The Dallas Cowboys faced the Minnesota Vikings in Week 15 of the NFL and suffered a defeat by a score of 34-26 in a game that carried major playoff implications. The loss came at a critical moment of the season and immediately raised a pressing question around the league: Are the Cowboys eliminated from postseason contention?
With the defeat, the Cowboys fell to a 6-7-1 record, significantly complicating their path to the playoffs. Their margin for error narrowed to almost nothing, and in the NFC wild-card race they no longer had realistic options, with the No. 7 seed sitting more than three games out of reach at this stage of the season.
What ultimately pushed them out of contention was the damaging head-to-head tiebreaker loss to the Lions, which proved decisive in the standings. That result, combined with the Week 15 defeat, effectively ended Dallasā hopes of continuing the playoff chase, leaving their postseason fate all but sealed.
Did the win help the Vikings?
The Vikings entered the matchup needing outside help to keep their playoff hopes alive, but even before kickoff against the Cowboys, their fate was already sealed. Minnesotaās playoff chances officially ended earlier in the day when the Chicago Bears defeated the Cleveland Browns 31-3, mathematically eliminating the Vikings from postseason contention. The result marked the franchiseās fourth playoff miss in the last six seasons, underscoring an ongoing pattern of inconsistency.
J.J. McCarthy #9 of the Minnesota Vikings.
Despite the elimination, the Vikings improved to 6-8 with their second straight victory after being knocked out of the playoff race. The win came one year after Minnesota finished as a 14-win playoff team, highlighting the sharp contrast between last season and the current campaign.
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Quarterback J.J. McCarthy threw two touchdown passes, both to Jalen Nailor, while C.J. Ham added a one-yard rushing score to give Minnesota a 24-23 lead late in the third quarter. On the other side, Brandon Aubrey converted four field goals and executed a six-yard run on a fake to extend a drive that led to Dallasā first touchdown, though he missed multiple field goals at home for the first time in his three NFL seasons.
Whatās next for the Cowboys?
The Cowboys fell to 6-7-1 with the loss and now faced an extremely narrow path forward. To have any chance of winning the NFC East, Dallas needed to win its final three games and hope the defending Super Bowl champions, the Eagles, went 0-3 down the stretch, a scenario that left little margin for optimism.
