Could Washington challenge the Eagles, Cowboys for NFC East superiority?

It’s past time for these guys to get back on the field so we can stop exploring the same conversations over and over again. Stop us if any of this sounds familiar. The NFC East hasn’t had a repeat champion since the Philadelphia Eagles won four straight division titles from 2001 to 2004, and that streak may or may not end this season because divisional superiority will come down to a two-team race.

The favorites? The Birds, who had a massive roster haul this offseason and last year’s winners of the crown, the Dallas Cowboys.

We’d like to interrupt your regularly-scheduled program to bring you this announcement. Keep your eyes on the Washington Commanders. That should be easy. They have a new name. They have the most experienced head coach, and even though they probably aren’t ready to challenge the Eagles and Cowboys yet, they could remain in the playoff discussion late into the regular season.

The Commanders could give the Eagles two tough battles during the 2022-2023 NFL season.

The Commanders have had a nice offseason of their own, minus all of the hullabaloo surrounding their owner, Daniel Snyder, of course. Carson Wentz has his issues, but his raw numbers don’t look bad.

Curtis Samuel was never healthy last season. He’ll be back. The release of Landon Collins, Deshazor Everett, Ereck Flowers, and Matthew Ioannidis were eye-openers, but the highlight of the offseason was inking Terry McLaurin to a three-year contract extension.

We hung out with our friends over at Riggo’s Rag, FanSided’s home for all things Commanders, and their editor, Jerry Trotta, shared this nugget with us.

"For starters, everyone exaggerated their 7-10 finish last season. Heinicke started 17 games, but Wentz is a clear improvement at the quarterback position. They played one of the hardest schedules a year ago. This season, they’ll play one of the easiest this year. They were also ravaged by injuries and COVID. An improved wide receiver corps with Jahan Dotson and Curtis Samuel being healthy again plus a running back room that’s three deep with Antonio Gibson, J.D. McKissic, and Brian Robinson Jr. will help the offense. The defensive line is still elite. Their only glaring weakness is linebacker, to be honest. I’m not sure if they have distinct advantages over the Eagles or the Cowboys, but they should push for nine or ten wins easily."

There you have it. While we’re on the subject though, here’s a stat that some of you might see as being interesting. Terry McLaurin saw 33 deep balls thrown in his direction last season. He only hauled in 11 receptions, and he had no drops on those targets.

In other words, Taylor Heinecke couldn’t get the ball to him. Carson Wentz will help with that.

We hate the new name. We love the new uniforms, but on a serious note, one that has more to do with Xs and Os and critical thinking, here are a few parting gifts.

Chase Young should be healthy. Drafting Phidarian Mathis will help ease the stress caused by losing two key depth pieces from the defensive line, Ioannidis and Tim Settle, but keep an eye on these Commanders. They pushed Philly to their limit last season in their annual two-game clash and swept them in 2020.

They meet the Birds in Week 3 on September 25th and again on November 14th in Week 10. Those are two games that you’ll want to have circled on your calendars.