Dallas Cowboys & Dak Prescott Make 2 'Promises' About NFL Playoffs
The Dallas Cowboys beat the Houston Texans on Sunday with an unlikely 27-23, final-minute, come-from-behind win at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. ... and did so with two different "promises.''
One, from Dak Prescott, who led Dallas to a 10-3 record with his last-minute heroics .. overcoming his turnover woes.
Said Dak of his two interceptions: “I’m damn sure not a fan of that. It’s very, very frustrating. … I’ve got to find a way to take better care of the ball. I’m not going to not be aggressive, but damn sure have to be smarter.
"It’s something I promise I’ll clean up.”
And the other "promise''?
The promise of Dallas having playoff success without winning the division.
The division-leading 11-1 Philadelphia Eagles beat the suddenly slumping 7-5 New York Giants 48-22 in New York on Sunday, virtually making the East a two-team race with 7-5 Washington idle this week. The Eagles also became the first team to clinch a playoff berth in the process.
Dallas stands two games behind Philadelphia with one game remaining between the two - a Christmas Eve matchup - and just four left in the season.
Before then, Dallas travels to Jacksonville to face the Jaguars and Philadelphia draws the Bears in Chicago. Both games are winnable by both teams, which would mean they would meet with matching five-game winning streaks.
With the current playoff format, only the No. 1 seed from each conference has a first-round bye. The four division winners are seeded accordingly at 1-4. Dallas is the first Wild Card team and the No. 5 seed as it stands now, and would travel to the division winner with the worst record. Right now, that's 6-6 Tampa Bay, who leads the NFC South.
A playoff appearance certainly seems in the cards for Dallas, but the question is, do you want to open on the road against a mediocre division winner? Or have a first-round bye then host a playoff game in the divisional round against a potentially better team?
Of course, Dallas' strategy is to win out and hope for Philly to falter in at least one other game.
No doubt last year's Wild Card home loss to Jimmy Garoppolo and the San Francisco 49ers is still fresh in the memory of the players involved. But this season, while a division title seems unlikely for the Cowboys, a long playoff run could be in play, whether the path is via a division title or not.
Though of course nothing is "promised.''
