As the season draws near, it’s time to reflect on the state of the NFC East. The Philadelphia Eagles have had a remarkable offseason, but where does that leave them in the race for the divisional crown. What better place to start than with Head Coaches?
4: HC Brian Daboll, New York Giants
The Canadian-born play-caller became the 20th head coach in Giants franchise history when he agreed to take on the struggling franchise. A year after denying to interview with the Philadelphia Eagles, it looks like Daboll was just waiting for the right opportunity to come around or more specifically for his buddy, new Giants GM Joe Schoen, to take over the role that was once occupied by the odd GM David Gettleman.
Daboll is now entering a favorable position as the Giants can walk away from Daniel Jones after this season but if Jones hits a new plateau with Daboll as the guy with the headset on the sidelines then Daboll would look like a genius. It’s a win-win scenario but not strong enough to have him ranked above the more tenured NFC East coaches.
3: HC Mike McCarthy, Dallas Cowboys
After starting his tenure with a 6-10 record in 2020, Mike McCarthy and the ‘boys rebounded to win the division in 2021 with a record of 12-5. They followed that season with a loss in the wild-card round against the San Francisco 49ers.
The Cowboys will be an interesting team to keep an eye on as they’ve lost some key players including WR Amari Cooper who they traded for a bag of peanuts. Can they become repeat NFC East champions? Mike McCarthy has a lot to figure out, if so.
2: HC Ron Rivera, Washington Commanders
Ron Rivera is one of my personal favorite coaches of all time but riverboat Ron may be up against the wall with this organization. With all of the backstage drama going on thanks to Commanders’ owner Daniel Snyder, Ron is trying his best to put a winning product on the field.
While the Commanders have a stout defensive line, the offense has been sputtering for quite some time now. Ron will be relying on a Terry McLaurin-Carson Wentz dynamic that hasn’t beared any fruit yet due to the star wideout holding out for a contract extension.
Can Ron Rivera guide the Commanders to an NFC East title? it’s doubful.
1: HC Nick Sirianni, Philadelphia Eagles
Am I being biased? Possibly. Think of the names and teams we just went through. Nick Sirianni is the only coach that makes sense right now because of the mid-season turnaround and trajectory of the team. The overly energetic and passionate head coach is heading into his second season with the Eagles and has been given a loaded roster with some shiny new toys.
It would be hard to say that his expectations are low when you just added players like A.J. Brown, James Bradberry, Haason Reddick, Kyzir White, Jordan Davis, and Nakobe Dean. The Eagles are rapidly becoming favorites to win the division and Nick Sirianni’s presence only adds to that.
Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire
