The Cowboys’ path is extremely narrow right now but not fully gone. It basically requires Dallas to win out and get a lot of help, especially from Eagles losses.
Current situation
The Cowboys are 6-7-1 and have lost tiebreaker leverage in the NFC wild-card race, which makes a wild-card berth effectively out of reach. Their divisional path is also grim because Philadelphia remains ahead and holds key advantages in record and tiebreakers.
Only viable path
Dallas now essentially needs to win its final three games and have the Eagles lose all three of theirs to take the NFC East. Any Cowboys loss or any Eagles win the rest of the way would eliminate Dallas from the division race and the playoffs.
Why wild card is gone
Even if the Cowboys finished with 10 wins, their weak conference record and the strength of other NFC teams (notably in the NFC West and North) mean they lose most tiebreakers in wild-card scenarios. That leaves the division title as the only realistic remaining avenue, which depends entirely on both a perfect Dallas finish and a full Philadelphia collapse.
Summary table of requirements
Path| What Cowboys must do| What other teams must do
---|---|---
Win NFC East| Win all remaining 3 games 19| Eagles lose all remaining 3 games
19
Wild card (theoretical)| Win out to reach 10 wins 37| Multiple NFC teams ahead
must skid, plus favorable tiebreakers, which is now described as essentially
unrealistic 37
