NFL Power Rankings: Overrated NFC East Won't Make Any Progress

Through four weeks of the NFL season, how many people had the Washington Redskins and New York Giants at 3-1, sitting atop the NFC East?

I can't imagine too many of you have your hands in the air.

If you do have your hand in the air, take it down and give yourself a pat on the back.

However, there is a problem, as it related to their power rankings. The Redskins and Cowboys are on a bye week, this week.

Take a look at where they are and realize that they won't be making any progress from there.

The Giants host the Seahawks and are likely to progress into the Top 10. The Eagles travel to Buffalo to take on the Bills. Buffalo is still something of an unknown, but I like their chances at home.

The fact is, with the Cowboys and Eagles struggling, the NFC East is just an overrated division. The two teams that receive by far the most amount of hype are just not playing up to it.

You can make an argument that the Cowboys should be 4-0, or at least 3-1. They blew leads to the Jets and Lions. That's true, but they also had great fourth quarter comebacks against Washington and San Francisco. Dallas' record sits at a rightful 2-2.

Now, Philadelphia sits at 1-3, but have blown fourth quarter leads in every one of their losses. Unfortunately, the result at the end of four quarters—not three—is all that matters.

The Eagles' vaunted secondary has looked quite average and their front seven can't seem to do anything to defend the run. That's not a passing trend. The Eagles are in trouble, and Buffalo has the backs to expose them.

The question is, do you think the Giants and Redskins are for real? The Redskins are on a bye. They may drop a little bit this week, but they are for real.

Their defense is awfully impressive and they have the weapons on offense to work in Mike Shanahan's system.

New York is still beaten with injuries on the defensive side of the ball. At some point, you'd have to think that they will be exposed. However, until they are, you have to say that they are for real. They will certainly win this week against the lowly Seahawks.

Preseason predictions are fine. We all make them, and they make for great sports talk. Just remember that the NFL is driven by parity. In other words, it's a close league.

No judgements can be made until we see games. From what we've seen thus far, the perceived best teams of the NFC East are just not that good. 

Michael Dixon's Week 5 NFL Power Rankings

Team	Record
1. Green Bay Packers	4-0
2. Detroit Lions	4-0
3. New Orleans Saints	3-1
4. Baltimore Ravens	3-1
5. Houston Texans	3-1
6. Buffalo Bills	3-1
7. New England Patriots	3-1
8. San Diego Chargers	3-1
9. Washington Redskins	3-1
10. Tampa Bay Buccaneers	3-1
11. New York Giants	3-1
12. San Francisco 49ers	3-1
13. Tennessee Titans	3-1
14. Pittsburgh Steelers	2-2
15. Oakland Raiders	2-2
16. New York Jets	2-2
17. Chicago Bears	2-2
18. Atlanta Falcons	2-2
19. Dallas Cowboys	2-2
20. Philadelphia Eagles	1-3
21. Cincinnati Bengals	2-2
22. Carolina Panthers	1-3
23. Cleveland Browns	2-2
24. Arizona Cardinals	1-3
25. Seattle Seahawks	1-3
26. Jacksonville Jaguars	1-3
27. Denver Broncos	1-3
28. Kansas City Chiefs	1-3
29. Indianapolis Colts	0-4
30. St. Louis Rams	0-4
31. Minnesota Vikings	0-4
32. Miami Dolphins	0-4