Goes along with the OL projections and the Giants comfort with their TE situation..
I think and have thought that this division was as strong as most..People tend to forget that many losses incurred by our division last year were of the last second or midway into the 4th qtr variety. Dallas had Peyton on the ropes last year..
38 on the Saints, came back from a 21 point deficit against the Rams...
You can't discount their success and praise ours. Who have we actually beaten? That could be said about us.
I do think last night was a bit of revenge for last years ass whoopin that the Saints laid on them.
Their Defense looked ok last night. I know Fatcessa was telling a Boys fan that their defense was terrible in the beginning of the year. They didn't look that bad yesterday.
I would say until proven otherwise..
the ranking is:
1. Seahawks
2. Cardinals
3. Lions
4. Boys
5. Eagles
Are the teams to beat right now.
The Giants are located lumped in the middle of the pack with the other 2&2's for now.
Beat the Eagles and maybe the Boys,, and then we would be cooking with fire.
4 mediocre teams. any of them can win on any given Sunday. It's all about who shows more consistency on the remaining Sundays. Washington obviously in the hole.
Because the only time they've played one, they looked horrendous. Which, no doubt had a lot to do with Romo's health to be fair.. but the Saints defense is embarrassingly bad. The Rams and Titans aren't far off.
I think this is a legitimate 3 team race.
Not to be too simplistic, but its really more about what the Giants Â
I think the Giants' offense is going to be just fine (and maybe a lot better than "just fine" when OB is up to speed).
I said before the season I was more worried about the D and that remains true. The offense is going to get nothing but stronger as the season progresses. I am, however, fairly happy with how they have played thus far. But, at the end of the day, I think this Giants team takes them as far as their weakest link - which I continue to believe is the D.
So, F*ck the Eagles and Cowboys. I'm not worried about them. I'm focused solely and singularly on the Giants. Take care of business and it won't matter how good the rest of the division is (or isn't).
can sugar-coat it any way we want, but that was an impressive performance by Dallas last night.
Yes but the Saints looked like crapola on both sides of the ball. Seems to me the 49ers and Saints have both regressed by a bunch...
Vax and WHY when you get to the NFCC 3 years in a row you have to win it all at least once as the Niners have proven and the Jets proved(twice), because you can fall off completely and never get back..I would be extremely surprised if the Niners get back a 4th straight time
For 2 weeks ive been thinking NFC EAST
may be best NFC div....49ers...seattle....saints..
atl....GB....bears...dont look as scary as eagles. .
Dallas and giants..
Dallas has played well against three crappy defenses. Eagles lost to a tough San Francisco team.
This actually fits the script: the Cowboys will beat bad team and the Eagles will lose to really good ones. I still have the former at 7-9 and the latter at 9-7.
Giants? Sorry, but I still think this is not a .500 team.
is if the Giants can figure out how to cover a screen pass, we might win this thing. If, and this is a big if, our OL continues to improve and play like it has the last two weeks, we have, by far, the most balanced team in the division.
Cowboys O-line does look good which is no surprise. Â
And until proven otherwise, they still have a handful of guys on Offense that we have typically not played well against...Romo, Murray, Witten and Dez.
Missed first half of last nights game so not sure how Saints could not score a point against Dallas Defense though...
has played crappy teams. Give them credit for an outstanding OL, coming back against the Rams, and hammering the Titans and the Saints. But our competition, especially the Lions, the Cardinals, and the Texans, is much better. We hammered the Texans and the Redskins, and should have beaten Arizona. We decided instead to beat ourselves.
I have no faith in the Dallas secondary. Claiborne was never very good, but now apparently has a torn ACL. Scandrick was also hurt last night.
The Eagles are just a mess right now, especially at the OL. Foles is taking a beating. Even the Redskins, who basically never touched Manning, pounded him.
We'll know more in a few weeks when we travel to Philly and Dallas. But first we need to roll Atlanta.
Philly is not playing as well as I thought they would; their record masks some bad football. But, a lot of what they're doing wrong can be corrected and they could catch fire.
The Dallas OL is pretty damn good, but hasn't been tested by anything but subpar defenses. They could catch fire, too or go down in flames. And there's always the Romo factor -- he's gonna put up numbers, but I imagine he'll find a way to blow it down the line.
The Cowboys were supposed to have an atrocious defense with losing Sean Lee for the year being the final nail. They've been anything but..Their O is as good as any in football, imv, certainly near the top..A healthy Romo, mistakes and all can be lethal..He's the one QB I fear the most when we play him..
Feminizing the Shegals and Cowturds does not diminish the apparent fact that they can play with anyone. They will be a load for us and the rest of the NFL imo..Of course we will see how that plays out, but we are in a pretty strong division as I see it
I have been feeling somewhat cautiously optimistic that we will be in the fight all season.
Not sure how to rate the Eagles!! Even yesterday with their offense shut down they were still in it at the end. 21 points off special team and defense not to be sneered at!!
The Cowboys are somewhat fooling me. I did not think they would win more than 5 games and now they look like they too could be in it for a while. Of course this year still has the month of December in it for Mr. Romo.
We destroyed the Washington football team on Thursday but I am not ready to say we are a dominant team. If we go 2-1 before the bye then we will be a team no one will want to play.
Let’s Go Giants.
But I see it as Dallas and NYG battling for the east crown. I think those are the two best teams in this division.
Dallas D is playing well but they can be had. Their O is filthy good. Giants O is playing well but probably has some hiccups in their future. Uptempo offenses like this one where the QB is getting rid of the ball quickly can show limitations. We will have really good moments and we probably will struggle. But with that said The giants D is pretty talented and probably has a stretch of dominant play in them-- they can cover up some warts hopefully.
Next few weeks are huge. Both the giants and cowboys are gaining a lot of confidence while Philly has to doubting themselves a bit. They haven't beaten anyone legit and had that game yesterday giftwrapped against a good team and couldn't close. That was a telling game in my eyes. Philly will struggle more and more.
watching the games yesterday, I was impressed with the Cowboy's defense, their speed and intensity. The Eagles, on the other hand, made me wonder why anybody could have thought they would be a dangerous force.
Re: the Cowboys. Was it the Saints ineptness? Maybe, but I have thought that with Brees, Colston (sp?) they'd have shown themselves better than what they did.
The Eagles/Niners game was too much of a mistake-ridden, penalty receiving mess for me, at least, to get a good sense of these teams, except to see that the Eagles offense looks flat and unproductive.
But I see it as Dallas and NYG battling for the east crown. I think those are the two best teams in this division.
Dallas D is playing well but they can be had. Their O is filthy good. Giants O is playing well but probably has some hiccups in their future. Uptempo offenses like this one where the QB is getting rid of the ball quickly can show limitations. We will have really good moments and we probably will struggle. But with that said The giants D is pretty talented and probably has a stretch of dominant play in them-- they can cover up some warts hopefully.
Next few weeks are huge. Both the giants and cowboys are gaining a lot of confidence while Philly has to doubting themselves a bit. They haven't beaten anyone legit and had that game yesterday giftwrapped against a good team and couldn't close. That was a telling game in my eyes. Philly will struggle more and more.
