Just because the NY Giants lost to the Philadelphia Eagles, doesn’t mean they’re out of the NFC East race
The NY Giants might be bad, at 1-6, but the NFC East is historically pathetic.
Following Thursday night’s 22-21 Philadelphia Eagles victory over the NY Giants, the Eagles, Dallas Cowboys, Washington Foot Team, and the Giants have combined for just six wins through 20 combined games.
Even at 1-6, the NY Giants still have faint hopes of winning the division, according to simulations run by ESPN and Football Outsiders’ Aaaron Schatz:
So I finally got curious and ran a query. The NFC East champion has a losing record now in 52.5% of our simulations.
— Aaron Schatz 🏈 (@FO_ASchatz) October 23, 2020
(Our sim is fairly conservative with smaller gaps between good and bad teams, so I'm guessing other sites will have this higher.)
https://twitter.com/FO_ASchatz/status/1319671746761494528
No team has ever won the NFC East in its 50-year history with six wins or fewer. However, that streak seems destined to careen to an end in 2020.
According to Schatz, as of simulations of the rest of the season that were run prior to Thursday night, the Eagles have the best chances of winning the division. But, the Giants are in the mix:
Eagles: 41.5% chance
Cowboys 27% chance
Giants 17% chance
Washington 14.5% chance
What has a chance to work in the Giants’ remaining schedule features rematches against all three division opponents, including the Eagles possibly without tight end Zach Ertz and wide receiver Desean Jackson in three weeks, and a season finale against the Dallas Cowboys without Dak Prescott.
Additionally, the Giants still have winnable games against in Cincinnati against the Bengals and against the Cleveland Browns.
It is entirely conceivable that the Giants run the table in the remaining division games, beat the Bengals and Browns to finish 6-10. Likewise, the Giants could continue to struggle to close, limp across the finish line, and land a top-three pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
So it goes, in the 2020 NFC East.
Matt Lombardo is the site expert for GMenHQ, and writes Between The Hash Marks each Wednesday for FanSided. Follow Matt on Twitter: @MattLombardoNFL.