The NFC East Can't Be This Fraudulent, Can It?

For a division that perennially defines tough, power football, this year’s version of the NFC East is softer than a feather pillow.

With the New York Giants, Dallas Cowboys, and Philadelphia Eagles all playing like they’d rather auction off their potential playoff berth on eBay, there’s no other way to say it.

Maybe we’ve become spoiled with a division that typically gives us three solid football teams that grind each other into pulp well into December before sending at least one legit Super Bowl contender into the playoffs.

But count all of that as irrelevant now.

As we set our sights and stomachs on Thanksgiving, we don’t know what we have in the NFC other than the fact that the New Orleans Saints, at 9-0, are assembling their outfit for their looming date with perfection, and the Minnesota Vikings don’t appear to be going away anytime soon.

The Cowboys woke up Sunday leading the East at 6-2, and drawing rave reviews from the masses after going into Philly last week and beating the Eagles.

We thought Tony Romo was finally starting to become the type of quarterback that is capable of leading a Super Bowl contender. He is done with his former costly error-ridden ways, isn’t he?

Miles Austin had emerged as a quality go-to target for Romo, and helped the Cowboys move into the top-10 in passing in the NFL.

Marion Barber is still a tough load to bring down, Jason Witten creates mismatches at tight end, and the Dallas defense uses a daunting pass rush to rank seventh in total defense.

All of that was last week.

Once Dallas walked into Lambeau Field to play the Packers Sunday, they were a different team.

The 'Boys couldn’t run the football. Multiple drives were mitigated by costly holding penalties. When Romo had his chance to pick up the offense, to show that he is indeed for real and determined to leap to the next level of efficient quarterback play, he got choked up. With a 78.0 passer rating, consider the opportunity to make a statement missed.

A touchdown pass to Roy Williams in the final minute was the only thing that kept Dallas from being shutout, but the 17-7 Green Bay victory had already been sealed.

When the game hung in the balance, Romo did what he has become known for. He turned the ball over.

Romo tried to force a throw—not surprising given that Dallas couldn’t muster anything on offense through the first three quarters—Charles Woodson picked Romo off in the end zone and the cheeseheads celebrated.

This was a chance for Dallas to build on their momentum, take a tiny bit of control over the division, and begin formulating a game plan for the Redskins. But a loss to a Green Bay team that can’t protect their quarterback and failed to beat the 1-8 Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week puts Dallas right back on the bottom of the trust totem pole.

Next week's game against Washington—which beat the Broncos Sunday, but is nothing more than a spoiler in their own division—would have been a lock if the Cowboys handled their business at Green Bay.

Now? It’s a trap game, as the Redskins gained some confidence and the wrath of Jerry Jones will be a bit hotter this week.

The Eagles entered Week 10 in second place in the NFC East at 5-3, but you may as well roll dice to determine how they are going to perform from week to week. After beginning the season 4-1 with their only loss coming against the Saints, the Eagles were a popular pick to play deep into January.

Donovan McNabb was back after suffering a cracked rib against Carolina in the season-opener, Brian Westbrook was as healthy as he will ever be, and rookie Jeremy Maclin joined DeSean Jackson to form one of the most potent receiving duos in the league.

Things were looking up for Philly, and any preconceived notions that Michael Vick would be a distraction were proven to be false.

Then came a 13-9 loss to the Oakland Raiders.

Banging on the Eagles after losing to the Raiders is a waste of time. The game was so bad we didn’t need to drill it any deeper; we got the picture. I even wrote it off as a fluke.

And I felt good about that proclamation after the Eagles beat the Redskins the following week and then turned the G-Men into a laundry basket of grass stains and blue welts. The 40-17 shellacking dropped on New York signified Philly’s arrival as NFC heavy hitters.

After the aforementioned loss to Dallas, the Eagles met the Chargers in San Diego this Sunday, and Philip Rivers out-dueled an NFC QB for the second week in a row.

San Diego was favored in the game, and now appears to be gearing up to snatch the AFC West title from Denver, but these spurts of mediocrity don’t blanket championship teams.

Philly has scored the fourth most points in the NFL, and that is without a major contribution from Westbrook. They have a top-10 defense. They should be better than this.

The Giants, enjoying a timely Week 10 bye, are like a drunk man stumbling down Broadway. Sway right, sway left, purge ahead, trip.

New York gets immediate respect because they have a quality coach who is coarser than sand paper, a quarterback in Eli Manning that has already won a Super Bowl, and a defense that lives to draw blood. But perhaps it’s time we scale back that instant respect.

The Giants looked good through the first five weeks of the season, posting a 5-1 record as Manning broke in new receivers such as Mario Manningham and Hakeem Nicks to help Steve Smith make up for the loss of Plaxico Burress. The problem is, four of those victories came against Washington, Tampa Bay, Kansas City, and Oakland.

That was the cream puff part of the schedule.

Enter New Orleans, Arizona, Philly, and San Diego, and the Giants have lost four in a row. I assume that New York will come out rejuvenated against Atlanta next week, but assumptions are precisely what got us here in the first place.

The NFC East has far too much talent to play like the NFC West, but at some point we need to see it.

At some point we need to see the Giants get back to pounding the football and winning close games (Bengals, anyone?).

At some point we need to see Romo spend more time in the end zone than eating sod.

At some point we need to see the Eagles open up their offense and utilize the speed they have.

If not, it’s going to be Favre and Brees gliding to the NFC Championship Game and playing for the right to face the AFC’s best in Miami come February.

That would be a phenomenal show, but it will leave us all wondering what could have been.

You can reach Teddy Mitrosilis at [e-mail].