I rarely disagree with you and your general level-headedness through the years, but I think the Eagles are also the team to beat and will be a force all year..
The Cowboys are a tough out, but they are terribly thin. Â
Looks like Claiborne tore his ACL, which leaves basically nothing behind Carr and Scandrick. Bust though he may have been, Claiborne leaves a big hole at nickel. If Carter's quad lingers, the front seven gets much weaker too, and it was never a strength, even before Lee went down.
As long as their offense remains intact, Dallas will be a dangerous team. But look at what they have behind their key guys: Romo, Bryant, Murray, Witten, and all the starting linemen, especially Smith. The drop-off is enormous. Of course, no NFL team has enough depth, but the Cowboys are an extreme case.
Philly is worse than we thought. The Redskins are a mediocre team.
The Dallas offense is very good but we expected that. Very good OL with talent at QB, RB, TE and WR. The D has been better than expected but I'm not sold they are better than average.
Philly's success last year depended om McCoy, Jackson and the novelty of their offense. Two of the three are gone. Their D is average.
The Giants have the best balance offense/defense and the best defense overall. The DL is 7 deep in contributors and the secondary has 3 pro-bowl level players and some good fill ins. The return of Beason would be a real plus. I think they have the best QB and a much better OL than anyone expected. The offensive skill positions are solid with some real upside.
The top three teams appear close enough for the division to be decided by injuries, or by the outcomes of a few tight games. You can't even write off the Redskins yet, because they will get some important pieces back over the next few weeks.
We'll know at the bye whether the Giants really deserve to be part of the conversation. If they win two of the next three - especially if they beat Philly and Dallas - they are probably in the race for the long haul. If they lose both of those division games, they will join Washington in the also-ran category, with a very steep hill to climb and games against three playoff teams looming after the bye.
*Some very impressive left tackle play. Tyron Smith is my 1st team All Pro - he looks like one of the best players in the league. Trent Williams is also an elite player. Peters is a step behind them IMO but still Pro Bowl-quality - that gives an idea as to the top shelf talent. Beatty is 4th but is having an excellent year.
*Defensively - we're the best.
*Quarterback - we're the best.
*Coaching - Coughlin is the best - but staff's as a whole? Still may be the Giants. If the offense is for real McAdoo may be the hottest Head Coach candidate in the league. Groomed 9 years by McCarthy, runs a modern NFL offense, in his 30's. Under this scenario - success with Giants. Developed Rodgers and Eli. A team looking to start over and have a good offense will be all over him.
Would suck to lose him. Wonder what his aspirations are?
I am trying to be very cautious about my optimism Â
In 2012 we beat the snot out of the Saints. Put up 52 points or something like that. The following week we got shut out by Atlanta and gave up 30 something. The Giants have always been a very inconsistent team under TC and until they prove otherwise, I am trying to keep my enthusiasm under control as hard as it it.
Our wins aren't against any better of opponent then the Cowboys Â
If we are going to pat ourselves on the back for throttling bad teams, we need to acknowledge that our rival is doing the same thing. The jury is still out on both of us.
at the pro level has a short shelf life. That being said, they have had some injuries on their Oline plus Johnson's suspension. But their D is pitiful. Not as good as we may have thought but still a good team.
As for Dallas, they have got to prove it to me on a consistent basis before I see them as any kind of contender. NO has proved over the last number of years that they are like any dome team meaning they have trouble on the road. I suspect the score might have been reversed if the game had been played in New Orleans.
Washington has some talent but they are messed up from the top although their secondary is bad. We are okay but I have strong feelings about how bad our special teams continue to be. I think we are getting it offensively and the D has to stop giving up big plays but the one thing holding us back is the ST unit.
I'll go with watered down, declining product for $500 Alex... Â
who the hell knows what any of these teams are? One guy can get injured anywhere and it'll all change tomorrow. Right now, they've all had very inconsistent seasons - looking very good at times, really bad at others.
The only sure thing at this point is that nobody knows what the hell the NFC East is worth.
from the beginning. He's a homer but he could be right.
Depends on how you define a good team.
Washington is without argument the doormat, they can stop the run but don't do anything else very well.
Dallas has a good offense, their O line makes everything go, Romo will look good until December (again). The Cowboys D has been getting beaten like Adrian Peterson was their father. They almost blew that lead last night, Jimmy Graham doesn't fumble with 3:30 left to go in the third it's a 14 point game.
Philly's defense is just as bad as the Cowboys. Chip Kelley's system is intellectual, when's the last time you saw a smart Eagles' player? They don't get it. With MCCoy ineffective, Foles will have to throw too much, he'll make mistakes. Philly is probably the most individually talented team here but they do not play as a cohesive unit.
The Giants make or break the NFC East as a good or weak division. If the Jints suck, the division is a weak one, if they are contenders then it's a tough division.
We have the best balance, the best QB and the best HC. We have heart. Hard work, determination and playing as a unit will beat talent more often than not.
*disclaimer: wether the division is considered tough or weak by NFL standards, there are no easy games between divisional rivals in the NFC east...
is a lot better than we thought. Defensively, they struggled so bad last season that people thought it would be worse but in fact, they've been just ok. They did fairly well on a strong Saints offense. You can only beat the teams you are playing.
Eagles offense has taken a step back, it could have been the opponent but they are still a dangerous offensive team. Defensively, they are having their struggles but are still a tough team.
Redskins are mediocre, they do one thing right and not much else.
suspension. They just don't appear to be the same since then. Yes, they're older, yes they are missing some parts(Sproles, what were they thinking), but the swagger seems to have waned since bountygate..I am allowing for the fact that that's all in my head..:)
that was a west coast road trip game and maybe just a blip
I'm impressed with the way Foles throws the ball and his skill players - The Eagles D and Oline is what is suspect right now
The Cowboys looked very good last night in all phases of the game - they are a team to be reckoned with - Romo looked really good - the defense looked really good
But the Giants are better than anyone suspected as well - and it's a marathon not a sprint -
1/4 way into the season and it's a race between three teams - Eagles, Cowboys and Giants
before the Bye to get to 4-3, it would set us up pretty well. Additionally, we now have to ensure we win against 9ers due to tie-breaker scenarios, as 9ers have beaten both Dallas and Philly. We get at home which is a plus too.
I see this as a three team race now and possibly both wildcards coming out of the Division.
If you offered me 6-4 going into Week 12, 2-1 vs. the East... Â
...I would take it pretty happily. If you offered me 6-4, 3-0 vs. the East (difficult, but not implausible), I would say "yes" before you finished the sentence, even though it would mean losing a home game to Atlanta, Indy or San Francisco.
This team is still taking baby steps. If they continue to improve, work in some fresh/healing legs (Beckham, Williams, Beason, Schwartz, Kennard, Bromley, Berhe, Mosley) and don't lose too many key pieces, they have a chance to be relevant deep into December. On the other hand, they could easily be 3-7 roadkill by mid-November.
I don't know - we all thought their offense was going to be pretty damn good, and that their defense was going to stink.
So far, they've beaten the Rams and the Titans (both of them stink), lost to the Niners (allowing a respectable 28 points), and beat up on the Saints (who haven't exactly been too great themselves).
