1 huge reason why the Eagles are going to make the playoffs

The Philadelphia Eagles have won three of their past four games and can sneak into the playoffs on the strength of a forgiving schedule.

Don’t look now, but the Philadelphia Eagles are making some noise in the NFC playoff picture. Well out of the field at the start of the day, the Eagles thrashed the New Orleans Saints 40-29 to get to within one game of .500, which puts them right in the thick of things in a mediocre NFC Wild Card race.

The victory over the Saints is a crucial one for the Eagles, who pick up a massive head-to-head tiebreaker that could aim them in their quest to return to the playoffs. Another factor that weighs heavily in the favor of Philadelphia is a soft schedule down the stretch.

The Eagles’ schedule sets them up nicely for a playoff push

The Eagles haven’t had their bye yet, but one thing working in their favor is that they have only played one game in their own division and it came against the Dallas Cowboys back in Week 3. The New York Giants and Washington Football Team still match up with the Eagles twice, beginning next week with Philadelphia’s trip to MetLife Stadium, and there is every reason to believe that Nick Sirianni’s team can go 3-1 in those matchups.

The other Cowboys’ matchup comes in Week 18, which is to Philadelphia’s benefit since Dallas will likely have the division sewn up at that point and could be resting starters. The only non-division game left is another trip to MetLife Stadium to take on the hapless New York Jets, who would hold the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft if the season ended today.

Going 5-1 against this slate is imminently doable and would get the Eagles to 10 wins, which would easily get them into a Wild Card spot. Going 4-2 is trickier, but this win over the Saints today would be a big help if the two teams finish the season tied for a playoff spot.