NFC East Notebook: Big Week 13 on Tap

The NFC East race continues to heat up heading into Week 13.

Author:
Andrew Parsaud
Publish date:
Dec 2, 2022 4:19 PM EST

In this story:

The NFC East is arguably the most interesting division in football. Year after year, there are always new storylines every week that make this division fun to watch. In 2022, the NFC East has been particularly interesting than in recent years, every single team in the division has a winning record currently, and all of them have a shot at the playoffs.

The 10-1 Eagles are a lock to make the playoffs, potentially as the NFC’s number-one seed. The Cowboys, Giants, and Commanders currently occupy the three NFC Wild Card spots and are all hoping to make the playoffs with just six games remaining.

The Cowboys, coming off their Thanksgiving win against the Giants, sit at 8-3 in second place. The Giants dropped to 7-4 but are in the mix to get back on track this week. The Commanders are hot, winning six of their last seven games and hoping to climb out of last place in the division.

The race for the NFC East crown is coming down to the wire. Here’s everything you need to know about each team in the division in Week 13.

Commanders (7-5) at Giants (7-4)

Spread: Giants +1.5

The Giants are on a bit of a losing streak, having dropped their last two games to Detroit and Dallas. However, there is no panic inside the locker room or front office. For the first time in what feels like forever, the Giants have put themselves in a position to play meaningful games in December.

It’s been a long time since winning football was in East Rutherford. The Giants know what to do to make the playoffs this year. Star running back Saquon Barkley, who has been held to under 40 rushing yards in the last two games, will need to step up as the Giants have the toughest remaining schedule in the NFL.

The good news is the team will be gaining players back from injury on Sunday. Pass rusher Azeez Ojulari and right tackle Evan Neal are expected to return. Rookie tight end Daniel Bellinger is optimistic about playing vs. Washington after a gruesome eye injury in Week 7. The Giants are getting healthier at a good time.

Four of the Giants’ last six games are divisional, two against Washington and two against Philadelphia. This Sunday, it begins with the Commanders at home. The Commanders have been on a tear lately and are in a similar position as the Giants.

Washington comes into this game with the 15th-ranked rushing defense and 16th-ranked passing defense. An average defense should not be taken lightly, especially with Washington’s strong front seven, but the Giants need to execute on offense early and often if they want to win this game.

Washington’s offense can create explosive plays, as they have seven passes of 40+ yards and a decent running game. The Giants defense, whose secondary is plagued with injuries, will need to step up.

Everyone needs to step up if the Giants want to get back in the win column.

Meanwhile, the Commanders continue to win, beating the Falcons 19-13 in their last game. This week, they’re on the road to take on the Giants, who are also having an unbelievable season.

Washington’s turnaround is a great story. After an abysmal 1-4 start to the year, the Commanders have put themselves at 7-5 with a real opportunity to make the playoffs if they can win most of their final six games. It starts on Sunday, when they play the Giants, go on their bye week, then play the Giants again coming off of the bye.

Washington looks better with quarterback Taylor Heinicke at the helm than Carson Wentz. Heinicke does not light up the stat sheet, but he does enough to help them win games. Washington’s main threat on offense currently is their run game.

A tandem of Brian Robinson Jr and Antonio Gibson has proved effective for the Commanders. Robinson rushed for 105 yards last week, as well as one receiving touchdown, and Gibson continues to be a solid change of pace back. Washington’s defense looks to improve after sacking Falcons quarterback Marcus Mariota once last week.

There’s possibly some great news for the Commanders, as pass rusher Chase Young looks to make his season debut after tearing his ACL last year. Young will likely not make a huge impact in his first game back, but with a bye week looming, it would be very beneficial for the third-year edge rusher.

If Washington wants to win this game, they need to stick to what they’ve been doing over the last seven weeks.

Colts (4-7-1) at Cowboys (8-3)

Spread: Cowboys -10.5

The Cowboys are starting to stack some wins together, as they demolished the Vikings 40-3 in Week 11, then won again four days later on Thanksgiving against the Giants 28-20.

Dallas is starting to look like themselves again. Quarterback Dak Prescott has had a few weeks to get into a rhythm after his thumb surgery. While Prescott threw two interceptions in the first half against the Giants, he came back and tossed two touchdowns.

Wide receivers CeeDee Lamb and Michael Gallup certainly helped, with Lamb going for 106 yards and Gallup for 63. Both made tough catches to keep Dallas’ drives alive. The Cowboys running tandem of Ezekiel Elliott and Tony Pollard also came alive in the win, with Elliott rushing for 92 yards and one touchdown and Pollard rushing for 60 yards. Dallas’ defense came alive in the second half, with star linebacker Micah Parsons collecting two sacks and Demarcus Lawrence tallying one.

This week, the Colts come to Dallas in what should be another win for the Cowboys. The Cowboys should be able to snag a wild card berth, but they would probably sign up for the division title if things fall a certain way. If Dallas can win this game, it will be a start in the right direction.

Titans at Eagles (10-1)

Spread: Eagles -4.5

The Eagles are now 10-1 after beating the Packers in a thriller, 40-33.

Philadelphia has put themselves in a likely position to be the NFC’s top seed when the regular season ends. Quarterback Jalen Hurts did it all against the Packers, throwing for 153 yards and two touchdowns and rushing for 157 yards. The Eagles ground game killed the Packers, with running back Miles Sanders rushing for 143 yards and two touchdowns.

Wide receivers A.J. Brown and Quez Watkins each had one touchdown. The Eagles defense wasn’t their usual selves after allowing 33 points to the Packers, but they made plays when it counted. The Eagles had three sacks and two interceptions against Green Bay.

Unfortunately for the Eagles defense, safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson will miss time with a lacerated kidney. Gardner-Johnson has six interceptions this season, which leads the NFL. Some good injury news is rookie defensive tackle Jordan Davis was activated from IR, and his 21-day practice window was opened. Davis returning soon would be a huge boost to the Eagles run defense.

The Eagles host the Titans this week. A tougher opponent this week, the Titans have star running back Derrick Henry on their side, who already has over 1,000 rushing yards and ten touchdowns on the season. The Eagles need to stop Henry and continue their dominance on offense if they want to capture their 11th win of the year.