Entering Week 15 of the NFL season, the Dallas Cowboys are firmly on the outside looking in when it comes to the NFC playoff picture.
But despite a 44-30 loss to the Detroit Lions last Thursday that dropped the team to 6-6-1, the path for the Cowboys to make the playoffs is not as unrealistic as you may think.
Simply put, the Philadelphia Eagles’ 22-19 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Monday night was huge. While the result only boosted the current odds for the Cowboys from 7% to 11%, it created a path that Dallas was already keen on going down over the final four weeks.
If Dallas wins its final four games — home vs. the Vikings (5-8), home vs. the Chargers (9-4), at the Commanders (3-10), at the Giants (2-11) — the Cowboys will have a 54% chance of making the postseason, according to the Athletic’s NFL playoff simulator.
Essentially, it becomes a toss-up that is mostly dependent on Philadelphia (8-5) losing at least two more games the rest of the way.
The Eagles’ schedule sees them host the Raiders (2-11) and travel to take on the Bills (9-4), along with a home-and-away split with the Commanders. Philadelphia is favored in each contest aside from the trip to Buffalo. However, the Eagles have begun to falter. They have now lost three straight games and have not won a contest by more than one score since Oct. 26.
The easiest path to the playoffs for the Cowboys is by winning the NFC East. But what if the Eagles take care of business?
If Philadelphia loses just one game instead of two while the Cowboys win out, Dallas’ odds to get in sit at 26%. That path would require at least two teams ahead of the Cowboys in the NFC wild-card race to crash and burn. Those teams include the Seahawks (10-3), 49ers (9-4), Bears (9-4) and Lions (8-5).
The two teams to watch closely in that scenario: San Francisco and Detroit. While the 49ers should take care of business against the bottom-dwelling Titans on Sunday, their remaining schedule sees them play current playoff teams in the Colts (8-5), Bears and Seahawks. Losing all three would move the 49ers below the Cowboys if they win out.
The Lions’ final four games are against the NFC-leading Rams (10-3), the AFC North-leading Steelers (7-6), the Vikings and the Bears. Losing two of four, along with the San Francisco result, would get Dallas into the playoffs if the Cowboys win out.
For Dallas to sneak into the postseason as a wild-card team, a lot of “ifs” and “buts” will need to follow through — hence just the one-in-four chance even if head coach Brian Schottenheimer’s squad does win out.
But after a three-game slide from the Eagles that is reminiscent of when they finished the 2023 season with a 1-5 record in the final six weeks, the door is left cracked for the Cowboys in the NFC East.
Game schedule dates, times, locations
NEXT UP: Game dates, times, locations, channel
Rangers ▶
June 22 Rangers 4, Miami 3
June 23 Miami 6, Rangers 4
June 24 Miami 4, Rangers 2
June 25 Rangers 6, Toronto 5
June 26 Rangers 5, Toronto 4
June 27 Rangers 7, Toronto 4
June 28 Rangers 3, Toronto 2
June 29 at Cleveland, 6:10 p.m., ESPN
June 30 at Cleveland, 5:40 p.m., RSN
July 1 at Cleveland, 12:10 p.m., RSN
July 2 vs. Detroit, 7:05 p.m., RSN
July 4 vs. Detroit, 3:05 p.m., RSN
July 5 vs. Detroit, 2:30 p.m., NBCSN, Peacock
Wings▶
June 17 Golden State 91, Wings 80
June 20 Wings 93, Chicago 92
June 22 Wings 112, Seattle 110 (OT)
June 25 Las Vegas 99, Wings 84
June 28 Minnesota 85, Wings 77
July 2 at Connecticut, 7 p.m., KFAA, Amazon Prime Video
July 5 at Toronto, 2 p.m., KFAA
July 7 at New York, 7 p.m., ESPN
July 10 vs. Toronto (at Montreal), 6:30 p.m., Ion
July 12 vs. Chicago (at American Airlines Center), 6 p.m., ESPN, Disney+
TCU Football ▶
2026 season
Aug. 29 vs. North Carolina (at Dublin), 11 a.m., ESPN
Sept. 12 vs. Grambling State, 7 p.m., ESPN+
Sept. 19 vs. Arkansas State, 7 p.m., ESPNU
Sept. 26 at Central Florida, TBA
Oct. 3 vs. BYU, TBA
Oct. 17 at Baylor, TBA
Oct. 24 vs. West Virginia, TBA
Oct. 31 vs. Kansas, TBA
Nov. 6 at Arizona, 9:15 p.m., ESPN
Nov. 14 vs. Kansas State, TBA
Nov. 21 vs. Utah, TBA
Nov. 26 at Texas Tech, 7 p.m., ESPN
Cowboys ▶
Sept. 13 at N.Y. Giants, 7:20 p.m., NBC
Sept. 20 vs. Washington, 3:25 p.m., Fox
Sept. 27 vs. Baltimore (at Rio de Janeiro), 3:25 p.m., CBS
Oct. 4 at Houston, 12 p.m., Fox
Oct. 8 vs. Tampa Bay, 7:15 p.m., Amazon Prime Video
Oct. 18 at Green Bay, 7:20 p.m., NBC
Oct. 26 at Philadelphia, 7:15 p.m., ESPN, ABC
Nov. 1 vs. Arizona, 12 p.m., Fox
Nov. 8 at Indianapolis, 12 p.m., Fox
Nov. 15 vs. San Francisco, 3:25 p.m., Fox
Nov. 22 vs. Tennessee, 12 p.m., Fox
Nov. 26 vs. Philadelphia, 3:30 p.m., Fox
Dec. 7 at Seattle, 7:15 p.m., ESPN, ABC
Dec. 20 at L.A. Rams, 3:25 p.m., CBS
Dec. 27 vs. Jacksonville, 7:20 p.m., NBC
Jan. 3 vs. N.Y. Giants, 12 p.m., Fox
Jan. 9 or 10 at Washington, TBA
World Cup ▶
All local matches at AT&T Stadium
Group stage
June 14 Japan 2, Netherlands 2 (Group F)
June 17 England 4, Croatia 2 (Group L)
June 22 Argentina 2, Austria 0 (Group J)
June 25 Japan 1, Sweden 1 (Group F)
June 27 Argentina 3, Jordan 1 (Group J)
Knockout round
June 30 Norway 2, Ivory Coast 1 (round of 32)
July 3 Round of 32: Australia vs. Egypt, 1 p.m., Fox
July 6 Round of 16: Teams TBD, 2 p.m., Fox
July 14 Semifinal: Teams TBD, 2 p.m., Fox
FC Dallas ▶
May 2 FC Dallas 2, NY Red Bulls 0
May 9 FC Dallas 3, Salt Lake 1
May 13 Vancouver 3, FC Dallas 2
May 16 FC Dallas 3, San Jose 2
May 23 FC Dallas 2, Colorado 1
World Cup break
July 22 at Portland, 9:30 p.m., Apple TV
July 25 at San Diego, 8:30 p.m., FS1, Apple TV
Texas Motor Speedway ▶
July 11 NASCAR Racing Experience
July 11 Hearts in High Gear
July 25 Drift n Drag
Aug. 1 NASCAR Racing Experience
Aug. 29 Team Texas: David Starr's Racing School
Sept. 5 NASCAR Racing Experience
This story was originally published December 9, 2025 at 10:05 AM.
Nick Harris is the Dallas Cowboys beat reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. He has experience working on the beat for DallasCowboys.com and previous work experience at Yahoo Sports/Rivals and 247Sports.
