Haskins acknowledged during the week that Sunday would probably be his last chance to stay with the team beyond this year, especially after being photographed without a mask at his girlfriend’s birthday party. His defense against the Panthers seems to remove any doubt.
The hope in Washington is that Alex Smith will be healthy enough to play in the final, having missed the last two games due to a calf strain. Rivera said the team had hope until Friday, but by Saturday morning Smith “was not feeling it”, according to Rivera.
The chances of returning to Haskins if Smith is not available appear to be slim, with few having left the stadium. Rivera seemed to signal on the virtual post-game call that her patience was over. On the other hand, he used words and phrases like “brave … excellent … great vision … gave us a chance to win” when discussing Heinicke.
Meanwhile, the Eagles are likely to feel good about their situation in QB with rookie Jalen Hurts, who has been playing well since replacing starter Carson Wentz a few weeks ago. His ability to make moves gave the franchise a new lease of life, so much so that Philadelphia could have organized a game where the winner takes everything against Washington if they beat Dallas on Sunday. However, he wasted an initial advantage of 11 points and lost by 37-17.
The best that the Eagles can do now is to play spoilers, although Hurts is still trying to catch the status of favorite for the starting position in 2021, after throwing for 342 yards and a touchdown and running 69 yards against the Cowboys, although his three turnovers have been a problem.
Dallas (6-9) has won three consecutive wins after failing to get consecutive wins throughout the season. Each faced a reserve quarterback – although Hurts was a significant upgrade over Wentz – and while not the case on Sunday against the Giants (5-10), except for an unforeseen setback with Daniel Jones, the Cowboys will be faced with a attack that has not scored more than 19 points in its last five games and has a total of just five touchdowns during that period.
But if we learn anything this season, it is to expect the unexpected at NFC East. Fortunately, however, the top will stop next weekend.