Lions clinch playoff spot after Philadelphia loses to Washington

Eagles' loss punches playoff ticket for Lions

DETROIT – Thanks to an unusual pair of Saturday NFL games this weekend, Detroit clinched the postseason without even stepping foot on the field.

With two weeks left in the regular season, the Lions, Cowboys, Seahawks, Packers and Eagles battled for four open playoff spots. The San Francisco 49ers were eliminated with a loss last weekend and the Arizona Cardinals became the first NFC team to clinch a spot.

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Saturday, the 9-5 Eagles put their playoff hopes on the line, as they traveled to Washington to face the bottom-feeding Redskins. Due to Detroit's superior record against NFC teams, the Lions was guaranteed to finish in front of the Eagles, even if both teams went 10-6.

Washington's Jay Gruden has suffered through a miserable season as a rookie head coach. His team was riding a six-game losing streak after pulling a stunning Monday Night Football upset over the Cowboys in Dallas on Oct. 27. Washington's other two wins came against Jacksonville (3-12) and Tennessee (2-13).

The Redskins have also battled constant off-field issues thanks to a quarterback battle between Colt McCoy and Robert Griffin III. Washington traded three first-round picks and a second-round pick to draft Griffin No. 2 overall in 2012, and haven't recovered from his knee injury suffered in an NFC wild card game against the Seahawks on Jan. 6, 2013.

Griffin led the team to a 10-6 record en route to the playoffs and earned Pro-Bowl honors as a rookie. But since his injury the Redskins are just 6-24 and have flirted with other QB options like McCoy and former Michigan State Spartan Kirk Cousins.

Last season the Eagles beat the Redskins in both meetings between the division rivals, 33-27 in Washington and 24-16 in Philadelphia. In their only other meeting this season, the Eagles squeezed out a 37-34 win at home, with Griffin sidelined by injury.