Race for NFC’s top seed: 49ers closing in on clinching home field with Cowboys, Eagles, Lions lurking

The race to be the NFC’s top overall seed come playoff time is like gaining a country club membership at Augusta National: it’s elite, exclusive and only a few people, or in this discussion NFL teams, are eligible to qualify by meeting the lofty, if not unrealistic, standards of admission. There are four teams in the conference with double-digit victories, and they are also the only NFC teams to even have eight or more wins.

The finalists for the conference’s top seed and only first-round bye are: the 11-3 San Francisco 49ers, the 10-4 Dallas Cowboys, the 10-4 Detroit Lions and the 10-4 Philadelphia Eagles. With only three games remaining in the 2023 regular season, here is a breakdown of where each team stands, their remaining games and odds to climb to the top of the ladder when the dust settles. 

Current NFC top-seed race

1

San Francisco 49ers

11-3

.524 (vs. Ravens, at Commanders, vs. Rams)

-1000

2

Dallas Cowboys

10-4

.571 (at Dolphins, vs. Lions, at Commanders)

+3900

3

Detroit Lions

10-4

.571 (at Vikings, at Cowboys, vs. Vikings)

+2600

5

Philadelphia Eagles

10-4

.310 (vs. Giants, vs. Cardinals, at Giants)

+1100

* Odds Via FanDuel Sportsbook

San Francisco 49ers

Record: 11-3 (Best in NFC)Remaining strength of schedule rank: 16th in NFLOdds to be NFC’s #1 seed: -1000 (Best in NFC)

The San Francisco 49ers are an absolute buzz saw. They have annihilated two of their top competitors for the top seed, the Dallas Cowboys (42-10 in Week 5) and the Philadelphia Eagles (42-19 in Week 13), and they have a clear edge in conference record over the Detroit Lions (9-1 versus NFC teams while the Lions are 6-3 versus NFC teams). 

The 2023 49ers are the first team since the 2009 Super Bowl champion New Orleans Saints to win six consecutive games by 12 or more points within a season thanks to their incredible array of weapons surrounding quarterback Brock Purdy. That includes the NFL rushing leader Christian McCaffrey (1,292…

Source link : https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/race-for-nfcs-top-seed-49ers-closing-in-on-clinching-home-field-with-cowboys-eagles-lions-lurking/

Author : Garrett Podell

Publish date : 2023-12-21 15:32:00

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