Out of the four divisions in the NFC, the East easily looks the strongest.  With three teams that earned playoff berths last year including the defending Super Bowl champions, it's not a long stretch of the imagination to expect the NFC East to be competitive once again.

Team Overviews

1. New York Giants

It's hard to not set the bar high for the returning Super Bowl champions.  Their defense played exceptionally well down the stretch; and the offense, led by Brandon Jacobs and Eli Manning, proved it was able to make plays when necessary, although perhaps I should credit David Tyree for that.

Still, I have my reservations about the Giants. With the exception of their Wild Card game against the Buccaneers, I did not feel that the Giants were the better team in any of their playoff games.  But still credit is due to the Giants for keeping the game close to the end and winning when it counts. 

I have a few concerns regarding the Giants.  First off, although in many people's minds Eli Manning has validated himself as a good or even great quarterback in the NFL, I remain unconvinced.  Not because I'm an Eli-basher, I'm not, in actuality I felt he was unfairly criticized early on in the season.

What stands out in my mind is that Eli for the most part was only a game manager.  True, he played well during the playoffs with the world's eyes on him, but I need to see a little bit more out of him before I completely jump on the bandwagon.

My other concern is the number of valuable players the Giants lost in the off-season. However, if they continue to draft well and play with the same kind of spirit that they did last postseason, then I'll probably be eating my words not too far down the road.

2. Dallas Cowboys

The Cowboys once again found themselves bitterly disappointed at the end of the playoffs, and some might blame Tony Romo.

I've heard people call him overrated and overhyped, and although I myself have hung the moniker Tony Homo upon him, I find him to be a very good player and unfairly criticized.

Although calling him "The Next Brett Favre" seems a bit presumptuous to me (a Packer fan) his style does bear resemblance to No. 4's.  Sure, Romo does make some reckless throws, but he also makes plays and throws a ton of TDs.

Although Marion Barber was the more respected and hyped back out of the the Jones-Barber tandem, I do think that the loss of Julius Jones could be detrimental to the Cowboys' offense.

The trend in the NFL has been two-back systems, and the Cowboys had a good tandem.  Unless the Cowboys can find a quality back to compliment Barber, I have doubts that Marion Barber will carry the load as effectively without another back to help him. 

3. Washington Redskins

A coaching change, an unproven quarterback, a good but wacky running back, and a good defense seem to be the Redskins in a nutshell.

One of the biggest questions is the coaching change and how the transition from Joe Gibbs to Jim Zorn will end.

If it turns out the way the Wade Phillips and Norv Turner hirings went, then the Skins should be okay. Conversely, if it ends up like the Bobby Petrino fiasco then Skins fans won't be sitting as easily.

4. Philadelphia Eagles

Despite being fourth in the division in 2007, the Eagles still managed an 8-8 record.  The Eagles also lost a close game to the AFC Champion New England Patriots, and a tight game to the Green Bay Packers.  If those games went the other way, the Eagles would have been 10-6 and in the playoffs instead of the Redskins.

Quarterback Donovan McNabb has been criticized the last few years in Philadelphia.  McNabb is an excellent quarterback, and even if the Philly media is not always indicative about how the fans feel, I still think that McNabb is unfairly criticized.

It's my belief that this year McNabb will play back up to his normal Pro Bowl level and that Andy Reid's Eagles will make a push for the division championship.

The biggest question marks are whether the Eagles do

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