Welcome to NFL Draft month! While the Philadelphia Eagles still have plenty of holes to fill on their roster, the draft process has taken over many franchises to this point.
That truth falls on the feet of Philadelphia’s division rivals.
The NFC East was the NFL’s best division in 2022 with three teams getting to the divisional round of the playoffs. With most of the league’s eyes on what the division can do for a repeat of last season, let’s take a look at how each Eagles’ rival has looked through the last few weeks.
Washington Commanders – New Owner, New Quarterback?
Could Josh Harris own a team in New Jersey, Philadelphia, and DC? That question could be answered very shortly with the expected sale of the Commanders in the eyes of many analysts over the next few weeks. Snyder selling the team could issue in a new era of DC football, but it’s not all sunshine and rainbows for the entire team.
Washington seems ready to hand the reigns over to either Sam Howell or Jacoby Brissett in 2023 – a far cry from the Daniel Jones/Dak Prescott/Jalen Hurts in the rest of the division. The entrance of Eric Bienemy could make life difficult for the rest of the division as the new offensive coordinator.
In free agency, Washington kind of improved their porous offensive line…but not by much. Nick Gates and Andrew Wylie are the newcomers while the Daron Payne extension is pretty much the lone consistent positive for the team during this offseason.
New York Giants – Darren Waller highlights Big Blue resurgence?
First – props to John Mara. The Eagles and Giants are mortal enemies, but the owner of New York gave a strong (and correct) rebuttal on the league trying to flex Thursday night games for no reason other than to make an overall profit. It’s hard to argue against any of his points recently.
That being said, New York had a very solid offseason while remaining in the shadows of the rest of the division. The Darren Waller trade from Vegas gives Daniel jones a highly coveted red zone target. Add in Parris Campbell and the Giants’ lack of receivers in 2022 won’t be a problem in 2023. Addin Bobby Okereke – arguably the best off-ball linebacker available, was a very solid move as well.
That being said, New York has not improved their offensive line too much and lacks some serious depth there. Should an injury occur to Andrew Thomas or Evan Neal and the Giants could be in for a much tougher 2023.
Dallas Cowboys – Offseason Champs…again
The Dallas Cowboys won the March offseason once again – by just making three moves during the free agency period.
The trade for Stephon Gillmore and Brandin Cooks were too low-risk-high reward moves. Gillmore is still a lockdown corner, even if he’s older and has had health with injuries over the last few years. Having Cooks as a deep threat changes the Cowboys’ offensive dynamic as well.
Even the release of Ezekiel Elliott was a smart move from Dallas – even if the massive contract and cap hit was always going to be an issue for the team. The Cowboys retained the players they needed and brought in some high-price additions.
The expectation is that the Cowboys have caught up with the Eagles. Will that end up being the case once the games are actually played though? Only time will tell.
Philadelphia Eagles – FA losses highlight Hurts’ emergence
If the Eagles didn’t believe that Jalen Hurts was the franchise quarterback they’ve been searching for, they would have kept more of the seven starters that have left for free agency.
Philly knows and is continuing to negotiate with Hurts on a long-term extension that keeps the MVP candidate in the City of Brotherly Love for the long term. It’s now up to the front office to find a way to build a continued championship team around a quarterback on a big contract.
The good news is that the Eagles have gone all-in on low-risk-high-reward players. Nicholas Morrow, Terrell Edmunds, Kentavius Street, Justin Evans, and Greedy Williams are all former high picks that haven’t quite panned out. If the Eagles can get over half of this to produce close to what last year’s free agent class did, the team could very well be the representative for the NFC in Super Bowl LVIII again.
Photo by John Byrum/Icon Sportswire
