NFC East Breakdown
by Patrick Schuster
Dallas Cowboys
So far this off-season, Dallas has kept its vital parts together.
Dallas has let the market dictate the value on back-ups and bargain-shopped to fit their budget.
Positives
On the coaching side, Dallas kept Jason Garrett and added top offensive line coach Hudson Houck as well as Todd Grantham, Brett Maxie, Dave Campo, and Reggie Herring.
The Cowboys signed Flozell Adams to a long term deal and franchised Ken Hamlin. The team gave Marion Barber a first- and third-round qualifying offer, and gave Chris Canty a first-round qualifying offer. They also added Zach Thomas.
These moves made for a solid off-season up to this point.
Negatives
The team lost some depth with cornerback Jacques Reeves going to Houston and cornerback Nate Jones and saftey Keith Davis joining so many others in Miami.
Running back Julius Jones bolting for Seattle also hurt the team.
Coaches Tony Soprano, Paul Pasqualoni, Kacy Rodgers, and Todd Bowles will be missed as well. Pasqualoini was the toughest loss and may be the next guy to become a head coach in this league.
Overall
The loss of depth hurts. But with two first round picks next month, the Cowboys should be able to replace and likely upgrade the positions that have suffered to this point.
Dallas will need to have a good draft in order to duplicate the same success next season, as they now have a few holes to fill behind their starters, but so far the team has not lost any vital parts.
Keeping Garrett was a masterful stroke by Jerry Jones, and with even more great minds on their defensive staff, it may perform better in key moments.
Washington Redskins
The Redskins are the poster child for surprises this off-season.
Breaking from past years, they have not wasted money signing veterans past their prime or players that do not warrant a monster contract. Instead, the Redskins have demonstrated financial restraint and waited for the draft (glad to see someone in D.C. worries about that type of stuff).
Granted, this off-season was not without its headlines. It appears they backed into hiring Jim Zorn as their head coach. That move will be highly scrutinized throughout the year to see whether it is a boom or a bust.
Positives
The Skins managed to keep valuable back-ups Rock Cartwright and Todd Collins. Both realized that sometimes the grass is not greener; it’s just different grass.
Dumping Brandon Lloyd was a wise move too. Lloyd’s mouth made comments that his game could not back up.
Negatives
The Redskins were close to be making a big run with Joe Gibbs, but now they have unproven Jim Zorn in control. I still can’t figure out what happened with Gregg Williams.
Zorn could have the same success that Jason Garrett did calling the plays for Dallas last year, but it’s a huge gamble for Danny Snyder. It is like he’s giving the keys to his new Lexus to a 16-year-old that just got his driver’s license.
It's very surprising that he didn’t go with a more established head coach for a few years and let Zorn prepare to run a team.
Overall
Besides the hire of Zorn, the Skins have been quiet this off-season, which is a good thing for Redskins fans.
Moving Greg Blache from defensive line to defensive coordinator should keep continuity on the defense. Now they just need to hold onto their picks and get players that will fit Jim Zorn’s scheme.
With no wild draft picks or crazy free agents moves, and Washington should stay in the playoff hunt.
NY Giants
If you look up the phrase, “catching lighting in a bottle”, there should be a picture of the 2007 NY Giants.
These Super Bowl Champions were the same team that lost to Green Bay by 22 points, to Dallas by 10 and 11 points, Minnesota by 24 pts, Washington by 12 points and to New England on the last game of the season.
With that said, if I wore a hat, it would be off to them, because they made a run in the playoffs when it counted and that’s all that matters.
So far they’ve played free agency like most Super Bowl Champs, expecting a few guys to bolt and replacing them with similar talent but less expense.
Positives
First, the team signed Tom Coughlin to a long term contract. That was vital to show who is boss in New York.
Next, they did not overpay to keep players with limited talent that fit their scheme perfectly. Every Super Bowl team loses guys that other teams fall in love with and usually overpay for (insert Raiders: see Larry Brown and Dominic Rhodes).
Also, it is very fortunate that Steve Spagnuolo decided to stick around at least one more year. Additions of Danny Clark, David Carr, and Sammy Knight should lessen any losses the team might have had, and with draft picks added, the Giants will be fine.
