Commanders Playoff Projection: Seventh Seed and Rising in Week 13?

Once left for dead, the Washington Commanders are not only alive, but wreaking havoc on the NFC Playoff picture.

The Washington Commanders were a pathetic 2-4 six weeks into the season after defeating the Chicago Bears by less than an inch in Week 6. 

Coming so close to falling on a Thursday night to the rudderless Bears and nearly dropping to 1-5 was enough to convince most of three things. 

First, the Carson Wentz quarterback experiment was a failure. 

Second, the team's defense was incapable of coming up with big plays when needed. 

And finally, that coach Ron Rivera and his staff may not be long for employment in the DMV. 

Times have changed, and the Commanders are 7-5 holding onto the seventh seed in the NFC Playoff race and part of the only division that has four teams with winning records. 

Things are going well and could be going even better if Washington defeats the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium in Week 13. 

Simply put, beating the Giants allows Washington to improve its playoff seeding from seventh to sixth. 

No matter what else happens, take care of business, and the picture gets a little rosier. 

Lose, however, and if the Seattle Seahawks defeat the Los Angeles Rams this weekend then they take over the seventh seed while Washington falls to eighth. 

Sitting in sixth place coming out of the weekend, the only wild card team ahead of the Commanders would be the Dallas Cowboys. 

Rooting for the Indianapolis Colts to defeat Dallas is an easy proposition for Washington fans to get behind, and if the upset were to happen then both NFC East teams would have matching 8-4 records. 

The Cowboys would still hold the fifth seed in this scenario because of the head-to-head win in Week 4, but that's something Washington could level out in Week 18 if it came to that. 

December has long been thought of as the most important of them all in the NFL for teams looking to earn postseason play.

With the Commanders inserting themselves squarely into the playoff race, things are going to heat up in the coming weeks, even as the temperatures plunge. 

Find David Harrison on Twitter @DHarrison82 and on the Locked On Commanders podcast.

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