Don't get me wrong here - it's too soon in the season to proclaim us any better, given how many games we've played and how widely the results have varied. But I think so far, the consensus about Dallas has proven accurate, and a couple of better defensive teams might give us a better idea of what they're really capable of.
- I think the Giants may have the best D though.
- I think Philly is really overrated
- I really need to see the Cowboys play a good team, because their defense may be very bad. Even the Rams scored a lot.
Our games will be very high scoring affairs. Whoever plays the best D will win.
Wash, Philly, worse than anticipated. Giants, who were questioned and written off by commentators generally, should not have been. Upside, Dallas is good but thin and playing to a competent level against some teams that a good team should beat. Philly fattened up on easy start and last year momentum, but appear to not be strong against challenging teams and have no upside. Wash., QB needs experience, and RGIII issue weakens them, so will be at least a 4-5 game decline. Giants, have apparently significant upside and nice schedule to find out how good the rebuild is going. Atlanta, at home with ten days rest, can be beaten easily and should give an opportunity for further integration of offense, particularly if Beckham can get in. Safety, (Will Hill would have been ready to return), raises concerns. Giants could be the class of the division, or right in the mix with Dallas and Philly. We will see.
but they'll be getting some players back and could easily turn it around. Not necessarily 2012, 3-6 to 10-6 turnaround, but they could get it together..
have a superb offense. They have a very good rebuilt offensive line. Frederick is actually playing well, kind of removing some of that initial criticism as a reach a year ago. Free is a liability, but every OL has one at some position.
Romo if he stays healthy and upright will do some damage. Witten still has some mileage in him. The WRs outside of Bryant though aren't concerning. Murray is the guy who will get some production now with Linehan calling the plays and that improved OL.
The defense is still putrid. Claiborne and Scandrick are terrible. The LBs are tough and athletic, but don't seem instinctive enough at the point of attack. The DL is not good at all.
The Saints are overrated. Their offense isn't as good as people think it is. They also lost two of their three best offensive lineman in last night's game, and they still don't play well on the road, regardless if it was a dome environment.
However, Dallas is no pushover, that's clear. But I'd like to see Dallas against the Eagles and us again to gauge where they are at.
Houston at Dallas could be a fun game, if Foster is 100%. Â
Dallas might look like a possible contender going in, then in all likelihood get their shit kicked in and leave us wondering whether they were for real or if going in to Seattle and beating the Seahawks is too much to expect.
Wash is bad. Philly, Dallas and NY have major questions and really it is week to week. Saying that though, outside of Seattle, no one else looks great. Everyone has issues
Everyone knew the Eagles and Cowboys could score but defense is suspect - has not changed. Giants appear to have offense working better than anticipated this early.
NO has major issues, Car looks done already, GB & Chi struggle mightily on D, Detroit is Detroit.
That Dallas defense isn't as bad as everyone making them to be Â
I hear you... Philly shouldn't be written off --i'm not necessarily burying them but I just don't love their overall talent. I don't think they finish sub 500 or anything like that...gun to my head, i'm picking Dallas over philly at this very moment and the Giants are charging. I wouldn't want a gun to my head this early in the season though. Things can and will change.
Dallas doesn't even need to play better D than average because they shorten the game dramatically with that ground game of theirs. Fucking hate it....hate that Dallas has a dominant running game. Thank God it looks like NYG will field a pretty damn good running game too. We're gonna need it.
Philly isn't running the ball at all. Their OL is banged up and if and when reinforcements arrive it may be too late. I know their center is done for the year. Their passing game is meh...they don't wow anyone with their receiving talent.
One key to the East may be Beckham. We'd have a lot of firepower if he can provide a Nicks like 2009 rookie year.
Dallas looks much better than predicted: its D was under-rated. Eagles are not as good as originally thought: while the D looks good, its OL is banged up and it turns out that Foles is not the second coming. Giants were under-rated (the OL has turned things around and Donnell has proven to be a real weapon at TE, both unexpected). Washington is Washington -- poor. Next two games: Giants' chances look to me to be better against Philly than Dallas at the moment -- if, and it's a big if, the Giants OL and Eli can successfully handle the very good Philly pass rush. Dallas game looks like a shootout situation (be nice, and could make all the difference, if Beckham is worked in over the next two weeks).
but can certainly play the spoiler role as this season progresses and the pressure starts to subside while players start getting healthy. When they are 3-9 watch out...lol.
is the most threatening because they've finally got a solid formula; make Romo a game manager in order to limit his mistakes and build the offense around Murray and that nasty offensive line. When we play them we've got to bottle up Murray and make Romo do some stupid shit
Eagles' defense will not survive the year due to all the time they have to spend on the field
feels like smoke and mirrors. I expect McCoy to get it going but Foles just isn't that good of a QB despite the stats, and he seems unlikely to play all 16 games this year especially behind that OL. What I fear about the Eagles is mainly McCoy/Sproles and Kelly knowing how to utilize those 2 against our Defense.
I'm actually more impressed by the Cowboys offense. Great OL, great RB, great #1WR, ultra-reliable TE, and Romo. Shit on Romo all you want but the guy is a good QB in this league and can do plenty of damage surrounded by so much talent.
In terms of pure talent, the Cowboys have a better offensive group than the Giants or Eagles.
But I really love the way Eli is playing right now and he seems to be "Hulking Up" like he does from time to time, and that version of Eli can carry this team a long way. Hopefully Odell Beckham gives us another weapon and we keep it rolling.
I like our Defense better than either the Eagles or Cowboys D's. I think that could be the difference maker if we keep this offense going. But the Will Hill cut could loom large. If we had Hill on our team, I feel like we'd definitely be the favorites right now because of a far superior secondary to the other two teams. Now, I think it's a 3 way toss-up but I like where we stand.
Wash is bad. Philly, Dallas and NY have major questions and really it is week to week. Saying that though, outside of Seattle, no one else looks great. Everyone has issues
Everyone knew the Eagles and Cowboys could score but defense is suspect - has not changed. Giants appear to have offense working better than anticipated this early.
NO has major issues, Car looks done already, GB & Chi struggle mightily on D, Detroit is Detroit.
I think we look like the most complete team in the East provided we get a consistent pass rush. We've got a better defense than Philly or Dallas and our offense could tear apart those defenses
can cover up for a questionable defense. Coaches are finally trusting the running game which will limit Romo mistakes. Dallas could be tough. Iggles defense isn't very good and if they can't get their running game going, the Chip Kelly mystique may wane. Washington likely will be 1-5 in a couple of weeks so we'll see what kind of a coach Gruden is. Bottom line, I think we have a shof IF O-line continues to play decently, Beason comes back, and we get Herzlich off the field. Of course, injuries are the wild cards.
The Cowboys Oline is really good, but the question mark will be can they remain balanced moving forward. The bigger question mark for them will be how far can that D sustain them.
I'm not sure about Philly's D. Offensively, while they had problems yesterday with SF, I think they will be just fine on that side of the ball. Not having Kendricks hurts them, but I don't think he will be out long.
I think the Bravehearts are done. Gimpy Bob and now a shaky Cousins has them in doubt already. And that D was never a strong suit, now they are down Hall.
