The NFC East had two teams in the NFL's final four last season, but how do the rosters stack up heading into the 2025 season?
The Philadelphia Eagles are the reigning Super Bowl champs, and even with that in mind, this could be one of the most intense divisions in football this coming season. The Washington Commanders proved last year that they were right on Philly's heels, and the Cowboys have a healthy Dak Prescott in 2025. The New York Giants might have the best defensive front in the division, and that's saying something.
How do each of these rosters stack up against each other as we head into the season? We're going to rank them worst to best based on the entire collection of talent on both sides of the ball and how well they're set up for immediate and long-term success.
NFL Power Rankings: NFC East roster rankings ahead of 2025 season
4. New York Giants
If we were to put arrows next to these teams to show which teams are trending up or down, the Giants' arrow would be pointing up for me. The Giants, despite how dominant the Eagles just were in the Super Bowl against the Chiefs, might very well have the best defensive front in the division.
With Dexter Lawrence, Brian Burns, Kayvon Thibodeaux, and rookie Abdul Carter (among others), the defensive front should keep this Giants team in a lot of games. It has them really close to being at least the third-best roster in the league and I would say, there's really not a lot of separation between rosters 2-4 on this list in many respects.
The biggest question marks for this Giants team right now are their offensive line and the quarterback position. This team has a lot of talent at the skill positions and certainly looks like it could be a problem for the rest of the division.
3. Dallas Cowboys
If the Giants' arrow is pointing up, the Cowboys' arrow is pointing down. For three straight seasons with a mostly healthy roster, this Cowboys team won 12 games. Now, obviously, there's been a lot of roster turnover, but many of those guys remain as well.
The Cowboys are a different team with a healthy Dak Prescott, and we saw that in a big way last season. They also now have a legitimate WR2 coming in with George Pickens.
There are things I dislike about this Cowboys roster, but especially so with the current issue surrounding Micah Parsons. Just like this team is different with Prescott, they're different without Parsons. And if his issue lingers into the regular season, yikes.
The Cowboys have a lot of things to like heading into this season, but they could easily finish last in this division. The injury question marks in the secondary, the drama with Parsons, the loss of DeMarcus Lawrence, and the young players on the offensive line are concerns.
2. Washington Commanders
I really struggle putting the Commanders up here, but we are talking about each roster in a one year vacuum. The Commanders have the oldest roster in the NFL. They have 25 players -- 25 -- aged 29 or older on the roster. That's eight more than the next most (17).
Having an older roster doesn't mean it's inherently bad, per se, but the Commanders have so many old players they're making even the Pittsburgh Steelers blush.
As with any good team, the quarterback is the straw stirring the drink. Jayden Daniels is a superstar and with an average age on the roster over 28 years, the Commanders had better win now. They have good players, but the concerns here would start with the pass rush. The Commanders somehow got double-digit sacks last year from Dante Fowler Jr., and he bolted in the offseason.
Again, there's a lot to like about the Commanders. They added Deebo Samuel, Laremy Tunsil, and plenty of others to this team that went to the NFC Championship last year. But the window could be small.
1. Philadelphia Eagles
The Philadelphia Eagles not only have one of the most balanced rosters in the NFL, but one of the youngest. In fact, only the Green Bay Packers have a younger overall roster than do the Eagles. There are just six players aged 29 or older on this roster, which obviously won the Super Bowl last year.
Yes, the Eagles lost plenty of players from that Super Bowl run, but the meat and core of this team is back.
Jalen Hurts might not be in that top tier of quarterbacks at this point, but he's great for this team. Saquon Barkley was an MVP candidate last year. The skill players and offensive line are elite.
The defense took a huge step forward under Vic Fangio last year with key players emerging in the secondary out of last year's rookie class (Quinyon Mitchell, Cooper DeJean). The big question mark for this team will be all the transition on the defensive front. Any team losing players the caliber of Brandon Graham, Milton Williams, Josh Sweat, and others might struggle a bit.