Thoughts
This division is going to be a tight race between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles. The Washington Commanders and New York Giants have both improved but not nearly enough to overcome a talent deficiency. Even though I think it will be a tight race between the Eagles and Cowboys, I do think the proper team is favored in this scenario with the Eagles having a better talent level and a slight edge to the Eagles play callers.
Philadelphia Eagles
As of right now, the Eagles enter the season as -120 favorites to win the NFC East. The Eagles started the season 10-1 before a monumental collapse that saw them lose six of their next seven games, including a brutal beat down in the Wild Card Round of the playoffs. Due to this, the Eagles decided to revamp both their coordinator rooms, adding Kellen Moore to be their offensive coordinator and Vic Fangio to be their defensive coordinator. Both hires should be considered upgrades for the 2024 season overall. On offense, they upgraded their RB room by adding Saquon Barkley over D’Andre Swift but took a hit by losing Hall of Fame Center Jason Kelce to retirement. On defense, their biggest issue in 2023 was their secondary so they went out and draft CB Quinyon Mitchell 22nd overall and CB/S Cooper DeJean 40th overall. The Eagles filled the gaps in their roster and their staff well enough to firmly be considered the favorites in this division.
Dallas Cowboys
I’m excited to watch this offense week in and week out this year. While I may be excited for their offense, one of the reasons is that I expect their defense to take a solid step back. The Cowboys biggest hit this year was losing Defensive Coordinator Dan Quinn to the Washington Commanders. The Cowboys replaced Quinn with former Minnesota Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer. With that, the majority of their overall roster is still intact with their biggest swap being at the RB position where they let Tony Pollard walk (Titans) and brought back Ezekiel Elliott. I expect a wild card berth and being bounced in the first round, but that is not going to cut it and will likely end with the coaching staff being fired. Unfortunately, this is the likeliest scenario for the Cowboys this year.
Washington Commanders
While the Commanders have definitely improved across the board this year, it won’t be anything more than just making them a bit more competitive than they were in 2023. In 2023, this team started competitive with a 4-5 record before nose diving to a 4-13 finish resulting in the second overall pick. The Commanders drafted their prospective
franchise QB Jayden Daniels with that pick. As I mentioned above, the Commanders also cleaned house and brought in new Head Coach Dan Quinn from the Cowboys. Quinn then went on to hire Kliff Kingsbury who will be running the offense and calling plays. Kingsbury and Quinn both have a lot to prove as both have been fired as head coaches over the last four years. This will be Quinn’s last shot at hanging on and coaching to a Super Bowl title as a head coach and Kliff Kingsbury is using this opportunity to claw his way back into head coach consideration. The front office, now manned by Adam Peters, used free agency to make slightly above-market deals to veterans trying to revamp their roster this offseason. This will make them better coached and elevate their talent level overall but it will not be enough to get them over the hump. I expect the Commanders to finish with a losing record.
New York Giants
The Giants are coming off of a disappointing 2023 season in which they finished 6-11 and obtained the sixth overall pick as a result. With that pick, the Giants took what is becoming one of my favorite rookies and players to watch as the season approaches. WR Malik Nabers should be the focal point of this offense, an offense that no longer has star RB Saquon Barkley in the backfield. While this will be fun to watch, it is unlikely to result in any added wins. On defense, the Giants will see the biggest change as they fired Defensive Coordinator Wink Martindale and hired former Tennessee Titans Defensive Coordinator Shane Bowen. Bowen comes from a Mike Vrabel background that will covet stopping the run and force their opponent to pass. Personnel wise they made a big splash on their defensive line by adding star Edge Brian Burns from the Carolina Panthers. I think the leadership and coaching staff have earned themselves another year of mediocrity before they are on the hot seat, which I expect them to be on once this season is completed and the Giants have back-to-back seasons with a losing record.
Final Rankings Prediction
- Philadelphia Eagles (-120) – BET
- Dallas Cowboys (+160)
- Washington Commanders (+900)
- New York Giants (+2000)
