As the season kicks off, the Eagles are still tops in the NFC East

The NFC East’s season kicks off tonight when the Eagles host the Packers at 7:15 p.m.

Fortunately for me, since I don’t have a Peacock subscription, I don’t have to watch it. But it does mean it’s time for my final prediction post for the upcoming NFC East season.

The Cowboys (at Cleveland), the Giants (vs. the Vikings), and the Commanders (at Tampa Bay) get started on Sunday afternoon.

So, let’s get into it, shall we? Here are the links to my first two prediction posts:

Pre-Draft: https://insidethestar.com/eagles-perched-atop-nfc-east-in-pre-draft-prediction-post/

Post-Draft: https://insidethestar.com/cowboys-fall-further-behind-eagles-in-nfc-east-race/

In the pre-draft post, I had the NFC East stacked up like this:

Philadelphia — 11-6

Dallas – 9-8

New York – 6-11

Washington – 5-12

Four weeks later, as the dust settled after the draft, the prediction looked like this:

Philadelphia — 13-4

Dallas – 8-9

New York – 6-11

Washington – 5-12

We’ve now got the training camps and preseason games out of the way. Some things have happened to impact the predictions – as is always the case every year.

But here and now, this is my final prediction for how I see the NFC East playing out in 2024:

Philadelphia Eagles

Predicted finish: 1st (unchanged)

Predicted record: 13-4 (+2)

What follows is exactly what I wrote four months ago.

I didn’t bother changing a word because nothing has changed to change my mind. The Eagles are going to win the division this year.

The Eagles swung eight trades in the NFL Draft this year. They let some players go, traded others away, and then shored up their team with nine solid draft picks.

In short, Philadelphia has the best general manager in the league – maybe even in professional sports – right now.

The only thing holding the team back from lifting a Lombardi Trophy is its head coach. And maybe offensive coordinator Kellen Moore.

If Nick Sirianni ever grows up – or gets fired – the Eagles are going to be unstoppable.

And if they decide to play a quarterback at quarterback, instead of a running back, they could be unbeatable.

At least there is some good news. With the retirement of Travis Kelce’s older brother-in-law the “Tush Push” might go away.

Dallas Cowboys

Predicted finish: 2nd (unchanged)

Predicted record: 8-9 (unchanged)

The only thing Dallas successfully addressed in early free agency and the draft is its offensive line.

They still have a weak running back corps. That weakness will not go away because Ezekiel Elliott has returned either.

They have no solid WR2 in place.

So either Brandin Cooks fills the role – and he’s a better WR3 – or its Jalen Tolbert, Jalen Brooks, or rookie Ryan Flournoy.

I’m not feeling so good about the offense right now.

The Cowboys did address the defensive line recently in free agency. And that defense still needs to show it can stop the run.

If they can’t, 8-9 might be overly optimistic here. And they also lost Sam Williams on the edge for the season, along with DaRon Bland at cornerback for at least a third of the year.

Those injuries will be difficult to overcome. Not impossible, but difficult.

Add in a schedule that is not looking so easy just to add to the wails and lamentations of Cowboys’ fans.

I haven’t even mentioned the contract issues for the quarterback, the top receiver, and the head coach either.

Frankly, from what we’ve seen of this team in the last four years, how confident are you that they won’t crack under the pressure?

Suddenly, even 8-9 seems to be less likely by the minute.

Washington Commanders

Predicted finish: 3rd (+1)

Predicted record: 5-12 (unchanged)

The Commanders are in full rebuild mode. They picked up some extra draft picks and made them count.

Getting a Heisman Trophy winning quarterback was a good move.

But Jayden Daniels will need time to grow – as will many of his teammates – before the Commanders will be in contention for a divisional title again.

The only reason why they moved up from third is because the Giants are looking even worse than I thought back in May.

New York Giants

Predicted finish: 4th (-1)

Predicted record: 4-13 (-2)

The Giants only had six picks and they lost their long-time starting running back in free agency.

They did address some areas of need in the draft. But not by enough to really move the needle in the right direction on their final record and finish in the division.

The way their preseason unfolded? That needle moved way back.

New York is probably going to need to change its starting quarterback and head coach after this season before they’ll be contenders again.