For Big Blue it comes down to the Oline keeping Eli clean, adjusting to teams trying to shut down the short/quick routes and stopping the run. Eli and co. have looked very good the last two weeks, but again the defenses they've played have been weak. Looking at the schedule, on paper it appears that they don't play a good D until Seattle in Week 10. But obviously, they have two division games in there between now and then. I like the secondary and hopefully we can get Beason and Kennard back in there. With those two units in tack, I like our chances against most offenses. But again they have to be able to stop the run first.
When you look at our Division, it seems to be wide open. Even though Washington looked like shit last Thursday, as long as they have Morris running well then they have a chance. Their WRs are also very capable. So, if their QB (whoever it is) can keep from losing the game for them, they are in the mix. Right now, we still have a legitimate shot at winning the division and we control our destiny. Nobody in this division is unbeatable.
Step back and look at the entire NFC for a minute. To me, Seattle is the only team that is head and shoulders above the rest. They are the most well rounded and playing well in all three phases. After Seattle... it is wide open.
This is truly a year where coaching, came plan and execution will be the difference. We need to keep running the ball effectively and create turnovers. Those were the two key factors over the past two weeks.
score a point yesterday. Kelly admitted that his banged-up O-line limited what they can do. Not sure when they start getting guys back, but let's hope its not for a while.
When Romo doesn't make mistakes, the Dallas O can score on anybody. This has always been true. The difference is that they have been putting less of a load on Romo, so less chance of mistakes. In today's NFL, you've got to have 2 backs to carry the load.
I think the Dallas D is still not very good. Last night was more about Brees looking old and not getting ball to his receivers in time more than anything else. Watch that play where Scandrick almost gets the INT. That ball has to be there before Scandrick can leave his man and get over. Brees at his best gets it there on time.
Giants D has not been tested. Fitzpatrick and Cousins are what they are, which is replacement-level players. The Falcons are a lot like the Cowboys. If the Giants win, I think we can start getting excited.
I give a slight edge to the Cowboys at this point Â
They've found a way to win an extra game against similar quality opponents compared to the Giants,
and their supposedly terrible defense just isn't, at this point, that much worse than the Giants.
Yards Allowed: Giants - 1423 / Cowboys - 1519 - a 24 yards per game difference.
Pass Yards per game: Giants - 255 / Cowboys - 271 - difference of only 16 yards.
Rush Yards per game: Giants - 101 / Cowboys - 109
INT's - Giants - 7 / Cowboys - 5
Sacks - Giants - 6 / Cowboys - 8
Let's face it, the Cowboys D, up to this point, is not significantly worse than NY's.
In terms of offense? Edge Cowboys in my opinion. The Cowboys O-line appears to be very legit, and they're rushing #'s are Madden-like. The passing game is much closer with only a 13 yard difference in favor of the Giants.
Until the two teams play head to head, it won't be clear which team is better.
Philly is not playing as well as I thought they would; their record masks some bad football. But, a lot of what they're doing wrong can be corrected and they could catch fire.
The Dallas OL is pretty damn good, but hasn't been tested by anything but subpar defenses. They could catch fire, too or go down in flames. And there's always the Romo factor -- he's gonna put up numbers, but I imagine he'll find a way to blow it down the line.
Washington's own fans over on Extremeskins are writing their own club off. Many realize now that the Jacksonville game was their Superbowl.
After four games, D.Murray is almost halfway to his career highs... Â
...in both carries and yards. He has battled injuries throughout his career, at the pro and college levels. The guys behind him, Dunbar and Randle, have pretty thin resumes. If Giant fans are worried about over-reliance on Rashad Jennings, Cowboy fans should be equally concerned about leaning too heavily on Demarco Murray.
Slight edge to the Cowboys in big games, maybe, because their kicker never misses, while Parkey is an unknown quantity. But the Eagles have game-changing capability on their return teams.
All four teams have good punters, and the kickers not named Bailey are decent.
The Giants' coverage units could easily cost them the division.
two NFC East winners had seasons where everything went their way which doesn't happen two years in a row. So I "knew" Washington was going to crash back down to earth last year. This year however, I "felt" that the Eagles would drift back to the pack instead of running away with it again. I wasn't as sure about this prediction because I wasn't confident that the rest of the division would not mess up the opportunity.
So far the rest are the group are also playing solid ball while the Eagles had to engineer two combacks in their first four games to get to 3-1. This should be a solid year for the division without the melodrama of whoever wins being crowned the next big thing.
after watching the Dallas defense last night, its no where as bad as we thought it would be. No matter how terrible the Saints look, that defense still played well against Brees and Graham. The offense looked bad to open the year, but Romo seems to be settled in now and that running game is on fire.
A strong running game is a defenses best friend as well. They should beat the Texans at home and Philly should take care of the Rams @ home. Washington gets crushed and the Giants probably play the closest game in the division but should win. I see the NFC East as going.
4-1 Philly
4-1 Dallas
3-2 NYG
1-4 Skinned
But hopefully either the Rams or the Texans can make some magic happen.
are a worthy opponent. Every win is a quality win.
Tampa 28 Steelers 24 in Pittsburgh.
thank you. There simply isnt that big a gap between great players in the league and good ones and utterly average ones. QB position included. I mean if Teddy Bridgewater or Kirk Cousins get hot they can light you up for 300 yards and a couple of TDs. Then they play a different team with different matchups and you wonder who drafted them and why they are playing in the league. The difference in one game could be a wildcard berth (and two superbowls for the GMen) or sitting home and watching. God I hope that Arizona game doesnt come back to haunt but I fear it will....
Injuries have hurt their offensive line. Three starters out. One returns this week. One other week 10 or so and the other after that if at all. Losing Djax was bigger than they thought. Teams are crowding the line and taking away McCoy. They have also been able to put more pressure on Foles with blitzes. They have had some good fortune breaking long plays and have not been consistent. The rookie receiver Mathews and TE Ertz have stepped up, but Cooper has regressed. Macklin is OK but does not make the contested catch well.
Bottom line offense: If the line gets better they will be good - otherwise there will be issues.
DEFENSE
The pass rush has improved, but they are not very good vs. the run. The safeties are better than last year, but the corners are weak. You don't want to play from behind against this defense. Otherwise they can be had. They are not afraid to sell out to stop the run and that opens up the passing opportunities for play action. They get very weak if you can keep them on the field.
Conclusion
The Eagles won two games because of their conditioning. Yesterday was a shitshow by both teams. Niether derserved to win.
The Giants match up much better than we have in past years. We have depth on the D-line and should be able to stay fresh. I think our DBs can cover their receivers if they can avoid blown coverages. We will need to find a way to pressure Foles, contain Ertz, and not give up big plays on quick passes and screens.
On offense, we will need to take what the defense gives us. Our new offense that gets out of the huddle early has a lot more time to adjust to the Eagles defense and should be successful against them than we have been in the past.
with a lot of excellent insights. THIS is good BBI stuff!
Although it is a recap of a lot of what was said, I might as well add my two cents.
1. Look at the trenches. Our reversal has had a lot to do with the improvement of the O-line. Similarly, Philly's is in disarray and could get Foles killed. The Dallas O-line is scary good (not quite at 90s level, but getting close if they can stay together and healthy for a while). Washington? I think we can pretty much count them out in every aspect of the game right now.
