NFC East Preview: Eagles Projected to Repeat as Division Champions, Washington Seen Near the Bottom

WTOP's preview of the 2022 NFC East projects Philadelphia to hold on to the division title, with Dallas close behind and Washington and the New York Giants well back. The projected records are Eagles 12-5, Cowboys 11-6, Washington 7-10 and Giants 6-11.

The Eagles have assembled a deep roster with little fanfare, the preview says, to the point that they are again calling themselves a "Dream Team," a label Vince Young used infamously more than a decade ago. The outlook hinges on the development of quarterback Jalen Hurts. Philadelphia traded for receiver A.J. Brown, which all but ends the league's longest drought without a 1,000-yard receiver. Center Jason Kelce returned to anchor a veteran offensive line, and running back Trey Sermon became available last week. The division has not had a repeat champion since Philadelphia won four straight titles from 2000 to 2004. The Eagles face five short weeks, tied for the most in the league, but the preview expects cornerback James Bradberry to help a pass defense that was middle of the road in 2021.

Dallas is described as facing long odds of a standout season. Tyron Smith is expected to miss much of the year, and the preview calls the days of a dominant Cowboys offensive line long gone. Beyond CeeDee Lamb, the receiving group is a major question mark. The defense, which leaned heavily on takeaways last year, finished 19th in total defense in 2021. The Cowboys also committed an NFL-worst 266 penalties over the last two seasons under coach Mike McCarthy. First-round pick Tyler Smith drew 16 flags, 12 of them for holding, in 12 games at Tulsa. The preview's projection for Dallas is built on that history of self-inflicted damage.

Washington's season rests on quarterback Carson Wentz, its 33rd starting quarterback since the franchise won Super Bowl XXVI 30 years ago. When he starts in Week 1, he will become the first quarterback since 1950, when such records were first tracked, to start on opening weekend for three different teams in three years before turning 30.

Wentz does have more weapons than at any earlier point in his career. Terry McLaurin, now highly paid, leads a deep receiving group that plays behind an underrated offensive line. The preview nonetheless expects him to fall short, arguing that his four years of inconsistency since his near-MVP 2017 season are the norm rather than an outlier. It projects Wentz to go 2-1 in his "revenge" games against the two teams that gave up on him. It does not expect him to lift the offense enough to offset an underachieving defense that will likely play the first half of the season without a healthy Chase Young.

The Giants are starting over at general manager and head coach, having hired Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll from Buffalo. The preview says the owners, the Maras, might draw more scrutiny if not for the attention on Washington owner Dan Snyder. The season is framed as a final verdict on quarterback Daniel Jones, the sixth overall pick in 2019, who plays behind a line the preview calls perennially bad. New York also needs running back Saquon Barkley to return to form and stay healthy for a full season.

The preview questions the decision to sign Tyrod Taylor as Jones's backup rather than Mitchell Trubisky, who played for Daboll in Buffalo last year and has more upside. The case for Taylor is that he is a better mentor for Jones, who has been prone to turnovers. Taylor's career interception percentage of 1.6% is tied with Patrick Mahomes for second-best in NFL history.

The defense has questions too. No. 5 overall pick Kayvon Thibodeaux is sidelined to start the season, and the team has yet to play him alongside fellow young pass rusher Azeez Ojulari. The secondary has been overhauled, so the preview expects growing pains. It calls 2022 the start of a painful rebuild, one that historically is not given time to play out fully.