Negatives
It's hard to be very negative when you end the season the way they did, but they need to make a public show of support of Jeremy Shockey. He may have finally worn out his welcome in New York.
If Shockey is dumped, say to Miami or New Orleans, for a second round pick, that will also show that Eli is the priority. It’s fairly obvious that Manning improved in confidence and decision making once Shockey went down.
Losing both Reggie Torbor and Kawika Mitchell hurts even though they have guys who can step up to replace them because all depth has been lost.
Overall
It’s good to be King of the NFL, but to stay around for a while the Giants need another successful draft. They also need to show a stronger consistency all season long as you cannot expect to have a 2007-type playoff run again.
Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia is clearly the most aggressive team in the division this free agency period, with the big signing of Asante Samuel on the first day of free agency.
The real question becomes, will they ever give McNabb the top wide receiver he traditionally begs for every off-season?
Even though he doesn’t ever really act like it, you would have to think Reid will really feel the heat next off-season if they don’t make a legit run towards the playoffs because of the lack of weapons in his offense.
Positives
Obviously, the signing of Asante Samuel is huge, but grabbing DE Chris Clemons from the Raiders was a nice move.
Dan Klecko’s signing was an interesting move that will be worth following this season.
Negatives
Raise your hand if you think the Eagles can win a Super Bowl with Kevin Curtis and Reggie Brown as their starting receivers.
Someday Philly will make the necessary move and get the number-one receiver for McNabb, and hopefully it will be while he’s still young enough to really benefit and click with the player.
You would have to think this is a make or break season for Andy Reid, who if he continues to be so stubborn about adding a #1 WR and getting Westbrook a backfield mate to share the load, Reid will be out as head man.
Overall
Philadelphia seems to thrive when everyone counts them out or tells them they can’t do something.
For all those die hard Eagles fans, I just hope that they trade Lito Sheppard for a number-one wide receiver (say, Roy Williams from Detroit). They also should add a back to take some carries and keep Westbrook closer to 100% near the end of the season.
With that said, Philly will probably keep Sheppard and draft an OT in the first round, a linebacker in the second, and a quarterback in the third.
Dallas Cowboys
So far this off-season, Dallas has kept its vital parts together.
Dallas has let the market dictate the value on back-ups and bargain-shopped to fit their budget.
Positives
On the coaching side, Dallas kept Jason Garrett and added top offensive line coach Hudson Houck as well as Todd Grantham, Brett Maxie, Dave Campo, and Reggie Herring.
The Cowboys signed Flozell Adams to a long term deal and franchised Ken Hamlin. The team gave Marion Barber a first- and third-round qualifying offer, and gave Chris Canty a first-round qualifying offer. They also added Zach Thomas.
These moves made for a solid off-season up to this point.
Negatives
The team lost some depth with cornerback Jacques Reeves going to Houston and cornerback Nate Jones and saftey Keith Davis joining so many others in Miami.
Running back Julius Jones bolting for Seattle also hurt the team.
Coaches Tony Soprano, Paul Pasqualoni, Kacy Rodgers, and Todd Bowles will be missed as well. Pasqualoini was the toughest loss and may be the next guy to become a head coach in this league.
Overall
The loss of depth hurts. But with two first round picks next month, the Cowboys should be able to replace and likely upgrade the positions that have suffered to this point.
Dallas will need to have a good draft in order to duplicate the same success next season, as they now have a few holes to fill behind their starters, but so far the team has not lost any vital parts.
Keeping Garrett was a masterful stroke by Jerry Jones, and with even more great minds on their defensive staff, it may perform better in key moments.
Washington Redskins
The Redskins are the poster child for surprises this off-season.
Breaking from past years, they have not wasted money signing veterans past their prime or players that do not warrant a monster contract. Instead, the Redskins have demonstrated financial restraint and waited for the draft (glad to see someone in D.C. worries about that type of stuff).
Granted, this off-season was not without its headlines. It appears they backed into hiring Jim Zorn as their head coach. That move will be highly scrutinized throughout the year to see whether it is a boom or a bust.
Positives
The Skins managed to keep valuable back-ups Rock Cartwright and Todd Collins. Both realized that sometimes the grass is not greener; it’s just different grass.
