AS SEEN ON NFLDRAFTBIBLE.COM
10/10/08
After watching the Redskins surprise Philadelphia at Lincoln Financial Field and the Cowboys slip past the Bengals, it was high time to take an in-depth look at the strongest division in football right now, the NFC East. Did I mention the undefeated Super Bowl champions reside in the division?
1. New York Giants (4-0)
Often in sports, the phrase, “making the leap” refers to a young team that realizes their ability to be one of the elite teams in their sport. Though the Giants won the Super Bowl last year, their championship run, which included victories at Tampa Bay, at Dallas, at Green Bay, and culminated in a stunning victory over the vaunted Patriots was a true shock even to Giant fans. In 2008, the team has made the proverbial leap and is playing with a tremendous amount of confidence on both sides of the ball. Nowhere is this more evident than in the play of Eli Manning. He’s thrown just one interception in 2008 after tossing 20 in 2007 and his quarterback rating of 99.7 is nearly 25 points better than his career rating. Though its first four opponents combined record stands at 5-13, the fact is the Giants should be in the running for the number one seed in the NFC come playoff time.
2. Washington Redskins (4-1)
After a poor performance against New York in a season-opening loss, the Redskins have reeled off four straight victories, including two consecutive wins on the road against division rivals, Dallas and Philadelphia. Did I mention the Redskins offense has yet to turn the ball over this season? The Redskins completely dominated the line of scrimmage against the NFL’s top-ranked rush defense entering Sunday. Clinton Portis ran for 145 yards and a touchdown as the ‘Skins finished with 203 yards against the Eagles who had allowed just 215 yards on the ground in their first four games. What I like about the team going forward the rest of the season is their depth. Veteran Jon Jansen stepped in for injured Stephon Heyer at tackle and was a key component in protecting Jason Campbell from an Eagle defense that entered the game leading the league in sacks. At one point during Sunday’s game, Washington’s defense was without four starters, but still held the Eagles largely in check after Philadelphia’s opening drive. One other important fact to note: the Redskins remaining division games will all be played at home. Whether it be Washington or Dallas, the second best team in the NFC may end up the five seed in the NFC playoffs if they can’t overtake the Giants for the division crown.
3. Dallas Cowboys (4-1)
The Cowboys might be the most maligned 4-1 team in history. Such is the case when the expectations are nothing less than a Super Bowl triumph, and the roster is as star-studded as Dallas. The Cowboys jumped out to an early 17-0 lead over the winless Bengals before playing poorly for nearly two full quarters. The team woke up in the fourth quarter to preserve a 31-22 victory. After an impressive 3-0 start, the Cowboys have been sloppy on offense the past two weeks. Tony Romo and the rest of the offense needs to work on ball security. Meanwhile, the defense is in the bottom half of the NFL, giving up too many third down conversions while allowing more than 20 points per game. Luckily for the Dallas defense, the league’s most dynamic offense is averaging 30.2 points per game. Led by Tony Romo, the offense is difficult to defend with Marion Barber and rookie phenom Felix Jones on the ground, and the talented but mercurial Terrell Owens and Pro-Bowl tight end Jason Witten through the air. No matter what Dallas does the rest of the season, the soap opera in Dallas will be well-chronicled as the season goes forward.
4. Philadelphia Eagles (2-3)
Perhaps it’s something in the Eagles makeup, but I don’t understand how Philadephia always seems to underperform in big games. Two weeks ago, the Eagles were sitting at an impressive 2-1 despite a heartbreaking loss to Dallas on Monday night in week two. Philadelphia has since dropped two winnable games, culminating Sunday in a defeat against Washington, in which it led 14-0 in the first quarter. With an 0-2 record in the division, the team’s road to the playoffs appears very difficult, despite a healthy Donovan McNabb and the emergence of rookie wide receiver DeSean Jackson. Another developing problem for Philadelphia falls on the foot of David Akers. Andy Reid can’t like his team’s chances of winning close games when his kicker is 3-14 from 40+ yards since the start of the 2007 season. What must be particularly galling for Philadelphia fans is the likelihood that the team would almost certainly make the playoffs if it was in any other division in the NFC. At least the Phillies are taking some of the sting away.
# posted by Nate @ 1:52 PM