2. A passing league—more then ever before. All the NFC east teams have weapons, and a running game to keep defenses honest. I will be surprised if D Murray makes it through the whole season. McCoy should get loose at some point, and Sproles is dangerous. Morris is a beast (but see point 1 above). In any event, the team that does the best job keeping the QB upright and able to sling it will prevail. Right now things are looking best for Dallas and then the Gmen.
3. QB: Foles has come back to earth; Washington is in shambles. Romo is always dangerous but I'd like to think we can count on him to blow a game or two. Of course, our Eli has had some stinkers, but over the course of the season I feel great with him at the helm.
4. Defense—you still got to play it, as the Saints proved last night (boy were they putrid). Yes, Dallas did a good job, but I'm not sold on their ability to bring it every week. Philly was aggressive but can be had. If we can get Herzlich off the field and stabilize the LB corps then I like our defense most overall.
Conclusion: at the quarter mark, I have to like the direction we are headed, but the NFC East is always a dogfight. An injury here or there and everything changes. But ya gotta believe!
of dismissing the success of others and trumpeting our own. We'll see.
I think the Eagles are the class of the division until proven otherwise, but I agree that they have been overrated. They have a habit of playing poorly early and then storming back with string play late. If the OL injuries continue, they have a chance to pile up some losses over the next few weeks which could destroy their division chances. We'll see. They definitely miss Jackson.
The Skins are a joke.
The Cowboys defense has overall been better than I expected. I guess the same can be said for the Eagles defense. The Cowboys offense has always, and will always, be able to put up points. They have some serious talent on that side of the ball.
Basically the NFCE games have the potential to be high scoring affairs - a stark contrast to what we have seen traditionally.
I was hoping the Saints would take care of Dallas, as the Cowboys drew them while the Giants drew the Falcons. Crap
I don't see the Eagles losing to the Panthers, so the Giants need to take care of the Falcons this weekend.
The Cowboys do face the Bears later in the season and the Eagles face the Packers. Since the Giants lost to the Lions, we need to hope that the other NFC North teams do their part.
The interesting part is down the stretch...the Giants face 3-4 VERY winnable games before facing the Eagles in the closer. If they can stay healthy and get momentum, they have a shot to make some noise.
It will be interesting to see how things play out once the tapes start circulating. Tough to game plan for them right now with so little data. That won't last long.
It usually takes teams 3 games to figure out who they are anyway. Very few teams looked the same in week 4 as they did in week 1. But week 4 is probably a lot closer to the truth than opening night. That sounds like a bunch of homer kool aid... But looking outside our Division... Are the Falcons as good as they looked week 1? Is Tampa as bad as they looked? Are the Chargers the real deal? Or is it just Fools gold after taking care of a defending champ in week 2 that needed to come back down to earth?
I think Cinci is a contender and at 3-0 it appears that way... But are the Cards at 3-0? Or have they just had a soft schedule including a lucky gift win that we all witnessed.
Lets home that game the refs gift-wrapped to the Eagles Â
Have played against, some of the best front fours, in the NFL. The Cowboys, played against, one good defense(49ers), and lost.
And they were nowhere near full strength (Aldon Smith suspended and Bowman on short-term IR)
My point exactly. Everyone, fall in love with the Cowboys, this time of year. And what end up happening ? The Cowboys, always have a soft schedule in the beginning. And when the schedule gets tougher, the real Cowboys, show up.
From Sept to Nov, Romo is a top five QB. December, when their schedule gets hard, he turns into, a bum. I'm sorry. But fuck the Cowboys. When will people, stop buying into those bums ?
I wouldn't underestimate a good team playing from behind on the road (Eagles, Texans), and overestimate a team playing the Saints at home.
It's the first quarter turn and we were all sure the Giants would be 0-4, but they sit at 2-2. The Giants next opponent has four game tapes on the new offense, which, afterall, is the only thing the DC's on the schedule were waiting for.
I think the Cowboys will be very competitive as long as DeMarco Murray is healthy- I'm not sure if he's ever had a full season without some horrible injury cutting it short.
Without Jackson, the Eagles aren't as scary and I'm not a believer in Nick Foles.
I'm relieved to see our offense start clicking, but the defense still scares the hell out of me.
A thoroughly domimant performance against Atlanta again Â
There has been a fumble & interception return, plus one interception was returned to the 2 yard line. This has resulted in 21 points.
Dallas has given up 86 points(10th against the points), if you subtract the 21 Dallas would be 6th against the points, at 16.1 per game. After 4 games that's very impressive and easily the best in the NFC east.
The loss to San Francisco was a result of Romo not participating in the OTA's and being limited in training camp. He was very rusty and did not see the field very well. On two of his INTs he had a WRs open for TDs(Harris and Williams), but went to receivers(Witten and Bryant) that were doubled and tripled covered instead.
Romo has improved with each successive game, and with this the offense is becoming more balanced. It's going to be difficult to stop one phase. Load the box and Dallas can throw, drop into a nickle or dime and Dallas can run the ball.
After 4 games it's Dallas, Philadelphia, NY, and Washington in that order.
Rams titans Saints
Saints are miserable this year
I think and have thought that this division was as strong as most..People tend to forget that many losses incurred by our division last year were of the last second or midway into the 4th qtr variety. Dallas had Peyton on the ropes last year..
It's anyone's NFC imv with Seattle still the fave
You can't discount their success and praise ours. Who have we actually beaten? That could be said about us.
I do think last night was a bit of revenge for last years ass whoopin that the Saints laid on them.
Their Defense looked ok last night. I know Fatcessa was telling a Boys fan that their defense was terrible in the beginning of the year. They didn't look that bad yesterday.
I would say until proven otherwise..
the ranking is:
1. Seahawks
2. Cardinals
3. Lions
4. Boys
5. Eagles
Are the teams to beat right now.
The Giants are located lumped in the middle of the pack with the other 2&2's for now.
Beat the Eagles and maybe the Boys,, and then we would be cooking with fire.
Yes but the Saints looked like crapola on both sides of the ball. Seems to me the 49ers and Saints have both regressed by a bunch...
I think this is a legitimate 3 team race.
I think the Giants' offense is going to be just fine (and maybe a lot better than "just fine" when OB is up to speed).
I said before the season I was more worried about the D and that remains true. The offense is going to get nothing but stronger as the season progresses. I am, however, fairly happy with how they have played thus far. But, at the end of the day, I think this Giants team takes them as far as their weakest link - which I continue to believe is the D.
So, F*ck the Eagles and Cowboys. I'm not worried about them. I'm focused solely and singularly on the Giants. Take care of business and it won't matter how good the rest of the division is (or isn't).
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can sugar-coat it any way we want, but that was an impressive performance by Dallas last night.
Yes but the Saints looked like crapola on both sides of the ball. Seems to me the 49ers and Saints have both regressed by a bunch...
Vax and WHY when you get to the NFCC 3 years in a row you have to win it all at least once as the Niners have proven and the Jets proved(twice), because you can fall off completely and never get back..I would be extremely surprised if the Niners get back a 4th straight time
may be best NFC div....49ers...seattle....saints..
atl....GB....bears...dont look as scary as eagles. .
