The NFC Least

Since 2007 only four NFC Eastern Division winners have made it past the first round. The Cowboys of 2007 and the Giants in 2008 both received first-round byes, but were unable to advance. The 2009 Cowboys defeated the Eagles in the Wild Card Round before falling to the Minnesota Vikings while the 2011 New York Giants won the Super Bowl.

Six weeks into this season the NFC East in the only division in the NFL that does not a have at least one team that is currently posting a winning record. Through six weeks of football the combined record of the four teams within the division in 7-16.

The Giants have gone from a perennial Super Bowl contender to the laughing stock of the NFL as they are 0-6. The once vaunted Giants defense is 27th in the NFL and their two-time Super Bowl MVP in quarterback Eli Manning leads the NFL in interceptions with 15. Of the Giants six losses this season, four have been decided by 15 points or more and once again the future of Giants head coach Tom Coughlin is up in the air.

The slow start of the 1-4 Redskins can be traced back to last season. On December 9, 2012 against the Baltimore Ravens, Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III suffered a knee injury that required off-season surgery on his LCL and ACL. Prior to the surgery Griffin played on the damaged knee as the Redskins hosted the Seattle Seahawks in the Wild Card Round. An ineffective Griffin could not lead the ‘Skins to victory as they lost 24-14. Griffin’s effort was valiant, but he was out there competing on one leg.

Griffin did not play this past preseason for the Redskins, but he was declared to be the team’s starting quarterback at the beginning of the season by Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan. Through five games this season Griffin has 1,448 yards passing, but the majority of that has come late in games when Washington was trailing. This season has been so dismal for the Redskins that for the first time in franchise history they lost a home game to the Detroit Lions.

Last season the Redskins boasted the top rushing attack in the NFL, but this season they are currently ranked 17th. Washington’s defense that was fifth in the NFL last season is 15th this season as they are allowing 395 yards per game. The Redskins porous defense is putting even more pressure of Griffin as he is coming back from his knee injury.

The monikers of “next year’s champions” and “the underachievers” have been attached to the Cowboys. Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo has a career playoff record of 1-3 and Dallas has failed to make the postseason since 2009. In the past two seasons the Cowboys entered Week 17 needing to win their final game against an NFC opponent in order to win the division. Both games took place on the road and the Cowboys came up short versus the Giants and Redskins respectively.

The Cowboys started this season by poking out their chests after defeating the Giants in Week One, but a win over the Giants doesn’t carry that much weight in the NFL right now. Dallas is currently 3-3, but they have not defeated a team this season that is currently sporting a winning record. To their credit the Cowboys are 2-0 within the division as they have defeated the Giants and Redskins.

Last season the Cowboys were minus-13 in the turnover column while they are plus-four this season. The defensive turnaround can be attributed to the Cowboys new defensive coordinator in Monte Kiffin who has stressed forcing turnovers.

One of the main problems that has plagued the Cowboys recently is that as soon as people are ready to anoint them as an upper echelon team in the NFL, they will lose. In the past few seasons the Cowboys have been unable to follow up a signature win with another victory which has kept them in mediocrity.

Dallas will go as far as Romo takes them. Last season Romo led the NFL in interceptions with 19, but this season he has only thrown 3 while while connecting on 14 touchdown passes. Romo has put up big numbers lately which includes him passing for more than 4,000 yards on three occasions since 2009, but he will always be remembered for not coming through when the game is on the line. In the Cowboys Week 5 loss to the Denver Broncos, Romo was up for the challenge of going against Broncos quarterback Peyton Manning. Late in the game with the score tied at 48, Romo had a chance to lead Dallas down the field for the game-winning score, but he threw an interception. For the game Romo was 25-of-36 passing with 506 passing yards and 5 touchdowns, but people will only remember the interception that allowed the Broncos to win the game by a score of 51-48.

Going forward for the Cowboys it will become tougher as defensive end DeMarcus Ware and running back DeMarco Murray will both be sidelined with injuries.

2013 has been a transition year for the Eagles. After 14 seasons as the Eagles head coach, Andy Reid was fired and he has been replaced by former University of Oregon head coach Chip Kelly. Kelly has brought the same uptempo offense to the NFL that was successful for him in college football, but it is hurting his defense.

In four of the Eagles six games this season they have lost the turnover battle which was highlighted by the San Diego Chargers and Kansas City Chiefs holding onto the football for nearly 40 minutes. The Eagles defense is last in the NFL as they are surrendering 420.2 yards per game. Like the Cowboys, the Eagles are 3-3 and they have yet to defeat a team with a winning record. The Eagles are also 2-0 within the division with their two victories coming over the Giants and Redskins.

Kelly and the Eagles can hang their hats on the fact that they have the second best offense in the NFL and the Philadelphia running game is currently the king of the mountain. Eagles running back LeSean “Shady” McCoy is leading the NFL with 630 rushing yards and he is on pace to have his best season as a pro. Once again Eagles starting quarte
rback Michael Vick is injured, but quarterback Nick Foles has stepped in to help Philadelphia get consecutive victories over the Giants and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

This Sunday the Cowboys and Eagles will meet in Philadelphia with the winner taking over sole possession of first place and also moving above the .500 mark; that is as long as the game does not finish in a tie.

The Giants and Redskins came into this season expected to contend for the division crown, but instead it has currently been a race for each of them to improve their draft position. The Giants are hopeful that Manning will cut down on the interceptions while the Redskins are waiting with baited breath for Griffin to display the ability that he had before his devastating knee injury.

There is a good possibility that the winner of the NFC East this season will be an 8-8 team or worse which more than likely mean that a team from another division within the NFC that has a winning record will be watching the playoffs from home as a spot will be taken away.

The days of former Redskins head coach George Allen and former Cowboys head coach Tom Landry going at it in legendary battles are a thing of the past. As are the epic contests in the 1980’s that featured former Giants head coach Bill Parcells, former Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs, and former Eagles head coach Buddy Ryan. Marquee games in four of the largest media markets have been replaced by games that are simply lost in the shuffle which has made the NFC East one of the worst divisions in the NFL.