other teams. This team has enough on its plate.

I agree. Dallas still controls if they go to the playoffs or not. If the Giants do slip then we have a chance at the division but right now the most important thing to me is getting into post season.

 

[ihatedallas.com]

I see the G-Men losing to KC and Washington....

Really? That sure would be nice.

No injuries this weekend - looking forward to a hell of a game guys. You guys really surprised me vs. the Chefs. I was hoping you didn't have it in you....but nice finish.

 

[TheSkaven]

I see the G-Men losing to KC and Washington....

I would love to see the Giants lose out and the Cowboys win the division with the 'Skins as a wildcard, setting up the all important rubber game in the first round of the playoffs in Texas Stadium. It's a bit far fetched, but it sure would be great. How it would have to fall:

Week 15
Chiefs over the Giants (probability: even)
Cowboys over the Commanders (probability: good)

Giants: 9-5, Cowboys: 9-5, Commanders: 7-7

Week 16
Commanders over the Giants (probability: even, game is in Washington)
Cowboys over the Panthers (probability: tough game)

Cowboys: 10-5, Giants: 9-6, Commanders: 8-7

Week 17
Cowboys over the Rams (probability: excellent)
Washington over Philly (probability: even, game is in Philly)
Oakland over the Giants (probability: even, Gints don't play well on the road)

Final standings: Cowboys 11-5, Commanders 9-7, Giants 9-7
Commanders win the tiebreaker, same record, split head to head, same conference record, same common opponents record, but better strength of victory (4th tiebreaker, Commanders win this because they beat Seattle).

In this scenario Dallas could also lose the Carolina game. You could also have the reverse happen, if Washington beats the Cowboys they would win the division at 10-6, Cowboys get the wildcard at 10-6 and play Washington on the road in the first round. Not as appealing but might make for some fun conversation here.

Yeah, it could happen. :laugh2:

 

[DeaconBlues]

I would love to see the Giants lose out and the Cowboys win the division with the 'Skins as a wildcard, setting up the all important rubber game in the first round of the playoffs in Texas Stadium. It's a bit far fetched, but it sure would be great. How it would have to fall:

Week 15
Chiefs over the Giants (probability: even)
Cowboys over the Commanders (probability: good)

Giants: 9-5, Cowboys: 9-5, Commanders: 7-7

Week 16
Commanders over the Giants (probability: even, game is in Washington)
Cowboys over the Panthers (probability: tough game)

Cowboys: 10-5, Giants: 9-6, Commanders: 8-7

Week 17
Cowboys over the Rams (probability: excellent)
Washington over Philly (probability: even, game is in Philly)
Oakland over the Giants (probability: even, Gints don't play well on the road)

Final standings: Cowboys 11-5, Commanders 9-7, Giants 9-7
Commanders win the tiebreaker, same record, split head to head, same conference record, same common opponents record, but better strength of victory (4th tiebreaker, Commanders win this because they beat Seattle).

In this scenario Dallas could also lose the Carolina game. You could also have the reverse happen, if Washington beats the Cowboys they would win the division at 10-6, Cowboys get the wildcard at 10-6 and play Washington on the road in the first round. Not as appealing but might make for some fun conversation here.

Yeah, it could happen. :laugh2:

Nice, but I wouldn't pick Oakland over anyone except Houston at this point.

 

[ihatedallas.com]

I would love to see the Giants lose out and the Cowboys win the division with the 'Skins as a wildcard, setting up the all important rubber game in the first round of the playoffs in Texas Stadium. It's a bit far fetched, but it sure would be great. How it would have to fall:

Week 15
Chiefs over the Giants (probability: even)
Cowboys over the Commanders (probability: good)

Giants: 9-5, Cowboys: 9-5, Commanders: 7-7

Week 16
Commanders over the Giants (probability: even, game is in Washington)
Cowboys over the Panthers (probability: tough game)

Cowboys: 10-5, Giants: 9-6, Commanders: 8-7

Week 17
Cowboys over the Rams (probability: excellent)
Washington over Philly (probability: even, game is in Philly)
Oakland over the Giants (probability: even, Gints don't play well on the road)

Final standings: Cowboys 11-5, Commanders 9-7, Giants 9-7
Commanders win the tiebreaker, same record, split head to head, same conference record, same common opponents record, but better strength of victory (4th tiebreaker, Commanders win this because they beat Seattle).

In this scenario Dallas could also lose the Carolina game. You could also have the reverse happen, if Washington beats the Cowboys they would win the division at 10-6, Cowboys get the wildcard at 10-6 and play Washington on the road in the first round. Not as appealing but might make for some fun conversation here.

Yeah, it could happen. :laugh2:

Excellent analysis.

 

[vicjagger]

My thoughts:

http://cowboyszone.com/forums/showthread.php?t=43464&page=2