Every team in the division has now played at least 8 games.

PHI 6-2

DAL 6-3

NYG 3-5

WAS 3-6

We figured the division would be the Eagles and 3 mediocre teams. Dallas has greatly exceeded expectations, but has lost 2 games in a row, including an ugly loss to the Skins. The Giants started off 3-2, but are now heading to rock bottom. They have lost 3 in a row and are getting blown out. The Skins have some real talent, but aren’t a good “team”.

I can see where fans of the other teams might look at the injuries to Nick Foles and DeMeco Ryans as potential game changers. I think the Eagles can overcome both. Mark Sanchez is now the QB and he showed plenty of potential on Sunday. Mychal Kendricks is back at ILB and his return can help to offset the loss of Ryans. The Eagles are a flawed team that plays sloppy but they win. And they lead the NFC in point differential so it isn’t like they win each week by just a point or two.

I’m not sure what to make of Dallas. They didn’t have Tony Romo on Sunday, but still had a terrific OL, great RB, great WR, great TE and more. And they essentially scored 3 points. There was a pick-6 and a late TD, but for the most of the game the team couldn’t score points. The Cardinals defense is good, but not that good. Maybe QB Brandon Weeden is that bad. Romo will play this week, but it is hard to say what his future is. Bad backs are a concern every game.

And I don’t believe in the Dallas defense. They have overachieved this year, but part of that is due to the offense. Dallas is 3rd in the league in time of possession. You can’t move the ball on their defense if their offense has the ball. If the offense starts to struggle even a little, that will have a trickle down effect on the defense.

The Giants have now lost 3 games in a row, with 2 of them being embarrassing losses. In the past Tom Coughlin could get the Giants to string together 5 or 6 straight wins, but those teams were loaded with veterans like Justin Tuck, Osi Umenyiora, David Diehl, Chris Snee and so on. The current Giants are a mixture of young players, veteran fill-ins and a few longtime Giants. Think about it. That defense has DRC, Cullen Jenkins and Mike Patterson. I love Patt, but the other two are not high character leader types. JPP is playing better than the previous couple of years, but he isn’t the guy from 2011 who could simply take over games.

Coughlin tried to re-invent the Giants by installing a new offense. That has helped Eli to play better, but the O-line is still a work in progress and the skill players are not exactly Murderer’s Row. The Giants have 24 plays of 20 or more yards. The Eagles have 39. The Giants have had some bad luck with injuries to Rashad Jennings and Odell Beckham, but all the NFC East teams have had to deal with injuries. The Giants won’t be getting any sympathy from anyone on that front.

I don’t think the Giants will totally fall apart like the 2012 Eagles did, but I could see them being a 5 or 6 win team. They don’t exactly have an easy schedule the rest of the year.

The Skins are at the bottom right now, but have the potential to win some games. They have firepower. I still think RG3 can be a really good QB. DeSean Jackson and Pierre Garcon are a terrific set of starting receivers. Jordan Reed is a gifted TE and Washington has a solid run game. The pieces are there for a very good offense. The Skins need better blocking and more consistent QB play, but the offense appears to be heading in the right direction for the long term.

The defense is a mess…again. They shut down the Jags and Texans, but that’s it. Jim Haslett must have pictures of someone. I don’t know how he keeps his job. But I’m glad he does. I certainly don’t anticipate that defense getting substantially better down the stretch.

The Eagles are the best team in the NFC East, both long term and short term.

Unless Mark Sanchez really falls apart, I expect the Eagles to win the division this year. I know some will think this is me being a homer, but I think the Eagles have the most talent in the division. I’d love to tell you the Eagles had an elite roster, but part of that is that the other NFCE teams have some major holes. The one downside to this is that sometimes you need the teams around you to be good in order to push you to become a great team. After all, the goal is to win the Super Bowl, not just the division.

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Some fun stat comparisons

JPP – 39 tackles … 3.5 sacks … 4 TFLs … 5 PDs … 1 FF

Brandon Graham – 20 tackles … 3 sacks … 5 TFLs … 0 PDs … 3 FFs

This isn’t about saying who is better since so much goes into that. JPP gets double-teamed a lot more, but he also plays about twice as many snaps. I just think it is interesting to compare the numbers and see tangible production.

Maclin – 45-790-8 … 17.6 ypc … 13 catches of 20 or more yards … 83 targets

DeSean – 36-784-4 … 21.8 ypc … 11 catches of 20 or more yards … 60 targets

Stats aside, Maclin has been a very clutch receiver this year. He has made some terrific grabs along the sideline on key drives at critical points in games. I haven’t seen enough of the Skins to comment on DJax.

To appreciate Mac’s numbers…look at his best in each category. 70 catches, 964 yards, 13.8 ypc, 10 TDs, 15 catches of 20 or more yards. He is on pace to blow those numbers away. Mac already has a career high in catches of 40 or more yards. He’s got 5 this season. Mac will be getting some big bucks soon enough.

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There are questions about why Zach Ertz isn’t playing more. The Eagles need Brent Celek on the field as a blocker. When the Eagles go 3-WR, that takes Ertz off the field. When the Eagles want to use the power run game, they go with 2 TEs, but James Casey is the other guy out there. Ertz is a terrific receiver, but his blocking needs a lot of work.

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