The NFC East is Still a Beast

For the past few years, NFL analysts and fans have called it the “beast that is the NFC East.” Before every season it is looked at as the toughest or most balanced division in football. It has become tougher every year for the Washington Redskins to battle their way into the postseason since they have to face the Eagles, Giants, and Cowboys twice each.

The last two trips the Redskins have made to the playoffs have required four consecutive wins to end the season in 2007 and five consecutive wins in 2005. And it is only getting harder.

The NFC East has sent at least two teams to the playoffs since the 2005-2006 season, produced one Super Bowl champion with the New York Giants in 2008, and we can not forget the underdog Philadelphia Eagles of 2009 who managed to reach the conference championship, but fell short to the Arizona Cardinals.

The East is loaded with powerful defenses, a couple star quarterbacks and bruising running games.

This past season, Philadelphia’s defense finished third in yards allowed per game, followed by Washington, and New York respectively. Those three teams finished in the same order in overall defense as well.

Clinton Portis was an MVP candidate during the first half of the season before the Redskins collapsed after a 6-2 start. Donovan McNabb put his team on his back and led them deep into the playoffs after he was surprisingly benched in the middle of the game against the Baltimore Ravens.

Two running backs on the New York Giants, Brandon Jacobs and Derrick Ward (signed by Tampa Bay), both finished with over 1,000 rushing yards. And the drama-filled Dallas Cowboys still finished with a winning record of 9-7 and barely missed the playoffs.

But that was last season.

The NFC East has gone through an eventful offseason to say the least.

On the first day of free agency, the Redskins signed the highly valued Albert Haynesworth to a contract worth 100 million dollars.

Later, starting Washington quarterback Jason Campbell’s name was thrown around in trade talks with Jay Cutler and caused some drama within the organization. The Cowboys released the heart of the drama, star wide receiver Terrell Owens.

The commotion continued off the field in early May in Dallas. A scary incident occurred during a Cowboys rookie minicamp practice when the facility collapsed due to a powerful thunderstorm and hospitalized 12 people, including special teams coach Joe DeCamillis.

And it didn’t end there. Both the Giants and the Eagles drafted some much needed talent at the wide receiver position. The Giants drafted Hakeem Nicks from UNC after releasing the troubled veteran receiver Plaixco Burress in early April. The Eagles drafted Jeremy Maclin from Missouri to strengthen their receiving core.

The offseason changes of each team have drastically changed the division and each team’s chances of making the playoffs.

The Redskins drastically upgraded their defense, which was already one of the top defenses in the league. The defensive line was one of the worst in the NFL, but they filled that hole by signing pro-bowl defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth and drafting Texas defensive end Brian Orakpo; so the defense is taken care of.

It is the offense that needs to step up their game. The Philadelphia and New York defenses have also been consistently great. The Giants remained at the top of the rankings defensively despite losing defensive end Osi Umenyiora for the season due to a knee injury and Michael Strahan to retirement—and now they will have Umenyiora back.

Philadelphia’s defense was ranked in the top five overall last season and lost veteran leader Brian Dawkins, but the rest of the defense is still young. They also drafted well by getting Maclin and Pittsburgh running back LeSean McCoy. The Cowboys got rid of T.O and may have more chemistry on offense.

The “Beast” is just as balanced as it ever was in the past four years. That is not necessarily a good thing for the Redskins, or any of the teams for that matter. Washington’s playoff chances are just as good as any team in the NFC East, but it is easy to count them out after the holes the Giants and Eagles filled in the offseason.

If the Redskins make the playoffs, it will most likely be in one of the wild card spots; but in a division as balanced as the NFC East, that would not be much of a surprise. One thing is certain though, the NFC East is still a “beast” and a one of the toughest divisions in the NFL.