NFC East Preview: Are They Still the NFL's Toughest Conference?

Last year proved just how tough the NFC East is, as three of the four teams (Dallas, NY, and Washington) made the playoffs, and the NY Giants surprised the world by beating the Patriots in the title game, 17-14.

This year should be another great year of NFC East football, as each team upgraded to make this year very competitive.

Dallas Cowboys

First we'll start with the defending NFC East champions—the Dallas Cowboys. Tony Romo is back as the starting quarterback. He had a very good season last year, throwing 36 scores to only 19 picks and 4,211 yards.

He started the season off with a fast start but again faded in the last three weeks, which raises a few concerns, as he did same thing in 2006. The Cowboys went 1-2 in final three weeks, and Romo threw one score with five interceptions, most of which came in a Week 15 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

He is another year wiser and another year better, and he is having a good preseason so far.

At running back, the Cowboys let Jones go to Seattle, which makes Barber the new starting running back. He was a force last year as a short-yardage back, picking up 975 yards and 10 scores while splitting time.

He averaged 4.8 yards a carry, which is amazing, and it should go up even more this year since he is now the starter. He played a great game in the playoffs against New York, picking up 129 yards and a score.

Dallas also drafted Felix Jones, a speedy back to complement Barber. He has shown flashes in the preseason of being a very good back. This should be a very good one-two combo for Dallas.

The receiver position is a bit of a question mark for Dallas, as they let Terry Glenn go. Now, the main receiver on the Cowboys' roster is Owens. Owens caught 81 balls last year while tying a career high 15 scores. With Glenn gone, he might get double covered again.

The next receiver for Romo is Patrick Crayton, who only caught 50 balls last year for seven scores. He will have to try to take some of the coverage away from Owens. The third-receiver spot is a toss-up right now. Miles Austin caught only five balls last year, but he has had a very good preseason, catching seven with one score.

The tight-ends position is a lock, with the very reliable Jason Witten holding the fort. He caught 96 balls with seven scores in 2007. He is always a very solid player.

On defense, the story of the year was the addition of Adam "Pacman" Jones. He has not played football since 2006, but so far in camp and preseason, he has looked very good, with eight tackles.

Zach Thomas came over from Miami to restart his career in Dallas in hope of a Super Bowl title. He has eight tackles in the preseason so far and has looked faster then he did in Miami.

Rounding out the defense is Ware and Williams. Both look to improve on 2007 seasons. The Cowboys should finish the season 11-5 and get into the playoffs.

New York Giants

No one expected the New York Giants to beat the 18-0 Patriots in the Super Bowl, but they did. To get to the Super Bowl, the Giants won 11-straight away games, including the NFC Championship thriller against the Packers.

Eli Manning, the Super Bowl MVP, comes back after a great postseason in which he threw six scores and only one pick. He has had a solid preseason, as he has run and thrown downfield.

Returning as the team's running backs are Jacobs, Bradshaw, and Ware. Bradshaw came to life in the playoffs, showing he has the speed and power to be a very nice complement to Jacobs.

Ware has had a very nice preseason, picking up 132 yards and averaging 6.6 yards a carry. He could become the No. 3 back. The receivers all come back from 2007, and the only real shake up is the release of Shockey. This promotes Boss to the full-time starter after a great season last year.

On defense, the Giants have a few issues. Osi Umenyiora was lost for the season with a knee injury, which makes a defensive line that was shallow even more so. Everyone knows that Strahan retired after the Championship, so that makes the defensive-end position a question mark.

The Giants want to move linebacker Kiwanuka back to his defensive end position, which he played in college. The other end spot vacated by Osi is up for grabs. The Giants lost several pieces of their secondary in the offseason, but the addition of Madison teamed with Webster will make them a solid unit.

While it is unlikely that the Giants will win the East, they should get back to the playoffs with a 9-7 record.

Philadelphia Eagles

The Philadelphia Eagles come into 2008 with very high hopes after a very active offseason. On offense, they got Lorenzo Booker in a draft-day trade and drafted speedy receiver and kick returner DeSean Jackson in the second round. He has had a great preseason, with 16 grabs and a huge punt return for a score. He is the speedy target that McNabb wanted.

L.J. Smith comes back after an injury-shortened 2007, which will provide McNabb with a red-zone target. With Smith out last year, the Eagles struggled in the red zone and in picking up short yardage. Curtis comes back at receiver after a very good first season as an Eagle. He should complement Jackson, giving McNabb a nice one-two touch. Curtis picked up 77 catches with six scores in 2007.

The third-receiver spot is up for grabs right now while Lewis struggles. Baskett has had a very good preseason and could be that other receiver.

The whole offense and fate of the Eagles will be on the shoulders of McNabb. He has missed significant time in every season since the Super Bowl, a time period in which the Eagles have made the playoffs once when Jeff Garcia took over the starting role. If McNabb stays healthy, then this team could challenge Dallas for the title.

Of course, we can't forget about Westbrook. He's always a huge weapon for the Eagles' rushing attack. He had a career year in 2007.

On defense, the Eagles picked up one of the biggest free agents out there in Asante Samuel. He was a very solid piece of the Patriots' dynasty and Super Bowl run last year. He had six picks last year and has 22 in 75 regular season games, plus five more in postseason action. He also has six picks returned for scores. Samuel leads the NFL with picks since 2006.

The Eagles' defensive secondary will be lead by the leader of the team: Brian Dawkins. He is coming off an injury-shortened season in which he only recorded 37 tackles and one interception. He should rebound this year and lead a very good secondary. He has looked decent in preseason, but his ankle now could be a problem.

At linebacker, the Eagles moved around the order of their backers. Bradley moves into the middle role, as Gaither will move back to outside backer. In the preseason, second-string MLB Mays has done a great job and could challenge for playing time.

The defensive line is the question mark here. The Eagles released Kearse in the offseason and tried to replace him in a trade by getting Clemens, but that did not work. Now, the starters are solid, with Cole and Parker at the ends. Parker picked up 37 tackles last year with five sacks.

On the inside are Bunkley and Patterson. Rookie Laws is making a push. The Eagles could be the team under the radar this year. They could finish 12-4 or 13-3 on the season and win the division.

Washington Redskins

The Redskins are a team in transition. Out is the HOF coach and in comes first-year coach Zorn. He takes over a team that finished the 2007 season strong. On offense, he has to find a way to get Campbell to mature. He only threw 12 scores and 11 interceptions in an injury-shortened season.

Zorn also has the rookie from Hawaii, Colt Brennan, who could mature into a very good quarterback. At running back, of course, is Portis. However, he has been very injury prone the last few seasons. Betts provides a good one-two punch in the backfield.

At receiver, Washington has some good weapons. Randel El is coming off a 51-grab season, Moss a 61-grab, three-touchdown season, and the best weapon on the team, Chris Cooley, who had 66 catches and eight scores in 2007. The offense is very capable of putting up points.

On defense, the Redskins went out to get Jason Taylor for a solid anchor at defensive end. Springs and Smoot provide a good secondary for the Redskins. London Fletcher is always a solid middle backer and is the heart of that defense.

They have a very tough schedule, and with a young team and a new coach, that could mean trouble. They could finish 6-10 this year.

Predicted NFC East

Philadelphia 12-4

Dallas 11-5

Giants 9-7

Redskins 6-10