November 12, 2023

Week 10 non-Eagles rooting guide

With the Eagles on a bye, what should fans be watching out for this week?

By Jimmy Kempski
PhillyVoice Staff

Each week during the NFL season we lay out a rooting guide for non-Eagles games on the NFL schedule. And yes, I'm aware that most of the below is obvious. Ideal winners bolded.

NFC East

The standings:

NFC East	Record	Division	GB
Eagles	8-1	3-0	-
Cowboys	5-3	1-1	2.5
Commanders	4-5	0-3	4
Giants	2-7	1-1	6

And here are the NFC East's common opponents outside of the division, and results so far:

Common Opponent	PHI	DAL	WAS	NYG
49ers		Loss		Loss
Cardinals		Loss	Win	Win
Rams	Win	Win
Seahawks				Loss
Bills			Loss	Loss
Dolphins	Win			Loss
Jets	Loss	Win		Loss
Patriots	Win	Win	Win

The NFC East is a two-team race between the Eagles and Cowboys, as usual. With the Eagles' win over the Cowboys on Sunday, they now have a 2.5-game lead in the NFC East, with a head-to-head win over the Cowboys in their pocket, and a 3-0 divisional record.

• Giants at Cowboys: Expect the Cowboys to narrow the Eagles' lead to 2 games, as the Giants have very little chance of beating anybody right now.

• Commanders at Seahawks: It's best if the Seahawks win the NFC West instead of the Niners. Also, the Commanders have won enough games by this point — and they seem content enough with Sam Howell — that their wins/losses for draft positioning don't matter much.

Threats for the 1 seed

The NFC standings:

Seed	NFC standings	Record	Conf record
1	Eagles	8-1	6-0
2	Lions	6-2	4-1
3	49ers	5-3	4-1
4	Saints	5-4	2-2
5	Seahawks	5-3	4-1
6	Cowboys	5-3	2-3
7	Vikings	5-4	5-2
8	Commanders	4-5	2-4
9	Falcons	4-5	3-3
10	Buccaneers	3-5	3-3
11	Packers	3-5	3-3
12	Rams	3-6	2-4
13	Bears	3-7	2-4
14	Giants	2-7	2-3
15	Cardinals	1-7	1-5
16	Panthers	1-8	0-6

As you can see, the Lions and 49ers are the Eagles' biggest threats for the 1 seed in the NFC.

• Lions at Chargers: The Eagles currently have a 1.5-game cushion over the Lions in the NFC. Should the Lions win this game, it'll be down to 1. #Math. The Lions have an easy schedule the rest of this season. Here are their remaining games, with opponent records and point differentials in parenthesis:

Week 10: At Chargers (4-4, +27)
Week 11: Bears (2-7, -54)
Week 12: Packers (3-5, +1)
Week 13: At Saints (5-4, +24)
Week 14: At Bears (2-7, -54)
Week 15: Broncos (3-5, -54)
Week 16: At Vikings (5-4, +16)
Week 17: At Cowboys (5-3, +72)
Week 18: Vikings (5-4, +16)

After their matchup with the Chargers, the Lions have five games against teams with a combined record of 15-28 and a combined point differential of -137. The Eagles' chances of landing the 1 seed would increase with a Lions loss in L.A.

• 49ers at Jaguars: The 49ers are now 2.5 games behind the Eagles for the 1 seed after losing three straight games. They can't afford a fourth straight loss if they want the NFC to have to come through San Francisco. Dougie P. can do the Eagles a huge solid with a win over the Niners. Since we showed the Lions' schedule above, we may as well show the Niners' as well. Theirs is harder than the Lions'.

Week 10: At Jaguars (6-2, +37)
Week 11: Buccaneers (3-5, -9)
Week 12: At Seahawks (5-3, -4)
Week 13: At Eagles (8-1, +57)
Week 14: Seahawks (5-3, -4)
Week 15: At Cardinals (1-8, -89)
Week 16: Ravens (7-2, +115)
Week 17: At Commanders (4-5, -54)
Week 18: Rams (3-6, -26)

That's a combined record of 42-32 with a combined point differential of +23.

Draft pick watch

• Saints at Vikings: The Eagles own the Saints' second-round pick. Let's fire up the PFF mock draft simulator!

• Round 1: Terrion Arnold, CB, Alabama
• Round 2 (from Saints): Barrett Carter, LB, Clemson
• Round 2: Tyler Guyton, OT, Oklahoma
• Round 3: Javon Bullard, S, Georgia
• Round 4: Jaheim Bell, TE, Florida State
• Round 5: Cameron Ward, QB, Washington State
• Round 5: Jack Nelson, OT, Wisconsin
• Round 5: Jacob Cowing, WR, Arizona

And, of course, if it's better if the Saints lose games, then the Eagles need one of the other NFC South teams to win that division instead: