How the Giants can dethrone the Eagles for NFC East crown

Here is what it will take for the New York Giants to surpass the Philadelphia Eagles in division.

Every team in the NFC East is either at or above .500 this season, including the undefeated 8-0 Philadelphia Eagles and the surprisingly 6-2 New York Giants.

Although the Dallas Cowboys are also 6-2 and the Washington Commanders are hanging around at 4-4, the Eagles and Giants have yet to play this season. They will not be meeting for the first time until Dec. 11 when the Eagles come to MetLife. While so much can change between now and then, let’s discuss a few scenarios in which the Giants could take complete control of the division.

This may be a moot point by Thanksgiving, but the Giants have a breezy next three weeks for sure.

How the New York Giants can overtake the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC East

Here is the remaining schedule for the Giants.

• Week 9: Bye (11/6)
• Week 10: vs. Houston Texans (11/13)
• Week 11: vs. Detroit Lions (11/20)
• Week 12: at Dallas Cowboys (11/24)
• Week 13: vs. Washington Commanders (12/4)
• Week 14: vs. Philadelphia Eagles (12/11)
• Week 15: at Washington Commanders (12/18)
• Week 16: at Minnesota Vikings (12/24)
• Week 17: vs. Indianapolis Colts (1/1)
• Week 18: at Philadelphia Eagles (1/8)

The G-Men are on their annual bye this week after losing a rough one to NFC West-leading Seattle. After that, they have two great opportunities to get right vs. the two worst teams in football back-to-back in the Houston Texans and the Detroit Lions, both at home. New York then has five division games left on the season slate, including a pair vs. the Commanders and Eagles.

And here is the remaining schedule for the Eagles.

• Week 10: vs. Washington Commanders (11/14)
• Week 11: at Indianapolis Colts (11/20)
• Week 12: vs. Green Bay Packers (11/27)
• Week 13: vs. Tennessee Titans (12/4)
• Week 14: at New York Giants (12/11)
• Week 15: at Chicago Bears (12/18)
• Week 16: at Dallas Cowboys (12/24)
• Week 17 : vs. New Orleans Saints (1/1)
• Week 18: vs. New York Giants (1/8)

Philadelphia is on its mini-bye after beating the Texans in Houston to stay perfect on Thursday Night Football. While the Indianapolis Colts and the Green Bay Packers could be tough, the Eagles may not lose their first game of the season until the Tennessee Titans come to town on Dec. 4. They have three division games in their final five, including both vs. the arch-rival Giants.

Overall, the simplest explanation here is for the Giants to win out. At 15-2, they would own the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Eagles, even if the Birds beat every other team they play this season. Being two games back of the Eagles can be overcome if the Giants complete the season sweep over Philadelphia. If the Eagles drop another game along the way, New York could afford to as well.

Having five division games left is huge for the Giants’ chances to win the division. Not to say they need to go 5-1 in NFC East play this season, but they probably need to go 4-2 and not get swept by the Cowboys, as they would not want America’s Team to have the head-to-head tiebreaker over them, all things equal. A second division loss might have to come against the Commanders…

Ultimately, the Giants need to sweep the Eagles and be two wins better over the final nine games to win the division. Should they split, the Giants would probably have to be three wins better than the Eagles over the same nine games. If Philadelphia sweeps New York, then the Giants may have to be four or five wins better than them to have any hope of getting in, so just sweep Philadelphia.

The Eagles should drop a game at some point, so the Giants would have to take advantage of that.