As the NFL season approaches, there is a lot of uncertainty hanging around the NFC East. The division, which many experts view as one of the strongest from top to bottom, could have four ten-win teams, or as very few people are willing to put in writing, a few teams that wind up in the top 10 of next year’s NFL draft.
And, in case you were wondering, either could be the Eagles’ fate this season.

Starting with the Birds, who Sports Illustrated picks to make it to the Super Bowl this February, the entire season hinges on the health of Donovan McNabb. During the last few weeks, I have written about the Eagles’ strength on defense and their ability to survive Kevin Curtis’ injury, but the Eagles will only go as far as SuperFive takes them. If he is healthy, the Eagles have the ability to challenge the Cowboys for NFC East supremacy, but if he goes down early, Eagles fans could be looking at a very frustrating 17 weeks.
Right now, I’m betting on a full and productive season from McNabb.
Expected finish: 11-5

Looking at the rest of the division, the Cowboys, Giants and Redskins all have the potential to win 12 games, but hopefully for us here in Eagles Country, their flaws will be greater than their strengths, and they all end up under .500 like in 2004.

According to all of the experts, the defending NFC East champion Dallas Cowboys are the best team in the division, and probably the best team in the conference. With guys like Tony Romo, Marion Barber, Jason Witten and Terrell Owens on offense, it is going to take a perfectly executed defensive game plan to shut down the Cowboys offense. At least that is how they draw it up. In reality, without other reliable options at wide receiver, teams can focus on limiting Owens and Witten, and force no-names like Isaiah Stanback and Patrick Crayton to make big plays. On defense, any time safety Roy Williams is on the field, the Cowboys are a mere pump fake away from giving up a long touchdown pass.
Expected finish: 12-4

The defending Super Bowl champion New York Giants stumbled into the playoffs last season, but turned into a world-class team in the playoffs and shut down the high-powered New England Patriots. This season, the Giants could repeat as Super Bowl champs if Eli Manning really is the nearly flawless quarterback from January and February, but if he is quarterback who tossed 20 interceptions on his way to a 73.9 quarterback rating, the Giants are in trouble. In addition to the Eli Manning enigma, the Giants lost both of their starting defense ends - Michael Strahan to retirement, and Osi Umenyiora to a knee injury - and starting safety Gibril Wilson to free agency. While Justin Tuck can replace one of the ends on the top line of the depth chart, he is the only one left from the trio of ends that posted 32 sacks last season. I have praised this defense several times since the Super Bowl, but that is a lot of talent to lose in one offseason.
Expected finish: 8-8

In recent years, the Washington Redskins have been known more for their activity from March through August, than for their play from September through February. This offseason was no exception, as they continued their hording of average wide receivers by adding two in the draft. The only problem is that both draft picks, Devin Thomas and Malcolm Kelly, missed valuable time this offseason due to injury, so they can’t be counted on to provide much production this season. On defense, the Skins added to their impressive pass rush by grabbing defense end Jason Taylor in a trade with the Miami Dolphins. In the end, much like the Eagles and the Giants, their fate resides in the hands of their quarterback, Jason Campbell. He has struggled as pro because of the constant turnover on the Redskins coaching staff, but finally some stability could be coming to D.C. I think Campbell and the Skins are still a year or two away from fully clicking on offense, so this season might count as practice for serious playoff runs in the coming years.
Expected finish: 7-9.

Regardless of whether I am right or wrong on these predictions, the NFC East is going to be a dog fight. All four of these teams probably could win any other division in the conference, and McNabb may not have been right when he said that the NFC East comes through Philadelphia, but the NFC title certainly comes through the NFC East.

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