Cowboys and Eagles Appear To Be Class of NFC East

Last year the NFL East was a two team race between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles. This year appears to be more of the same. The Washington Redskins are something of an enigma but could see marginal improvement. The same can’t be said about the New York Giants who appear to be in for another long season.

The divisional NFL futures betting odds reflect this hierarchy. The Eagles are a -125 favorite with the Cowboys right behind at +165. The Redskins are +800 while the Giants are +1400.

PHILADELPHIA EAGLES: The Philadelphia Eagles have made a bigger bet than you’ll see at any sportsbook on quarterback Carson Wentz. The 26 year old North Dakota State product agreed to a $128 million contract extension with most of that guaranteed. Wentz definitely has the skills but the Eagles need him to stay healthy. They no longer have Nick Foles to turn to when Wentz goes down and youngsters Nate Sudfeld and Clayton Thorson aren’t ready to be much more than emergency fill ins. Now the good news–the Eagles have a ton of talent around Wentz particularly Desean Jackson and newly acquired running back Jordan Howard. The defense remains solid and Philly seemingly does well at the draft every year. You can’t ‘handicap’ injuries but if Wentz stays healthy this team could contend for another Super Bowl title.

DALLAS COWBOYS: Kellen Moore takes over as offensive coordinator with the hope that he can improve the Cowboys’ passing attack to compliment their strong running game. Leighton Vander Esch and Jaylon Smith anchor a very strong defense featuring pass rushing monster Demarcus Lawrence. There’s always a question about the ability to head coach Jason Garrett to get the most out of this team but the talent is definitely there. It’s a contract year for Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott and you know how that works out. It’s been 14 straight years since the defending NFC East champion has repeated. Dallas has the personnel to break that streak.

WASHINGTON REDSKINS: The Redskins lost a number of key contributors to free agency including Jamison Crowder, Preston Smith, Zach Brown, and Ty Nsekhe. On the other hand, they drafted very well picking up QB Dwayne Haskins, DE Montez Sweat, WR Terry McLaurin and RB Brice Love. Considering that starting QB Alex Smith is gone for the year with a nasty leg injury the team is in fairly decent shape at the position with Colt McCoy and Case Keenum joining Haskins on the depth chart. It appears that the plan is for Haskins to spend the early part of the season watching the veterans but he’ll likely move into the starting role at some point after midyear. The Redskins were 6-3 last year before Smith was injured and if they get some stability at the QB position they could be one of the big surprises in the league. Probably not enough of one to compete with Dallas and Philly but sufficient to show some improvement in what could have been a lost year.

NEW YORK GIANTS: Even for a team in ‘rebuild mode’, the Giants offseason moves were curious to say the least. They essentially gutted the team and don’t appear to have done a good job replacing what they’ve lost. And they’ve lost a lot–Odell Beckham, Jr. is now in Cleveland and strong pass rusher Olivier Vernon is there with him. The defense took another hit with Landon Collins heading ito Washington. GM Dave Gettleman’s most dubious move was taking Duke QB Daniel Jones with the #6 pick in the first round when he would have almost certainly been available for the Giants’ #17 pick in the first round. Jones could become a decent NFL quarterback but for now the plan is to have him sit and watch Eli Manning for a year or two. Saquon Barkley is a strong weapon and his presence will keep the Giants from being a doormat but this is a team in a rebuild without a plan of how to do so.

PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH:

1. DALLAS COWBOYS
2. PHILADELPHIA EAGLES
3. WASHINGTON REDSKINS
4. NEW YORK GIANTS

BET DALLAS COWBOYS +165 TO WIN NFC EAST
BET DALLAS COWBOYS OVER 9 WINS +100
BET NEW YORK GIANTS UNDER 6 WINS +105
BET WASHINGTON REDSKINS OVER 6.5 WINS +130
BET DALLAS COWBOYS TO MAKE PLAYOFFS +105
BET DALLAS COWBOYS +1/2 WIN OVER PITTSBURGH STEELERS -1/2 WIN -130
BET PHILADELPHIA EAGLES -4 WINS -110 OVER NEW YORK GIANTS +4 WINS

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