Dallas and giants..
This actually fits the script: the Cowboys will beat bad team and the Eagles will lose to really good ones. I still have the former at 7-9 and the latter at 9-7.
Giants? Sorry, but I still think this is not a .500 team.
Missed first half of last nights game so not sure how Saints could not score a point against Dallas Defense though...
anybody?
I have no faith in the Dallas secondary. Claiborne was never very good, but now apparently has a torn ACL. Scandrick was also hurt last night.
The Eagles are just a mess right now, especially at the OL. Foles is taking a beating. Even the Redskins, who basically never touched Manning, pounded him.
We'll know more in a few weeks when we travel to Philly and Dallas. But first we need to roll Atlanta.
Philly is not playing as well as I thought they would; their record masks some bad football. But, a lot of what they're doing wrong can be corrected and they could catch fire.
The Dallas OL is pretty damn good, but hasn't been tested by anything but subpar defenses. They could catch fire, too or go down in flames. And there's always the Romo factor -- he's gonna put up numbers, but I imagine he'll find a way to blow it down the line.
Feminizing the Shegals and Cowturds does not diminish the apparent fact that they can play with anyone. They will be a load for us and the rest of the NFL imo..Of course we will see how that plays out, but we are in a pretty strong division as I see it
Not sure how to rate the Eagles!! Even yesterday with their offense shut down they were still in it at the end. 21 points off special team and defense not to be sneered at!!
The Cowboys are somewhat fooling me. I did not think they would win more than 5 games and now they look like they too could be in it for a while. Of course this year still has the month of December in it for Mr. Romo.
We destroyed the Washington football team on Thursday but I am not ready to say we are a dominant team. If we go 2-1 before the bye then we will be a team no one will want to play.
Let’s Go Giants.
Dallas D is playing well but they can be had. Their O is filthy good. Giants O is playing well but probably has some hiccups in their future. Uptempo offenses like this one where the QB is getting rid of the ball quickly can show limitations. We will have really good moments and we probably will struggle. But with that said The giants D is pretty talented and probably has a stretch of dominant play in them-- they can cover up some warts hopefully.
Next few weeks are huge. Both the giants and cowboys are gaining a lot of confidence while Philly has to doubting themselves a bit. They haven't beaten anyone legit and had that game yesterday giftwrapped against a good team and couldn't close. That was a telling game in my eyes. Philly will struggle more and more.
Re: the Cowboys. Was it the Saints ineptness? Maybe, but I have thought that with Brees, Colston (sp?) they'd have shown themselves better than what they did.
The Eagles/Niners game was too much of a mistake-ridden, penalty receiving mess for me, at least, to get a good sense of these teams, except to see that the Eagles offense looks flat and unproductive.
We'll soon see.
Remaining:
Arizona @ Dallas
Dallas @ Seattle
Seattle @ Philadelphia
Philadelphia @ Arizona
St. Louis @ Philadelphia
Seattle @ Washington
Washington @ San Francisco
Washington @ Arizona
St. Louis @ Washington
Giants @ St. Louis
Giants @ Seattle
49ers @ Giants
It's shaping up to be an interesting season.
Dallas D is playing well but they can be had. Their O is filthy good. Giants O is playing well but probably has some hiccups in their future. Uptempo offenses like this one where the QB is getting rid of the ball quickly can show limitations. We will have really good moments and we probably will struggle. But with that said The giants D is pretty talented and probably has a stretch of dominant play in them-- they can cover up some warts hopefully.
Next few weeks are huge. Both the giants and cowboys are gaining a lot of confidence while Philly has to doubting themselves a bit. They haven't beaten anyone legit and had that game yesterday giftwrapped against a good team and couldn't close. That was a telling game in my eyes. Philly will struggle more and more.
I rarely disagree with you and your general level-headedness through the years, but I think the Eagles are also the team to beat and will be a force all year..
As long as their offense remains intact, Dallas will be a dangerous team. But look at what they have behind their key guys: Romo, Bryant, Murray, Witten, and all the starting linemen, especially Smith. The drop-off is enormous. Of course, no NFL team has enough depth, but the Cowboys are an extreme case.
The Dallas offense is very good but we expected that. Very good OL with talent at QB, RB, TE and WR. The D has been better than expected but I'm not sold they are better than average.
Philly's success last year depended om McCoy, Jackson and the novelty of their offense. Two of the three are gone. Their D is average.
The Giants have the best balance offense/defense and the best defense overall. The DL is 7 deep in contributors and the secondary has 3 pro-bowl level players and some good fill ins. The return of Beason would be a real plus. I think they have the best QB and a much better OL than anyone expected. The offensive skill positions are solid with some real upside.
We'll know at the bye whether the Giants really deserve to be part of the conversation. If they win two of the next three - especially if they beat Philly and Dallas - they are probably in the race for the long haul. If they lose both of those division games, they will join Washington in the also-ran category, with a very steep hill to climb and games against three playoff teams looming after the bye.
*Defensively - we're the best.
*Quarterback - we're the best.
*Coaching - Coughlin is the best - but staff's as a whole? Still may be the Giants. If the offense is for real McAdoo may be the hottest Head Coach candidate in the league. Groomed 9 years by McCarthy, runs a modern NFL offense, in his 30's. Under this scenario - success with Giants. Developed Rodgers and Eli. A team looking to start over and have a good offense will be all over him.
Would suck to lose him. Wonder what his aspirations are?
As for Dallas, they have got to prove it to me on a consistent basis before I see them as any kind of contender. NO has proved over the last number of years that they are like any dome team meaning they have trouble on the road. I suspect the score might have been reversed if the game had been played in New Orleans.
Washington has some talent but they are messed up from the top although their secondary is bad. We are okay but I have strong feelings about how bad our special teams continue to be. I think we are getting it offensively and the D has to stop giving up big plays but the one thing holding us back is the ST unit.
The only sure thing at this point is that nobody knows what the hell the NFC East is worth.
from the beginning. He's a homer but he could be right.
Depends on how you define a good team.
Washington is without argument the doormat, they can stop the run but don't do anything else very well.
Dallas has a good offense, their O line makes everything go, Romo will look good until December (again). The Cowboys D has been getting beaten like Adrian Peterson was their father. They almost blew that lead last night, Jimmy Graham doesn't fumble with 3:30 left to go in the third it's a 14 point game.
Philly's defense is just as bad as the Cowboys. Chip Kelley's system is intellectual, when's the last time you saw a smart Eagles' player? They don't get it. With MCCoy ineffective, Foles will have to throw too much, he'll make mistakes. Philly is probably the most individually talented team here but they do not play as a cohesive unit.
The Giants make or break the NFC East as a good or weak division. If the Jints suck, the division is a weak one, if they are contenders then it's a tough division.
We have the best balance, the best QB and the best HC. We have heart. Hard work, determination and playing as a unit will beat talent more often than not.
*disclaimer: wether the division is considered tough or weak by NFL standards, there are no easy games between divisional rivals in the NFC east...
Eagles offense has taken a step back, it could have been the opponent but they are still a dangerous offensive team. Defensively, they are having their struggles but are still a tough team.
