With a three-game winning streak coming out of their Week 10 bye, which culminated with a 31-28 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Thanksgiving Day, the Dallas Cowboys improved to 6-5-1 and put themselves right in the thick of the NFC playoff picture, which seemed unfathomable just a month earlier.
Since that win over the Chiefs, however, America's Team has taken three straight defeats, suffering embarrassing losses to the Detroit Lions in Week 14, the Minnesota Vikings in Week 15, and the Los Angeles Chargers this past Sunday in Week 16. And the day before that loss to the Bolts, of course, Dallas was officially eliminated from playoff contention, as the Philadelphia Eagles wrapped up the NFC East with a win over the Washington Commanders.
Now at 6-8-1, the Cowboys can still avoid having back-to-back losing seasons for the first time since a trio of 5-11 campaigns from 2000 to 2002 by getting to .500 with wins in the final two weeks over the Commanders and the New York Giants. And given the things Brian Schottenheimer and Dak Prescott have said, that seems to be the goal.
But if the Cowboys end up losing these final two games, it certainly wouldn't be the worst thing in the world, as the worse their record gets, the better their first pick in the 2026 NFL Draft will be. Currently, Dallas owns the 13th overall pick. And let's not forget, Jerry Jones is also in possession of the Green Bay Packers' first-round pick as part of the Micah Parsons trade.
Updated 2026 NFL Draft order heading into Week 17
Here's a look at the 2026 NFL Draft order as it stands heading into Week 17.
It's important to remember, of course, that only the first 18 picks will be locked in at the end of the regular season and are determined by the reverse order of the final standings. The remaining 14 slots are determined by the results of postseason play and also take regular-season records into account.
Slots 19-24 are reserved for the six teams that lose in the Wild Card Round. Slots 25-28 are reserved for the four teams that lose in the Divisional Round. Slots 29-30 are set for the two teams that lose their respective conference title games. And slots 31-32 are for the two teams that square off in the Super Bowl, with No. 31 going to the loser and No. 32 going to the winner.
For now, we'll still list all 32 teams based on current records, noting the teams who have clinched a playoff spot with an asterisk (*).
- New York Giants (2-13)
- Las Vegas Raiders (2-13)
- Cleveland Browns (3-12)
- New York Jets (3-12)
- Tennessee Titans (3-12)
- Arizona Cardinals (3-12)
- Washington Commanders (4-11)
- New Orleans Saints (5-10)
- Cincinnati Bengals (5-10)
- Miami Dolphins (6-9)
- Los Angeles Rams - from Atlanta Falcons (6-9)
- Kansas City Chiefs (6-9)
- Dallas Cowboys (6-8-1)
- Baltimore Ravens (7-8)
- Minnesota Vikings (7-8)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-8)
- Detroit Lions (8-7)
- New York Jets - from Indianapolis Colts (8-7)
- Carolina Panthers (8-7)
- Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6)
- Dallas Cowboys - from Green Bay Packers (9-5-1)
- Philadelphia Eagles (10-5)*
- Houston Texans (10-5)
- Buffalo Bills (11-4)*
- Los Angeles Chargers (11-4)*
- San Francisco 49ers (11-4)*
- Cleveland Browns - from Jacksonville Jaguars (11-4)*
- Los Angeles Rams (11-4)*
- Chicago Bears (11-4)*
- New England Patriots (12-3)*
- Denver Broncos (12-3)*
- Seattle Seahawks (12-3)*
As you can see, Green Bay currently sits in the No. 21 position, but that could obviously change in the coming weeks.
While the Packers have yet to clinch a playoff spot, all they need to do is win one of their final two games or have the Detroit Lions lose one of their final two, which could happen as early as Christmas Day, as Detroit will take on the Vikings just after the Cowboys and Commanders square off.
So, barring a catastrophic meltdown, Green Bay is getting in. But given their record, the Packers will likely end up being the No. 7 seed in the NFC. Naturally, the Cowboys will be hoping Green Bay is eliminated quickly.
As to what the Cowboys will do with their two first-round picks, just pick any defensive position and Dallas undoubtedly needs help there.