September 29, 2022
If the NFL playoffs started this weekend, and they most certainly don't, three NFC East teams would be in the postseason. The Eagles are the lone undefeated team in the conference at 3-0. Meanwhile, the Cowboys and Giants are both 2-1 after Dallas beat New York on Monday Night Football with each team holding one of the last two Wild Card spots in the NFC. Just like everyone imagined it this summer!
Jalen Hurts has the Eagles' offense rolling. Cooper Rush is 2-0 with a quarterback rating of 91.7 while filling in for an injured Dak Prescott. Daniel Jones has yet to eclipse 200 passing yards in a game this season. Carson Wentz may still be stuck in the ground at FedEx Field after the Eagles sacked him nine times on Sunday. The NFC East has not been the best division in football in three-or-so decades, but the entertainment value (both positive and negative!) is off the charts.
As part of the NFC East roundup, I'll take a look at the standings, preview the division's games this week, look at a couple of storylines and provide some news updates.
| Place | Team | Record |
| 1st | Eagles | 3-0 |
| 2nd | Cowboys | 2-1 |
| 3rd | Giants | 2-1 |
| 4th | Commanders | 1-2 |
(lines via DraftKings Sportsbook)
Sunday, 1:00 p.m., Jaguars at Eagles (-6.5)
Sunday, 1:00 p.m., Commanders at Cowboys (-2.5)
Sunday, 1:00 p.m., Bears at Giants (-3)
I saw that Eagles-Jaguars line open at -7 and come down. I could see it being at -6 or lower by kickoff. Everyone's talking about the Birds, but the Jaguars seem like the exact type of underdog bettors would hop on with a touchdown-like spread. The other two matchups are mid-offs. I feel like Dallas' spread should be higher, but still don't believe they're a good overall team as currently constructed sans Prescott. Bears-Giants is a game that should only be shown on TruTV. Ban it from RedZone.
• The biggest storyline of them all this week: Doug Pederson, the only coach in the history of the Eagles to win the Super Bowl, returns to Philadelphia. Pederson hopes he receives a warm reception from the Philadelphia faithful. I wrote that anything less would be an embarrassment. Older vets who were key cogs on Pederson's championship team like Lane Johnson, Jason Kelce, Fletcher Cox and Brandon Graham have all had great starts to their seasons. Then there's Hurts, the league MVP right now, who Pederson willingly benched Wentz for in 2020. Lots of juice in that one!
• Will the Giants, following a 2-0 start, quickly fall to 2-2? The Bears' Justin Fields makes Jones look like Peyton Manning right now. Fields doesn't have the arm to carry Chicago right now. He has just 23 completions through three weeks of the season. At least when the Eagles had to play this regressive pre-World War II football in 2021, Hurts was as dynamic as ever as a runner. Fields isn't that. I'll never shame a devoted and tormented fan base like the Bears' for getting excited, but they're a special type of 2-1 where those same fans deep down know this team stinks. Improbably, one of these teams will be 3-1 by Sunday night. This NFC really is for the Eagles' taking!
• After crumbling in the face of the Eagles' pass rush last week, Wentz and the Commanders face Rush and the Cowboys. Losing to Jared Goff, who was taken one spot ahead of him in the 2016 draft, Hurts, who usurped him as the Birds' QB1, and Rush, a backup of a guy he always struggled to beat, would be a rough go of things for Wentz. Going down 1-3 would be disastrous as Wentz looks to revive his career. Washington has games against Tennessee, Green Bay and Minnesota, among others, before they go to Philly to take on the Eagles on Monday Night Football in Week 10. The storyline I'm keeping my eye on most is whether Wentz is even starting for the Commanders come mid November.
• The Commanders and Giants will both be wearing alternate uniforms this week:
🔥 NFC East teams debuting new uniforms in Week 4:#Commanders: Black ⚫️#Giants: Vintage 🔵
— The 33rd Team (@The33rdTeamFB) September 28, 2022
Which team has the better alternate uni? pic.twitter.com/Zmg9ccxSa7
• The latest on the Prescott injury situation:
From NFL Now: Looking at #Cowboys QB Dak Prescott and when he may play again... pic.twitter.com/dJtPdeqOk2
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) September 28, 2022
• The Eagles signed offensive tackle Roderick Johnson to the practice squad. Johnson was a fifth-round pick out of Florida State to the Browns in 2017. He started six games total across the 2018 and 2019 seasons for the Texans. During Wednesday's Eagles practice, Johnson was getting left tackle reps behind Jordan Mailata.
• Hurts was named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month for September. What a world.
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