Redskins are mediocre, they do one thing right and not much else.
I'm impressed with the way Foles throws the ball and his skill players - The Eagles D and Oline is what is suspect right now
The Cowboys looked very good last night in all phases of the game - they are a team to be reckoned with - Romo looked really good - the defense looked really good
But the Giants are better than anyone suspected as well - and it's a marathon not a sprint -
1/4 way into the season and it's a race between three teams - Eagles, Cowboys and Giants
GO GIANTS BABY!!!
I see this as a three team race now and possibly both wildcards coming out of the Division.
This team is still taking baby steps. If they continue to improve, work in some fresh/healing legs (Beckham, Williams, Beason, Schwartz, Kennard, Bromley, Berhe, Mosley) and don't lose too many key pieces, they have a chance to be relevant deep into December. On the other hand, they could easily be 3-7 roadkill by mid-November.
So far, they've beaten the Rams and the Titans (both of them stink), lost to the Niners (allowing a respectable 28 points), and beat up on the Saints (who haven't exactly been too great themselves).
Don't get me wrong here - it's too soon in the season to proclaim us any better, given how many games we've played and how widely the results have varied. But I think so far, the consensus about Dallas has proven accurate, and a couple of better defensive teams might give us a better idea of what they're really capable of.
Maybe Lane Johnson's return will help but they still have big issue inside.
- I think Philly is really overrated
- I really need to see the Cowboys play a good team, because their defense may be very bad. Even the Rams scored a lot.
Our games will be very high scoring affairs. Whoever plays the best D will win.
Romo if he stays healthy and upright will do some damage. Witten still has some mileage in him. The WRs outside of Bryant though aren't concerning. Murray is the guy who will get some production now with Linehan calling the plays and that improved OL.
The defense is still putrid. Claiborne and Scandrick are terrible. The LBs are tough and athletic, but don't seem instinctive enough at the point of attack. The DL is not good at all.
The Saints are overrated. Their offense isn't as good as people think it is. They also lost two of their three best offensive lineman in last night's game, and they still don't play well on the road, regardless if it was a dome environment.
However, Dallas is no pushover, that's clear. But I'd like to see Dallas against the Eagles and us again to gauge where they are at.
After that, Dallas goes to Seattle for a game that could put them on the map as legitimate contenders.
I love our offense so far but I still need some things answered before I call us good.
Everyone knew the Eagles and Cowboys could score but defense is suspect - has not changed. Giants appear to have offense working better than anticipated this early.
NO has major issues, Car looks done already, GB & Chi struggle mightily on D, Detroit is Detroit.
Dallas doesn't even need to play better D than average because they shorten the game dramatically with that ground game of theirs. Fucking hate it....hate that Dallas has a dominant running game. Thank God it looks like NYG will field a pretty damn good running game too. We're gonna need it.
Philly isn't running the ball at all. Their OL is banged up and if and when reinforcements arrive it may be too late. I know their center is done for the year. Their passing game is meh...they don't wow anyone with their receiving talent.
One key to the East may be Beckham. We'd have a lot of firepower if he can provide a Nicks like 2009 rookie year.
Eagles' defense will not survive the year due to all the time they have to spend on the field
I'm actually more impressed by the Cowboys offense. Great OL, great RB, great #1WR, ultra-reliable TE, and Romo. Shit on Romo all you want but the guy is a good QB in this league and can do plenty of damage surrounded by so much talent.
In terms of pure talent, the Cowboys have a better offensive group than the Giants or Eagles.
But I really love the way Eli is playing right now and he seems to be "Hulking Up" like he does from time to time, and that version of Eli can carry this team a long way. Hopefully Odell Beckham gives us another weapon and we keep it rolling.
I like our Defense better than either the Eagles or Cowboys D's. I think that could be the difference maker if we keep this offense going. But the Will Hill cut could loom large. If we had Hill on our team, I feel like we'd definitely be the favorites right now because of a far superior secondary to the other two teams. Now, I think it's a 3 way toss-up but I like where we stand.
Everyone knew the Eagles and Cowboys could score but defense is suspect - has not changed. Giants appear to have offense working better than anticipated this early.
NO has major issues, Car looks done already, GB & Chi struggle mightily on D, Detroit is Detroit.
I think we look like the most complete team in the East provided we get a consistent pass rush. We've got a better defense than Philly or Dallas and our offense could tear apart those defenses
I'm not sure about Philly's D. Offensively, while they had problems yesterday with SF, I think they will be just fine on that side of the ball. Not having Kendricks hurts them, but I don't think he will be out long.
I think the Bravehearts are done. Gimpy Bob and now a shaky Cousins has them in doubt already. And that D was never a strong suit, now they are down Hall.
For Big Blue it comes down to the Oline keeping Eli clean, adjusting to teams trying to shut down the short/quick routes and stopping the run. Eli and co. have looked very good the last two weeks, but again the defenses they've played have been weak. Looking at the schedule, on paper it appears that they don't play a good D until Seattle in Week 10. But obviously, they have two division games in there between now and then. I like the secondary and hopefully we can get Beason and Kennard back in there. With those two units in tack, I like our chances against most offenses. But again they have to be able to stop the run first.
Step back and look at the entire NFC for a minute. To me, Seattle is the only team that is head and shoulders above the rest. They are the most well rounded and playing well in all three phases. After Seattle... it is wide open.
This is truly a year where coaching, came plan and execution will be the difference. We need to keep running the ball effectively and create turnovers. Those were the two key factors over the past two weeks.
Yeah and if they win those games they have a great shot. What's your point?
When Romo doesn't make mistakes, the Dallas O can score on anybody. This has always been true. The difference is that they have been putting less of a load on Romo, so less chance of mistakes. In today's NFL, you've got to have 2 backs to carry the load.
I think the Dallas D is still not very good. Last night was more about Brees looking old and not getting ball to his receivers in time more than anything else. Watch that play where Scandrick almost gets the INT. That ball has to be there before Scandrick can leave his man and get over. Brees at his best gets it there on time.
Giants D has not been tested. Fitzpatrick and Cousins are what they are, which is replacement-level players. The Falcons are a lot like the Cowboys. If the Giants win, I think we can start getting excited.
and their supposedly terrible defense just isn't, at this point, that much worse than the Giants.
Yards Allowed: Giants - 1423 / Cowboys - 1519 - a 24 yards per game difference.
Pass Yards per game: Giants - 255 / Cowboys - 271 - difference of only 16 yards.
Rush Yards per game: Giants - 101 / Cowboys - 109
INT's - Giants - 7 / Cowboys - 5
Sacks - Giants - 6 / Cowboys - 8
Let's face it, the Cowboys D, up to this point, is not significantly worse than NY's.
In terms of offense? Edge Cowboys in my opinion. The Cowboys O-line appears to be very legit, and they're rushing #'s are Madden-like. The passing game is much closer with only a 13 yard difference in favor of the Giants.
Until the two teams play head to head, it won't be clear which team is better.
Philly is not playing as well as I thought they would; their record masks some bad football. But, a lot of what they're doing wrong can be corrected and they could catch fire.
