Why the Eagles Can Still Win the NFC East Despite Their Recent Struggles

Although September's Super Bowl dreams gave way to October's moans and memes, the Philadelphia Eagles can still win the NFC Least without Jalen Hurts.

A loss at home on Monday night against the Dallas Cowboys would give the Eagles their first five-game losing streak since 2016 and put their five-year playoff streak on life support.

A victory over their bitter rivals, however, would make the two-time defending NFC East champions the only unbeaten team in division play (2-0). And if they can follow that with another win next Sunday night at Washington -- a team they beat in Week 1 -- the Eagles would be 4-4 for a Week 9 home game vs. the division-leading New York Giants, who have not won in Philadelphia since 2013.

First things first. Beating Dallas won't be easy for the home underdogs. There's probably a better chance of Troy Aikman and Joe Buck wearing a cute couples costume to the ESPN/ABC Halloween party.

New Philly quarterback Tanner McKee has three NFL starts and six touchdown passes on his post-Stanford résumé, compared to Cowboys counterpart Dak Prescott's 145 starts and 253 TD passes. Prescott has appeared in more games at Lincoln Financial Field (seven) than McKee (six).

It's not quite David vs. Goliath.

With top receivers DeVonta Smith (hamstring) and Dontayvion Wicks (ankle) sitting out for the Eagles, it's more like David vs. Goliath except David left his slingshot in the trainer's room.

But anything can happen in a division battle, as the Giants and Commanders proved in Week 5 when Jayden Daniels forgot how clocks work at the end of their 27-27 overtime tie.

And the Eagles are definitely due for good news after a spooky season headlined by Hurts' frightening blood clots. Philadelphia also lost future Hall of Fame right tackle Lane Johnson to retirement on Oct. 6, traded Pro Bowl center Cam Jurgens to the Baltimore Ravens the next day, and blew fourth-quarter leads against the Los Angeles Rams and Jacksonville Jaguars in Weeks 4-5.

The reason Philadelphia still has hope is because a 9-8 record (or worse) will likely be enough to win the NFC East, a division that just made NFL history with back-to-back winless weeks in Weeks 5-6. This is shaping up to be a lot like 2020, when Washington claimed the division title with a 7-9 record (New York and Dallas were 6-10 and Philadelphia was 4-11-1).

Following a bye in Week 10, the Eagles will have eight games left -- four at home, four on the road.

Three of the home games are against the AFC's Pittsburgh Steelers, Indianapolis Colts and Houston Texans, and Sirianni is 21-7 against the AFC in the regular season. The other home matchup is with the defending Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks. The road games are against the Cowboys, Arizona Cardinals, San Francisco 49ers and the Giants.

They don't have to win 'em all. Beating the Colts, Texans and Cardinals plus one more could set up a potential winner-take-all Week 18 clash at New York.

Of course, there's a sterling silver lining if Philly does fall to Dallas on Monday night. The last time the Eagles lost five in a row (Weeks 11-15 in 2016), they bounced back to win the Lombardi Trophy the next season.