NFC East: Who Comes out on Top This Season?

Al Bello/Getty Images

Every year the NFC East is one of the, if not the most, competitive divisions in football. The rivalries are as fierce as it gets and there is almost always something on the line when these teams meet up.

Last year the Eagles won the division at 10-6. I think it is almost certain that it will take a stronger season than that to win it this year.

Regardless of what happens this year in the standing though, I'm sure everyone will be excited to watch how these teams perform. Will Philly's free agency moves pay off? Can Tony Romo and the Cowboys bounce back from a disappointing 2010 campaign? Will the Giants ever finish the season as well as they start? And of course, will Washington be competing for the chance to draft Andrew Luck in 2012?

All of these questions will be answered shortly. Thanks for reading and please feel free to comment and give me your thoughts.

4. Washington Redskins (3-13)

Mitchell Layton/Getty Images

What can I say, I guess I'm just not a strong believer in John Beck. At least they have Rex Grossman, right? Yeah I know what you're thinking, this is the worst QB situation in the league outside of Carolina.  They may even be worse then them. 

Add in a pretty poor group of running backs, a shaky offensive line, a solid at best receiving corps and you have what is one of the worst offenses in the NFL. They could and probably should be swept in the division this year.

With that being said, there is some hope for you Redskins fans out there. Maybe if your team is bad enough you can snag one of the most highly-touted prospects of all time in Stanford QB Andrew Luck— that is, if the Bills don't beat you to him.

3. New York Giants (8-8)

Nick Laham/Getty Images

The Giants are certainly a hard team to figure out. They always look like a Super Bowl contender early on in the season, then implode and miss the playoffs all by their own undoing.

Eli Manning is a turnover machine and I don't expect too much to change this year, though he should be a little bit more tamed than his 25-interception season last year.

Despite that horrendous stat, he did throw for 4,002 yards (fifth in the NFL) and 31 touchdowns (fourth).  However, he needs to cut down on the mistakes if they are going to have any chance at making the playoffs this year and I just don't see that happening to the extent that it needs to.

The Giants didn't improve their roster at all in the offseason; in fact they went slightly in the wrong direction. Expect a mediocre season with a lot of ups and downs.

2. Dallas Cowboys (9-7)

Tom Pennington/Getty Images

The Cowboys are coming off of a huge disappointment of a season. They were early NFC East and even Super Bowl favorites and found themselves ending the year at an ugly 6-10.

They return with a healthy Tony Romo and Dez Bryant. Both of those players will give the offense a much needed boost. 

They team also seemed to play much better under then interim head coach Jason Garrett. I feel that the attitude a team plays with is very much a reflection of the head coach. Under Wade Phillips there was none. That should be a big improvement in that aspect of the game for Dallas this season.

Look for the Cowboys to make a push at the playoffs, but ultimately come up short with just too many good teams trying to crash the party this year.

1. Philadelphia Eagles (12-4)

Al Bello/Getty Images

First off I know I'm very well hated right now by Eagles fans thanks to this, but let me remind you that in that piece I stated that I predicted that the Eagles would still win the NFC East even though I found them to be overrated and undeserving of being NFC favorites.

With all of that being said let's talk about why they are the best team in their division. Bottom line, the Eagles won last year and no team in the East has improved past that team, and to add to that the Eagles improved themselves.

They have holes, but so do the Cowboys, Giants and Redskins. The difference is they have more then enough talent to overcome them compared to those teams.

Look for the Eagles to make a good playoff run by my standards, but fall short by the standard ESPN and many fans are now holding them too.

I think this team will make it as far as the NFC Championship game, but no further.