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NFL divisions don't get much more unpredictable than the NFC East.
No team has won the division in consecutive seasons since the Philadelphia Eagles claimed it four straight years from 2001-04. Philadelphia is trying to change that. The NFC East produced three playoff teams a year ago, headlined by the division champs and eventual NFC Champion Eagles. The Dallas Cowboys and New York Giants both earned Wild Card berths. The Washington Commanders finished last in the division a year ago but underwent major changes in the offseason.
Can Philadelphia break the streak and win the division for a second year in a row? Or is a different team headed for the top spot in the NFC East this year?
Here's a look at each NFC East team ahead of the new season.
Eagles: Can Philly Go On Another Super Bowl Run?
Philadelphia went 14-3 in 2022 to earn the top seed in the NFC. After cruising through the NFC playoffs, the Eagles held a 10-point lead over the Kansas City Chiefs at halftime of Super Bowl LVII. Then, Patrick Mahomes happened. The two-time league MVP led Kansas City on four second-half scoring drives and Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker hit a game-winning field goal with eight seconds remaining.
The Eagles lost to the Chiefs 38-35, to fall just short of winning their second Super Bowl in franchise history.
Does Philadelphia have what it takes to make it to the big game again?
Well, re-signing their Pro Bowl quarterback certainty wasn't a bad start. Jalen Hurts and the Eagles agreed to a five-year, $255 million contract extension this offseason that will keep him in Philadelphia through 2028. The 25-year-old is entering his fourth NFL season and finished second in MVP voting a year ago.
Hurts will have his center back again this season. Jason Kelce opted to put off retirement and return for his 13th year with the Eagles. There are plenty of players from last year's team not returning, however. Philadelphia lost its leading rusher from last season, Miles Sanders, as well as C.J Gardner-Johnson, Javon Hargrave, and other defensive starters in free agency. Meanwhile, the Eagles added running back D'Andre Swift via trade and a pair of first-round defenders in April's NFL Draft. Despite all the roster movement, is Philadelphia good enough to break the NFC East jinx? Vegas seems to think so.
DraftKings Sportsbook gives the Eagles -135 odds to win the NFC East this season as of Tuesday morning, the best of any team in the division. The Cowboys have the second-best odds (+195), followed by the Giants (+900) and Commanders (+1300).
Commanders: Will Eric Bieniemy Fix the Offense?
The NFL finalized a $6.05 billion sale of the Washington Commanders to a group led by Josh Harris this offseason, ending Dan Snyder's tumultuous 24-year run as the franchise's owner. Washington fans celebrated the sale, perhaps more than just about anything the team accomplished during the Snyder reign.
Aside from a change in ownership (and maybe another name change?), there were plenty of other adjustments within the organization this offseason, particularly on offense.
Head coach Ron Rivera fired offensive coordinator Scott Turner after the Commanders finished 24th in the league in scoring last season. Enter Eric Bieniemy. Washington hired Bieniemy, Kansas City's OC for the last five seasons, to lead their offense. But Commanders fans won't just get to see a new offensive system this season, but a new quarterback on the field to lead it.
Washington is turning to second-year signal-caller Sam Howell in 2023. The 2022 fifth-round pick started the Commanders' regular-season finale last year. Howell completed 11-of-19 passes for 169 yards, a touchdown, and an interception in a win over the Cowboys.
Rivera said recently that he didn't always know what he had in Howell.
"You can ask [my wife], all we ... talked about was the quarterback, what the quarterback did, who he was," Rivera said of Howell Monday, via Sports Illustrated's Albert Breer. "I kept saying, '... if I would have known this, I would have played him sooner.' When you only have so much time to show it, it's hard, I kept thinking, 'God' ... but after that game, everything told me this kid, give him the opportunity and see what he does with it."
Is a new offense enough for the Commanders to go from worst to first? After three mediocre seasons in a row, Rivera's job might depend on it.
Cowboys: Is This a Make-or-Break Year for Mike McCarthy?
The Cowboys lost to the San Francisco 49ers in the playoffs after a 12-5 campaign for the second time in as many years last season. Cowboys owner/general manager Jerry Jones initially declined to confirm publicly if he was bringing head coach Mike McCarthy back for a fourth season. But McCarthy is back for in Dallas, and all his metaphorical chips are on the table this upcoming campaign.
Dallas and offensive coordinator Kellen Moore mutually agreed to part ways after last season. In Moore's four years leading the Cowboys' offense, Dallas ranked inside the top 10 in scoring three times.
McCarthy is taking play-calling responsibilities into his own hands this season.
"This is the most fun I've had since I've been in Dallas," McCarthy told reporters about leading the offense earlier this offseason. "Just to be in the meeting room again with the coaches full time. Just to go 8 to 11:30 and break, and you're talking nothing but scheme. I haven't had that. So that part's different."
McCarthy called plays during his tenure as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers. And the Cowboys offense appears to be set up for success heading into the season. Quarterback Dak Prescott is surrounded by playmakers, from Tony Pollard to CeeDee Lamb. And Tyron Smith and Zack Martin are still anchoring the offensive line. Combine that with a defense that ranked fifth in points allowed and first in turnovers forced in 2022, and expectations are high in Dallas.
But if the McCarthy-led offense isn't good enough to end a string of playoff disappointments in Dallas, the Cowboys could look to start fresh.
Giants: Can New York Build on Daboll's First Season?
The Giants were coming off five consecutive losing seasons, including two particularly disastrous campaigns under the leadership of Joe Judge, going into the 2022 season. Still, the Giants managed to win nine games under first-year head coach Brian Daboll, earn a Wild Card spot, and upset the Minnesota Vikings in the first round of the playoffs. It marked the first postseason victory for the Giants in 11 years.
Not a bad way to kick off a coaching tenure.
Daboll earned NFL Coach of the Year honors after his first season leading the G-Men. The Giants reloaded for another playoff race this offseason by signing quarterback Daniel Jones to a new four-year, $160 million contract. Two-time Pro Bowl running back Saquon Barkley is also back in New York, somewhat reluctantly, on a one-year deal after long-term contract negotiations with the team stalled. And Jones will have a new favorite target to throw to this year—former Las Vegas Raiders tight end Darren Waller, whom the team traded for in March.
Jones spent the first three years of his NFL career not quite looking like the franchise QB the Giants envisioned when they took him No. 6 overall in 2019. But in his first year playing under Daboll, the 6-foot-5, 221-pounder set career highs in completion percentage, passing yards, and QBR, while throwing a career-low five interceptions.
Can Jones continue to grow in his fifth season? That will be a good indication of whether Daboll and the Giants can build off of their playoff appearance.
"We're confident," Jones said this offseason, via the New York Post, "and we know we can compete with anybody."
About the writer
Robert Read is a Life & Trends Reporter at Newsweek based in Florida. His background is primarily in sports journalism ... Read more