The NFC East hasn’t had a repeat division champion since 2004, the last of four-straight championships by the Philadelphia Eagles. The last 15 seasons have seen a new winner each year, and this is just one statistic which favor the Dallas Cowboys’ odds of taking the division in 2020.
The Cowboys and Eagles are tied with five each of the last 15 division championships. The New York Giants have won three, and the Washington Redskins have just two.
The NFC East has been won by either Dallas or Philadelphia the last four seasons. The Eagles took the title last year with just a 9-7 record; a downtime for the division in its overall competitiveness among the rest of the league.
With the Cowboys going 8-8 themselves last year, they appear best ready to challenge the Eagles in 2020. They have won the NFC East every other year going back to 2014.
Now historical patterns certainly don’t mean everything. In fact, they can mean very little.
But this overall pattern in the division speaks to what we’ve known about the various teams involved, and what we still know about them going into 2020.
Are Dallas and Philadelphia still projected to be the top two teams in the NFC East? Yes.
Are the Giants still struggling to transition from the Tom Coughlin/Eli Manning era, plus dealing with one of the NFL’s worst general managers in Dave Gettleman? Yes.
Are the Redskins still trying to find a quarterback and generally have no idea what they’re doing? Yes.
There will always be anomalies. Maybe Ron Rivera’s arrival will help spark a sudden change in Washington, or maybe Daniel Jones will suddenly emerge as a savior in New York. These franchises do have the occasional flash of competitiveness.
But current projections and historical data both have the Cowboys and Eagles in a two-horse race. And based on what we’ve seen this offseason, Dallas has the potential to take a big leap forward under Mike McCarthy.
Again, the anomalies can happen. One of them could be Philadelphia winning a second-straight division title; they are still poised to be a legit contender this year.
However, if you’re a betting man or woman, the Dallas Cowboys are the easiest money in the NFC East in 2020.
