One bold prediction for each NFC East team in 2024
The NFC East is littered with storylines and drama every year. There hasn't been a repeat winner in the division since the Philadelphia Eagles took the crown in four consecutive seasons (2001, 02, 03, 04). Since then, the New York Giants and Washington Commanders have won the division three times each. The Eagles have won it six times, and the Dallas Cowboys have won seven times (including last season).
2024 should be another season of intrigue. The Commanders made massive overhauls to their front office, coaching staff, and roster. Those moves included taking quarterback Jayden Daniels with the second overall pick in the NFL Draft.
The New York Giants finally added a potentially elite wide receiver in the draft when they got Malik Nabers with the sixth overall pick. They also added star pass rusher Brian Burns to the defense.
The Philadelphia Eagles have made the playoffs in three straight seasons. They're looking for quarterback Jalen Hurts to take a step forward after a somewhat disappointing 2023. The loss of Hall of Fame center Jason Kelce hurts, but the additions of running back Saquan Barkley and two defensive backs (Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean) in the first two rounds of the NFL draft are massive.
The Dallas Cowboys are the reigning champions. Dak Prescott is an elite quarterback, CeeDee Lamb is an elite receiver, and Micah Parsons has the best chance at a defensive player winning MVP that we've seen in a while.
Each team in the division has positives to be excited about, as well as negatives that can hurt their season. How will their seasons actually go, though? Let's get bold with one prediction for each team.
Dallas Cowboys - Dak Prescott wins MVP
The Dallas Cowboys won the NFC East with a 12-5 record last season. They did so in large part thanks to being the only team in the NFL to score over 500 points (509).
How did they score so many points, you ask? Well, it wasn't thanks to a great running game. The offense was mainly quarterback Dak Prescott and wide receiver CeeDee Lamb. There were other contributors, but Prescott was the star of the show.
The quarterback finished the season with a 69.5 completion percentage for 4,516 yards. He threw 36 touchdown passes (one off his career-high) compared to just nine interceptions.
Prescott is in a weird spot where the media tends to have some Dallas bias, causing football fans to start to underrate some of their talent. He's probably the biggest casualty of this.
Prescott has one of the best wide receivers in football (Lamb). Brandin Cooks is always going to be a serviceable weapon, and Jake Ferguson is a great tight end.
Most importantly, though, once again, the running game isn't likely to be a huge factor. Ezekiel Elliott is back, but not the player he was a few seasons ago.
The Cowboys are going to lean heavily on Prescott. He'll throw the ball a ton. That could lead to his first 40 touchdown pass season and maybe a new career-high in passing yards.
Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes will be his main competition. Josh Allen lost his best weapon, Jalen Hurts took a step back last year, Justin Herbert doesn't have a lot of help, Aaron Rodgers is coming off a serious injury. Things are lining up for Prescott.
If Dallas makes the playoffs again (which seems decently likely), Dak Prescott will absolutely be in the MVP conversation. It doesn't feel like a stretch to say he's going to win it.
Philadelphia Eagles - Saquon Barkley flirts with 1,000 receiving yards
The Philadelphia Eagles took a slight step back last year and still went 11-6. They will be looking to replace Hall of Fame center Jason Kelce and hoping for quarterback Jalen Hurts to take a step back in the right direction.
Don't let that fool you, though. The Eagles are still bringing back a truckload of talent. Meanwhile, they added nicely this offseason with running back Saquon Barkley as well as defensive backs in the first two rounds of the NFL Draft.
It's Barkley that gets the highlight here. He's proven that when he can stay healthy, he's an elite weapon. However, the New York Giants weren't a great spot for him to show off his talents. Teams could zero in on the running back with the quarterback and wide receivers/tight ends not scaring anyone.
Now, let's look at the Eagles. Hurts has some questions about his arm strength and accuracy. What's something you can do to mask that? Target the running back.
Barkley had over 700 receiving yards in his rookie season, and there were questions about if he could have a 1,000-yard rushing and 1,000-yard receiving season at the same time.
