The NFC East is considered by many to be the best division in football. However, last season just one team made the playoffs and they were knocked out in the Wild Card round. Going into last season everyone thought Kelvin Kolb would be the man in Philadelphia. Then he was injured in Week 1, Mike Vick came in, played tremendously and never looked back. On his back the Eagles rode their way to a division championship. The Dallas Cowboys entered 2010 with high hopes of playing at home in the Super Bowl. Instead, they got off to a slow start, Tony Romo got injured, Wade Phillips got fired and they missed the playoffs. The Giants had a solid season at 10-6 but it wasn't good enough as they missed the playoffs for a second straight season. Another missed playoff berth and that might be the end of the road for Tom Coughlin. The Washington Redskins gambled and tried to win now with Donovan McNabb. It blew up in their faces and the Skins are now in year 18 of their rebuilding plan.1. Philadelphia Eagles
2010 Record: 10-6, 1st place NFC East
Head Coach: Andy Reid (13th season Philadelphia, 128-82-1 career)
Key Additions: OG Danny Watkins, RB Ronnie Brown, K Alex Henery, QB Vince Young, WR Steve Smith, CB Nnamdi Asomugha, DE Jason Babin, DT Cullen Jenkins, CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, OT Ryan Harris
Key Losses: QB Kevin Kolb, G Max Jean-Gilles, K David Akers, SS Quintin Mikell, DT Broderick Bunkley, LB Stewart Bradley, LB Ernie Sims
2011 Outlook: The Miami Heat of the NFL. The Dream Team. Those are just some of the nicknames given to the Eagles after the splash they made in free agency. The Eagles signed a lot of big names, but none bigger than CB Nnamdi Asomugha. Asomugha signed a few days after the Eagles traded Kevin Kolb for Arizona CB Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. Many thought that meant the end of Asante Samuels Eagles career but it appears the Eagles may play all three corners at once. They should have the most formidable secondary in football. They also added Cullen Jenkins and Jason Babin to their defensive line. Put those two in the mix with underrated Trent Cole and that's a fearsome group. It was necessary for the Eagles to improve the defense, especially after their struggles last season. Juan Castillo is the new defensive coordinator, moving over from being the offensive line coach. Many are skeptical about how well Castillo will do, but he doesn't have a lack of talent. Offensively, as long as Vick stays healthy the Eagles will remain one of the most exciting teams in the league. LeSean McCoy has Ronnie Brown joining him in the backfield. DeSean Jackson and Jeremy Maclin are both speed demons and capable of making big plays. They signed Steve Smith from the Giants and if he returns to full health he could contribute, as people forget how productive he was in New York. Heck, if Vick remembers he has Brent Celek on his team that is another great option. Two road games to open the season is tough but they are certainly winnable and the schedule lightens after that. I expect another NFC East championship for Philadelphia, and anything less than a Super Bowl championship will be considered a failure.
Prediction: 11-5
2. Dallas Cowboys
2010 Record: 6-10, 3rd place NFC East
Head Coach: Jason Garrett (1st season Dallas, 5-3 career)
Key Additions: OT Tyron Smith, FS Abram Elam
Key Losses: RG Leonard Davis, C Andre Gurode, OT Marc Colombo, RB Marion Barber, WR Roy Williams, WR Sam Hurd, DE Stephen Bowen
2011 Outlook: Recent history suggests that the Cowboys don't deal well with high expectations. Each time they have had high expectations they have fallen flat on their faces. Then you look at a season like 2009, when they had very little buzz surrounding them, and they went out and finally won a playoff game. 2011 is similar to 2009 in that not many are talking about the Cowboys. That is the main reason I like them to get back to the playoffs this season. QB Tony Romo is back and despite ludicrous statements from some that he should compete with Jon Kitna for his job, he is the guy. Romo was putting up some very good numbers for his injury and is a much better quarterback than people give him credit for. Marion Barber is gone, giving Felix Jones the starting running back spot. Jones has looked really good in preseason and has shown flashes of being an electrifying back. Dez Bryant takes over the #2 receiver spot with bum Roy Williams out of Dallas. Bryant has had some character issues but there is no denying his talent. Him and Miles Austin, along with Jason Witten give the Cowboys a formidable passing attack. The offensive line is a huge question mark for Dallas. They are replacing more than half of the unit and the success of their season will hinge on how quickly the new group meshes. Defense was non-existent in Dallas last season. They gave up the most points in franchise history, putting in place their move to bring in Rob Ryan as defensive coordinator. The last name Ryan brings plenty of cache but Rob hasn't proven himself near the level of his brother Rex or father Buddy. The personnel isn't much different from last year so if the Cowboys show some improvement, that will be a feather under the cap for Rob. This is a talented team that was screaming for a coach to go with that talent. I think Jason Garrett isn't anything special but he will be better and hold players far more accountable than Wade Phillips ever did.
