Week 10 non-Eagles rooting guide

As the NFC East becomes a two-team race, Jimmy Kempski unveils his Week 10 rooting guide for Eagles fans.

Jayden Daniels and the Commanders' offense have a big test this weekend against the Steelers.
Robert Deutsch/Imagn Images

Each week we'll lay out a rooting guide for non-Eagles games on the NFL schedule for those of you on the fence while watching the other action around the league. And yes, first and foremost the Eagles have to take care of their own business in Dallas.

NFC East

The NFC East standings: 

NFC East Record Div record GB 
 Commanders7-2 2-0 
 Eagles6-2 1-0 0.5 
 Cowboys3-5 1-0 3.5 
 Giants2-7 0-4 


Steelers at Commanders: Duh. The NFC East is now a two-horse race.

Giants at Panthers: If you'll note in the standings in the NFC vs. NFC section below, the Giants are actually in last place in the NFC. They're done. It's time to root for them to win as many games from here on out so (a) they wreck their draft positioning, and (b) John Mara doesn't change his mind about retaining Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll through the 2025 season.

NFC vs. NFC

As usual, let's first look at the NFC seeding if the season ended today (it doesn't).

Seed TeamRecord Conf record 
Lions 7-1 6-1 
Commanders 7-2 5-1 
Falcons 6-3 6-1 
 Cardinals 5-4 3-3 
 Vikings 6-2 3-2 
 Eagles 6-2 3-2 
Packers6-3 2-3 
Bears4-4 2-2 
Rams4-4 3-4 
10  49ers4-4 2-3 
11  Buccaneers4-5 4-2 
12  Seahawks4-5 1-4 
13  Cowboys3-5 1-4 
14  Panthers ☠️2-7 1-4 
15  Saints ☠️2-7 2-4 
16  Giants2-7 1-5 


Falcons at Saints: The Falcons are going to cruise to an NFC South title, as long as they don't completely crap the bed the rest of the way and the Buccaneers don't find a way to get hot without Chris Godwin and Mike Evans. But I think that the Falcons would be a much more palatable Eagles playoff opponent than the Bucs, given the Eagles' lack of success in Tampa.

• 49ers at Buccaneers: Christian McCaffrey is back, and the Niners as a team overall are getting healthier. They have also been a dominant late-season team in recent years:

2023: 7-1 from Week 10 on, not including a meaningless Week 18 games when they sat starters. They won two playoff games before losing to the Chiefs in the Super Bowl.

2022: 10-0 from Week 8 on, won two playoff games before losing to the Eagles in the NFC Championship Game.

2021: 7-2 from Week 10 on, won two playoff games before losing to the Rams in the NFC Championship Game.

It's best if they don't get hot down the stretch. But they may be a sleeping giant.

NFC vs. AFC

• Lions at Texans: If the Lions get the 1 seed in the NFC, they're going to be really hard to beat in the playoffs.

Vikings at Jaguars: It is more ideal for the rest of the conference if the Vikings win the NFC North instead of the Lions or Packers.

• Patriots at Bears: The Bears aren't going to win the NFC North, but they would be an ideal first-round opponent should the Eagles earn the 2 seed.

• Dolphins at Rams: The Rams are right back in the mix in the NFC West after starting 1-4. They're dangerous, but not as dangerous as the Niners.

• Jets at Cardinals: The Cardinals actually lead the NFC West at the moment. It's better if they win that division than the 49ers.

Irrelevant to the Eagles

  1. Bills at Colts
  2. Broncos at Chiefs
  3. Titans at Chargers
BYE: Packers, Seahawks, Browns, Raiders.


MORE: Five things to watch in Eagles-Cowboys


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