The Dallas OL is pretty damn good, but hasn't been tested by anything but subpar defenses. They could catch fire, too or go down in flames. And there's always the Romo factor -- he's gonna put up numbers, but I imagine he'll find a way to blow it down the line.
Washington's own fans over on Extremeskins are writing their own club off. Many realize now that the Jacksonville game was their Superbowl.
I think the. Giants have the best defense and the others are grouped together pretty closely.
Don't know about specials, but don't suspect the Giants are tops.
From a motivation, sticking together aspect, the giants have to be on top coaching wise.
All four teams have good punters, and the kickers not named Bailey are decent.
The Giants' coverage units could easily cost them the division.
So far the rest are the group are also playing solid ball while the Eagles had to engineer two combacks in their first four games to get to 3-1. This should be a solid year for the division without the melodrama of whoever wins being crowned the next big thing.
Tampa 28 Steelers 24 in Pittsburgh.
A strong running game is a defenses best friend as well. They should beat the Texans at home and Philly should take care of the Rams @ home. Washington gets crushed and the Giants probably play the closest game in the division but should win. I see the NFC East as going.
4-1 Philly
4-1 Dallas
3-2 NYG
1-4 Skinned
But hopefully either the Rams or the Texans can make some magic happen.
Tampa 28 Steelers 24 in Pittsburgh.
Bottom line offense: If the line gets better they will be good - otherwise there will be issues.
DEFENSE
The pass rush has improved, but they are not very good vs. the run. The safeties are better than last year, but the corners are weak. You don't want to play from behind against this defense. Otherwise they can be had. They are not afraid to sell out to stop the run and that opens up the passing opportunities for play action. They get very weak if you can keep them on the field.
Conclusion
The Eagles won two games because of their conditioning. Yesterday was a shitshow by both teams. Niether derserved to win.
The Giants match up much better than we have in past years. We have depth on the D-line and should be able to stay fresh. I think our DBs can cover their receivers if they can avoid blown coverages. We will need to find a way to pressure Foles, contain Ertz, and not give up big plays on quick passes and screens.
On offense, we will need to take what the defense gives us. Our new offense that gets out of the huddle early has a lot more time to adjust to the Eagles defense and should be successful against them than we have been in the past.
Although it is a recap of a lot of what was said, I might as well add my two cents.
1. Look at the trenches. Our reversal has had a lot to do with the improvement of the O-line. Similarly, Philly's is in disarray and could get Foles killed. The Dallas O-line is scary good (not quite at 90s level, but getting close if they can stay together and healthy for a while). Washington? I think we can pretty much count them out in every aspect of the game right now.
2. A passing league—more then ever before. All the NFC east teams have weapons, and a running game to keep defenses honest. I will be surprised if D Murray makes it through the whole season. McCoy should get loose at some point, and Sproles is dangerous. Morris is a beast (but see point 1 above). In any event, the team that does the best job keeping the QB upright and able to sling it will prevail. Right now things are looking best for Dallas and then the Gmen.
3. QB: Foles has come back to earth; Washington is in shambles. Romo is always dangerous but I'd like to think we can count on him to blow a game or two. Of course, our Eli has had some stinkers, but over the course of the season I feel great with him at the helm.
4. Defense—you still got to play it, as the Saints proved last night (boy were they putrid). Yes, Dallas did a good job, but I'm not sold on their ability to bring it every week. Philly was aggressive but can be had. If we can get Herzlich off the field and stabilize the LB corps then I like our defense most overall.
Conclusion: at the quarter mark, I have to like the direction we are headed, but the NFC East is always a dogfight. An injury here or there and everything changes. But ya gotta believe!
I think the Eagles are the class of the division until proven otherwise, but I agree that they have been overrated. They have a habit of playing poorly early and then storming back with string play late. If the OL injuries continue, they have a chance to pile up some losses over the next few weeks which could destroy their division chances. We'll see. They definitely miss Jackson.
The Skins are a joke.
The Cowboys defense has overall been better than I expected. I guess the same can be said for the Eagles defense. The Cowboys offense has always, and will always, be able to put up points. They have some serious talent on that side of the ball.
Basically the NFCE games have the potential to be high scoring affairs - a stark contrast to what we have seen traditionally.
It typically comes down to Eli/Offense not making those killer turnovers (often for defensive scores) in big division games.
You have to imagine NFC East will go down to the wire...
Division is wide open as Eagles struggles have been exposed as real weaknesses.
I don't see the Eagles losing to the Panthers, so the Giants need to take care of the Falcons this weekend.
The Cowboys do face the Bears later in the season and the Eagles face the Packers. Since the Giants lost to the Lions, we need to hope that the other NFC North teams do their part.
The interesting part is down the stretch...the Giants face 3-4 VERY winnable games before facing the Eagles in the closer. If they can stay healthy and get momentum, they have a shot to make some noise.
It will be interesting to see how things play out once the tapes start circulating. Tough to game plan for them right now with so little data. That won't last long.
I think Cinci is a contender and at 3-0 it appears that way... But are the Cards at 3-0? Or have they just had a soft schedule including a lucky gift win that we all witnessed.
And they were nowhere near full strength (Aldon Smith suspended and Bowman on short-term IR)
Giants and Cowboys... identical teams. They can look great one week and like crap the next.
Redskins... a better team with Cousins than with RGIII. As the season wears on, they could surprise.
Overall analysis... the division is completely up for grabs.
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Have played against, some of the best front fours, in the NFL. The Cowboys, played against, one good defense(49ers), and lost.
And they were nowhere near full strength (Aldon Smith suspended and Bowman on short-term IR)
My point exactly. Everyone, fall in love with the Cowboys, this time of year. And what end up happening ? The Cowboys, always have a soft schedule in the beginning. And when the schedule gets tougher, the real Cowboys, show up.
From Sept to Nov, Romo is a top five QB. December, when their schedule gets hard, he turns into, a bum. I'm sorry. But fuck the Cowboys. When will people, stop buying into those bums ?
It's the first quarter turn and we were all sure the Giants would be 0-4, but they sit at 2-2. The Giants next opponent has four game tapes on the new offense, which, afterall, is the only thing the DC's on the schedule were waiting for.
As TC said, the team must impove every week.
Without Jackson, the Eagles aren't as scary and I'm not a believer in Nick Foles.
I'm relieved to see our offense start clicking, but the defense still scares the hell out of me.
There has been a fumble & interception return, plus one interception was returned to the 2 yard line. This has resulted in 21 points.
Dallas has given up 86 points(10th against the points), if you subtract the 21 Dallas would be 6th against the points, at 16.1 per game. After 4 games that's very impressive and easily the best in the NFC east.
The loss to San Francisco was a result of Romo not participating in the OTA's and being limited in training camp. He was very rusty and did not see the field very well. On two of his INTs he had a WRs open for TDs(Harris and Williams), but went to receivers(Witten and Bryant) that were doubled and tripled covered instead.
Romo has improved with each successive game, and with this the offense is becoming more balanced. It's going to be difficult to stop one phase. Load the box and Dallas can throw, drop into a nickle or dime and Dallas can run the ball.
After 4 games it's Dallas, Philadelphia, NY, and Washington in that order.