Prediction: 10-6
3. New York Giants
2010 Record: 10-6, 2nd place NFC East
Head Coach: Tom Coughlin (8th season New York, 141-114 career)
Key Additions: CB Prince Amukamara, C/G David Baas, OL Stacy Andrews, QB David Carr
Key Losses: WR Steve Smith, FB Madison Hedgecock, C Shaun O'Hara, G/C Rich Seubert, OL Shawn Andrews, TE Kevin Boss, LB Chase Blackburn, DT Barry Cofield
2011 Outlook: Giants fans are panicking. Two straight years of missing the playoffs, followed by an off-season of missing out on free agents, losing free agents, and then a rash of injuries to their cornerbacks has them concerned. QB Eli Manning is solid but not spectacular and needs to stop making the stupid amount of mistakes that he did last year. Eli has a propensity to throw the ball in tight spots and just make bone headed plays that make you wonder if he is blind. He has some great targets to throw to in Hakeem Nicks and Mario Manningham. He isn't sure who he can rely on at tight end with the departure of Kevin Boss. The running game will once again be led by Ahmad Bradshaw, with Brandon Jacobs backing him up. Both had fumble issues last year, something the Giants hope the off-season helped to cure. The offensive line, which had been stable for years, is undergoing many changes. Shaun O'Hara and Rich Seubert were released as the Giants felt they had to get younger. The defense struggled a ton last season and most of that has to do with them not having the players at linebacker they are used to. They were hoping that they improved the cornerback position with the drafting of Prince Amukumara, but now they will be without him for half of the season. DE Osi Umenyiora is not happy about his contract situation and Tom Coughlin has to make sure it doesn't become a distraction. The schedule is forgiving early on so the Giants might get off to a fast start, but it ends rough and I think the Giants have too much turmoil and question marks to make the playoffs this season.
Prediction: 8-8
4. Washington Redskins
2010 Record: 6-10, last place NFC East
Head Coach: Mike Shanahan (2nd season Washington, 160-113 career)
Key Additions: LB Ryan Kerrigan, G Chris Chester, WR Jabar Gaffney, WR Donte Stallworth, RB Tim Hightower, P Sav Rocca, NT Barry Cofield, DE Stephen Bowen, CB Josh Wilson, FS O.J. Atogwe
Key Losses: QB Donovan McNabb, OT Stephon Hyer, C Casey Rabach, RB Clinton Portis, CB Carlos Rogers, DT Albert Haynesworth, DE Vonnie Holliday, LB Chris Wilson, DL Phillip Daniels, DE Andre Carter
2011 Outlook: Rex Grossman, John Beck, Kellen Clemens. No, that isn't a list of players that are currently playing in the UFL, that is the Redskins quarterback depth chart. Donovan McNabb was so bad, fat and lazy last year that the Redskins have convinced themselves that a trio of bums gives them a better chance. The first guy to get a shot will be Rex Grossman who was announced as the starter yesterday. Aside from the questions at quarterback some bright spots have appeared. The Redskins may actually have a pretty good running game. The trade for Tim Hightower is looking brilliant right now and his backup, Ryan Torain is also the kind of power runner that Mike Shanahan loves. Even rookie Roy Helu is a possible option to contribute immediately. The Skins got Santana Moss some help, trading for underrated Jabar Gaffney. They go two deep at tight end with Chris Cooley and Fred Davis. The parts are there, but alas, without a good quarterback it probably won't matter. Shanahan decided last year that a defense that had been Top 10 for most of the 2000s needed fixing. So he brought in crappy defensive coordinator Jim Haslett and switched to the 3-4. However, they had a bunch of players that were more comfortable with the 4-3 and the results were disastrous. This year, to their credit they jettisoned most of those guys and brought in players that could play their defense. If Haslett can't get improvement out of the defense this year, it might be time to look for another guy to run the 3-4. The Skins early season schedule is favorable, and it isn't crazy to think they could start 6-2 if everything goes right. However, the last half is brutal and they don't have the talent to make the playoffs facing that brutal of a schedule. I expect the Skins will lose some games in the early going that they "should" win and that will lead to a craptastic season. However, I believe there is hope for the future and that the Skins are finally starting to bring in some young talent. It is a matter of finding the quarterback that can properly lead that talent.
Prediction: 5-11, not very good as Steve Spurrier once said
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