In recent years, the NFC East has been one of the most competitive and unpredictable divisions in the NFL. No team has repeated as the division champion in consecutive years since the Philadelphia Eagles did it from 2001-2004. This season, the division will likely come down to the final week of the season, just as it has in three of the past four years.
The Washington Redskins went on an unlikely run in 2015 to win the division, allotting an overall record of 9-7. The Eagles finished second with a 7-9 record followed by the New York Giants at 6-10. In last place, it was the Dallas Cowboys at 4-12.
Here's how things will shake out in 2016, per this author.
1. New York Giants
The G-Men will look to get back to their winning ways in 2016 after three consecutive seasons below .500. The team made numerous big changes over the course of the offseason, promoting offensive coordinator Ben McAdoo to head coach and embarking on a spending spree which brought in the likes of Olivier Vernon, Janoris Jenkins, and Damon Harrison. With their opponents already suffering from injuries and losses, this season gives the Giants a great chance to take control of the NFC East crown.
New York's star man is clearly wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr., who has developed great chemistry with Eli Manning in the passing attack. The Giants are expecting the return of a healthy Victor Cruz at wideout for the first time in nearly two years and coupled with the addition of Oklahoma's Sterling Shepard via the NFL Draft, this offense is poised for a breakout season.
Even after the big splashes, there is still concern on the defensive side of the ball. The 2015 Giants defense was historically bad, giving up the third-most points per game last season (27.6). The big additions all across the D will have to prevent this or else the G-Men will have no shot at a return to the playoffs in 2016.
2. Dallas Cowboys
The 2016 Dallas Cowboys are far from the division bottom-dwellers who finished 4-12 last season. America's team suffered major injuries to Tony Romo, Dez Bryant, and Orlando Scandrick and they'll be back this year. Sort of.
Romo is already down with an injury season and that could mean big problems in Big D. The Cowboys' offense faltered and couldn’t really generate yards or scores without him last season. But now, Dak Prescott is in town, and with a healthy Bryant and the addition of fourth-overall pick Ezekiel Elliott, Dallas is much improved and more prepared to handle life without the team's star QB.
The Cowboys' Achilles heel is their defense, which has been average at best for quite some time now. Dallas has a good shot to make the playoffs and even win the division if the D steps up and makes big plays, but if it continues to struggle, it could be the lethal blow to the team's postseason aspirations.
3. Washington Redskins
Let's start by saying that the 2015 Redskins were by no means a good team. Yes, they did make the playoffs and with the division with a 9-7 record, but let's be honest: they just had the luck of the draw in winning the really bad crapshoot that was the NFC East. All 9 of Washington's wins came against teams that failed to make the playoffs and the team was outscored a combined 71-26 against the New England Patriots and Carolina Panthers.
Needless to say, the path to back-to-back division titles will be brutal for the 'Skins.
While Washington may be strong enough to grab a wild card spot, they certainly won’t be able to recapture the magic of 2015 and win the division. Kirk Cousins had his breakout season, throwing 29 touchdowns with 11 interceptions, but that's a one-season sample size and there's no telling whether he will repeat his performance in 2016.
The Redskins have a talented group of pass catchers, a solid defense, and decent special teams ability. But they'll be taking a major step back from 2015 and finishing as an average team, not a division winner, in 2016.
4. Philadelphia Eagles
The Eagles made a splash at the 2016 NFL Draft by trading up to select North Dakota State QB Carson Wentz second overall. Philly has no interest in rushing Wentz onto the field, but having traded Sam Bradford to the Minnesota Vikings about a week prior to their opening game, it's either him or Chase Daniel manning the offense to begin 2016.
There are just way too many questions throughout the Eagles' roster. It will be interesting to see how the offense looks under new head coach Doug Pederson, but Philadelphia will not be doing much better than last in the NFC East this year.
Of the four teams in this division, the Eagles are the only one that seemingly got worse. Pederson will be relying on Ryan Matthews as his running back after successfully directing the Kansas City Chiefs' offense, and the birds will see their record go down from the 7-9 mark in 2015.