Washington Can Jump From Last to Second in the NFC East Tonight — Commanders Daily

Yesterday, the New York Giants (3-2-1), Philadelphia Eagles (2-4), and Dallas Cowboys (2-4) all lost. While the Giants still lead the NFC East, Washington (1-3-1) is the only team left in the division to play in Week 6 and could move from last to second with an upset victory tonight in Santa Clara.

Under NFL rules, a tie counts as half a win and half a loss, so 2-3-1 gives Washington a better winning percentage than 2-4, giving the Commanders an opportunity to pull back to within one game of New York heading into their Week 7 bye. Of course, the other three teams play during Washington’s bye, so second place tonight would not be guaranteed to last through next week.

On the flip side, if Washington loses tonight, it would drop to 1-4-1, and the NFC East would become the first division since the 1970 AFL–NFL merger to go winless in consecutive weeks in which every team played. The Commanders and Giants even played each other last week.

Beating a 5-0 team on the road is never easy, but it's not impossible. Washington hasn't won on the 49ers' home field since 2004. Washington's 2020 win over the Niners was played in Glendale, Arizona.

The rest of the NFC East gave Washington an opening Sunday. Beating San Francisco is the part the Commanders have to handle themselves.