By Dalton Del Don
1. Dallas Cowboys
Don’t expect another 13-3 season, especially playing in such a tough division, but the Cowboys are still the team to beat in the NFC. Tony Romo is a true superstar, but he needs Terrell Owens to stay healthy and also defy the laws of aging. Without Owens, the offense becomes a whole lot easier to defend. Marion Barer is one of the five best running backs in the league, and the team improves just by no longer wasting carries on the far inferior Julius Jones. Wade Phillips as coach is a negative, but Jason Garrett’s presence nullifies that. The defense theoretically improves with the Pacman Jones addition, but he was used to man coverage in Tennessee, and Dallas is primarily zone, and coming off a year away from football, there’s going to be a major transition period.
2. New York Giants (wild card)
While last year’s Super Bowl run qualified as a major surprise, this Giants team is no joke, and another deep run into the playoffs can’t be ruled out. Of course, losing Michael Strahan and Osi Umenyiora is a huge deal, since defensive line was the team’s main strength. While depth could be a problem, there’s still plenty of talent, as Justin Tuck is an emerging star, and Mathias Kiwanuka is a fine replacement. GM Jerry Reese hit yet another home run with the Kenny Phillips selection, and with Aaron Ross’ continued development, the secondary also looks like a plus. The ground game should also be extremely productive, regardless of whether Brandon Jacobs can stay healthy or not. It remains to be seen if Eli Manning truly took a step forward with his play in the postseason, but it’d take a major leap from his career performance (54.7 completion percentage, 6.3 YPA) just to be a better than average QB. Expect somewhere in between.
3. Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles finished strong last season and actually outscored their opponents by nearly 40 points, so they were better than the .500 record indicates. Unfortunately, the division is just too loaded. The defense is solid, but the Asante Samuel signing will likely go down as a mistake. Trent Cole is a beast. But the wideout group is one of the worst in football, and both Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook are health risks. McNabb improved as the year went on last year and is further removed from knee surgery, but he’s not some game-changing QB – he’s good, not great. Westbrook, on the other hand, might be the most difficult running back to gameplan against. He’s truly one of the most valuable backs in the NFL.
4. Washington Redskins
The Redskins are coming off a playoff appearance in 2007, and there’s about a zero percent chance of it happening again this year. There isn’t a glaring weakness on the team, but there also isn’t an area where they particularly exceed either. It figures to be a rough transition moving from Joe Gibbs’ system to a West Coast offense under Jim Zorn. Jason Campbell is nothing special, but it’d certainly help if Santana Moss somehow remained 100 percent throughout a season. Clinton Portis’ best days are behind him.
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