That hasn't happened yet, but this feels like as good of a time as ever. Barkley should get fed a lot. Screen passes, flats, dump-offs, swing passes, nothing is off-limits. Get him the ball often, and let him do great things in open spaces.
A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith are still going to get their targets. That's not a bad thing for Barkley, though. Keep the offense open. For once, he won't be the main focus of opposing defenses. We might see the ridiculous talent on full display for the first time in a long time.
Saquon Barkley hasn't been viewed as highly by fans in recent years due to injury and production suffering, thanks to a poor offense. If he can stay healthy, he doesn't have to worry about the offense anymore. This could be fun.
Washington Commanders - Jayden Daniels wins OROY
The Washington Commanders finished the 2023 season tied for the second-worst record in the NFL. They were "rewarded" with the second-overall pick and used it to select quarterback Jayden Daniels out of LSU.
The most recent Heisman winner lands in what could be a great spot. Washington is headed in a new direction. They have a new coaching staff, a new front office, and a lot of new roster members.
Daniels gets a superstar wide receiver in Terry McLaurin. Jahan Dotson and fellow rookie Luke McCaffrey are great options as well. Veteran tight end Zach Ertz is joined by another rookie, Ben Sinnott. Finally, he has Brian Robinson and Austin Ekeler creating a fun RB duo.
Daniels has a lot of avenues toward success. The receivers are all big-play threats. Ertz and Sinnott are great safety blankets that can pick up a few easier yards. Robinson is the bulldog who keeps defenses worried about the run.
Meanwhile, Ekeler is another passing threat. He had over 100 receptions and 700 receiving yards in 2022. It sure will be nice for Daniels when Ekeler takes a screen pass to the house.
The main competition for Daniels will be Caleb Williams and Drake Maye.
Williams went first overall to the Chicago Bears. Chicago is a great landing spot for a quarterback and only had the pick because they traded with the Carolina Panthers in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Maye went third overall to the New England Patriots. New England isn't as desirable of a spot. It doesn't seem as much of a slam dunk that Maye starts, and his weapons aren't on the same level as Williams and Daniels.
Daniels and Williams could be in a battle all year for the Rookie of the Year award. The top two picks, both quarterbacks, both day-one starters. It's safe to assume that the media is going to eat this up.
Daniels gets the edge because of his legs, though. He has more of a running upside. Washington's QB finishes with 3,400 passing yards, 700 rushing yards, and 34 combined touchdowns. The extra rushing stats that Jayden Daniels gets will put him above Caleb Williams in the race.
New York Giants - Malik Nabers becomes team's first 1,000-yard receiver since 2018
The New York Giants selected wide receiver Malik Nabers with the sixth-overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft. Nabers put up monster numbers at LSU last season, reeling in 89 catches for 1,569 yards and 14 touchdowns.
New York has had notoriously miserable wide receiver play in recent years. The last time the Giants had a receiver with over 1,000 yards was in 2018.
Funny enough, that receiver was another LSU product, Odell Beckham Jr. racked up 1,052 yards of 77 receptions that season.
Nabers has a chance to hit that 1,000 mark. He has a few things going against him. The quarterback situation for New York is less than ideal. They don't have a lot of other weapons to take any pressure off of him, and the running game is non-existent.
However, the QB situation is the only one that is 100% negative. Yes, the running game is bad, but that means they'll throw more. There aren't other good receiving options to take away defensive eyes from Nabers, but that means they'll probably throw him the ball more, too.
You could also just look at the Giants roster. This likely isn't a team that will be winning many games. Playing from behind, they could be throwing the ball a lot.
Malik Nabers is uber-talented. He's going to be a phenomenal weapon for them for years to come. They have a lot of work to do with the rest of the roster, though. That will be frustrating for fans, but it will be fun for them to get to watch what Nabers can do and imagine getting the right pieces (and quarterback) around him.
Malik Nabers joins the league and immediately becomes one of the better receivers in football. Despite all the issues the New York Giants have, he finishes with 84 receptions for 1,100 yards and 10 touchdowns.