The Philadelphia Eagles’ win over the Washington Commanders on Thursday night was pretty big for the Birds’ playoff prospects.

The Eagles took a 1.5 game lead in the division with seven games remaining.

Eagles remaining schedule

Week 12 — at Los Angeles Rams
Week 13 — at Baltimore Ravens
Week 14 — vs. Carolina Panthers
Week 15 — vs. Pittsburgh Steelers
Week 16 – at Washington Commanders
Week 17 — vs. Dallas Cowboys
Week 18 — vs. New York Giants

The cushion the Eagles just built could come in handy with some tough battles ahead.

The Rams can be dangerous, even though they just lost at home to the Miami Dolphins. The Ravens are clearly impressive, with MVP frontrunners Lamar Jackson and Derrick Henry bolstering their offense. The Steelers cannot be slept on; they are undefeated with Russell Wilson starting.

It will be quite interesting to see how things go over the next four weeks before the Eagles’ rematch against the Commanders. The Birds will establish a head-to-head tiebreaker if they can beat Washington again. And that could come in handy, since the commanders’ remaining schedule doesn’t look super difficult. In that regard…

Remaining schedule of the commanders

Week 12 — vs. Dallas Cowboys
Week 13 — vs. Tennessee Titans
Week 14 — DEW
Week 15 — at New Orleans Saints
Week 16 — vs. Philadelphia Eagles
Week 17 — vs. Atlanta Falcons
Week 18 — at Dallas Cowboys

The Commanders will likely be favored in at least four of these six matches. And they do have a chance to catch their breath with a late farewell. Marshon Lattimore getting healthy could be a big boost for their defense.

But perhaps Washington is on a slide. They have lost their last two games, with Daniels looking the worst this season. Kliff Kingsbury offenses usually start the season hot before fading away later in the year.

Of course, the Eagles can’t just count on the Commanders disappearing. And really, they should aim higher than the division leader…

The Lions remaining schedule

Week 11 — vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
Week 12 — at Indianapolis Colts
Week 13 — vs. Chicago Bears
Week 14 – vs. Green Bay Packers
Week 15 — vs. Buffalo Bills
Week 16 — at Chicago Bears
Week 17 — at San Francisco 49ers
Week 18 — vs. Minnesota Vikings

The Lions clearly have very winnable games ahead. But then it gradually starts to get a little more difficult.

Detroit currently sits atop the NFC playoff picture with an 8-1 record. At this rate, the Eagles might be able to overtake them to get a first-round bye.