Dumping Brandon Lloyd was a wise move too. Lloyd’s mouth made comments that his game could not back up.
Negatives
The Redskins were close to be making a big run with Joe Gibbs, but now they have unproven Jim Zorn in control. I still can’t figure out what happened with Gregg Williams.
Zorn could have the same success that Jason Garrett did calling the plays for Dallas last year, but it’s a huge gamble for Danny Snyder. It is like he’s giving the keys to his new Lexus to a 16-year-old that just got his driver’s license.
It's very surprising that he didn’t go with a more established head coach for a few years and let Zorn prepare to run a team.
Overall
Besides the hire of Zorn, the Skins have been quiet this off-season, which is a good thing for Redskins fans.
Moving Greg Blache from defensive line to defensive coordinator should keep continuity on the defense. Now they just need to hold onto their picks and get players that will fit Jim Zorn’s scheme.
With no wild draft picks or crazy free agents moves, and Washington should stay in the playoff hunt.
NY Giants
If you look up the phrase, “catching lighting in a bottle”, there should be a picture of the 2007 NY Giants.
These Super Bowl Champions were the same team that lost to Green Bay by 22 points, to Dallas by 10 and 11 points, Minnesota by 24 pts, Washington by 12 points and to New England on the last game of the season.
With that said, if I wore a hat, it would be off to them, because they made a run in the playoffs when it counted and that’s all that matters.
So far they’ve played free agency like most Super Bowl Champs, expecting a few guys to bolt and replacing them with similar talent but less expense.
Positives
First, the team signed Tom Coughlin to a long term contract. That was vital to show who is boss in New York.
Next, they did not overpay to keep players with limited talent that fit their scheme perfectly. Every Super Bowl team loses guys that other teams fall in love with and usually overpay for (insert Raiders: see Larry Brown and Dominic Rhodes).
Also, it is very fortunate that Steve Spagnuolo decided to stick around at least one more year. Additions of Danny Clark, David Carr, and Sammy Knight should lessen any losses the team might have had, and with draft picks added, the Giants will be fine.
Negatives
It's hard to be very negative when you end the season the way they did, but they need to make a public show of support of Jeremy Shockey. He may have finally worn out his welcome in New York.
If Shockey is dumped, say to Miami or New Orleans, for a second round pick, that will also show that Eli is the priority. It’s fairly obvious that Manning improved in confidence and decision making once Shockey went down.
Losing both Reggie Torbor and Kawika Mitchell hurts even though they have guys who can step up to replace them because all depth has been lost.
Overall
It’s good to be King of the NFL, but to stay around for a while the Giants need another successful draft. They also need to show a stronger consistency all season long as you cannot expect to have a 2007-type playoff run again.
Philadelphia Eagles
Philadelphia is clearly the most aggressive team in the division this free agency period, with the big signing of Asante Samuel on the first day of free agency.
The real question becomes, will they ever give McNabb the top wide receiver he traditionally begs for every off-season?
Even though he doesn’t ever really act like it, you would have to think Reid will really feel the heat next off-season if they don’t make a legit run towards the playoffs because of the lack of weapons in his offense.
Positives
Obviously, the signing of Asante Samuel is huge, but grabbing DE Chris Clemons from the Raiders was a nice move.
Dan Klecko’s signing was an interesting move that will be worth following this season.
Negatives
Raise your hand if you think the Eagles can win a Super Bowl with Kevin Curtis and Reggie Brown as their starting receivers.
Someday Philly will make the necessary move and get the number-one receiver for McNabb, and hopefully it will be while he’s still young enough to really benefit and click with the player.
You would have to think this is a make or break season for Andy Reid, who if he continues to be so stubborn about adding a #1 WR and getting Westbrook a backfield mate to share the load, Reid will be out as head man.
Overall
Philadelphia seems to thrive when everyone counts them out or tells them they can’t do something.
For all those die hard Eagles fans, I just hope that they trade Lito Sheppard for a number-one wide receiver (say, Roy Williams from Detroit). They also should add a back to take some carries and keep Westbrook closer to 100% near the end of the season.
With that said, Philly will probably keep Sheppard and draft an OT in the first round, a linebacker in the second, and a quarterback in the third.
posted by The Gryphon at 9:26 PM
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