Have the NFC East teams closed the gap?

Have the NFC East teams closed the gap?

Nicholas Harris: What’s the negative of every team in the division that isn’t named Dallas finishing last in 2023? So, higher draft places for each. Washington took full advantage of first-year head coach Dan Quinn, beginning with Heisman-winning quarterback Jayden Daniels. Philadelphia added star draftees Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean to a secondary that desperately needed their help, while also retaining Saquon Barkley in the division on offense. Wide receiver Malik Nabers is a potential rookie of the year candidate for New York, but will Daniel Jones be able to properly utilize his new weapon? I believe the division has made significant progress in terms of youthful potential. It will now be down to the teams that maximize.

Kyle Youmans: This is an unusual question, primarily since the other NFC East teams have all closed the gap in their own unique way. Washington narrowed the gap by completely overhauling its coaching staff and roster from the previous season. Dan Quinn hired Kliff Kingsbury as offensive coordinator and Joe Whitt Jr. as defensive coordinator before investing heavily in free agency. This, combined with their draft class and a potential franchise quarterback in Jayden Daniels, makes Washington a legitimate wild card. New York closed the distance by doubling down on a coaching staff and quarterback who underperformed last year. And Philadelphia was somewhere in the middle with coaching changes, spending in free agency, and a youth movement after several veterans moved on. Who really closed the gap the most? I’d say time will tell, but Philly is the closest despite all their own questions.

Patrik Walker: To me, it’s still a division that is a two-horse race between the Cowboys and the Eagles, at least until further notice. That doesn’t mean the Giants and Commanders won’t compete though, because we know anything can happen within the NFC East, but it’s more so the Commanders that present the more immediate threat. That’s because they’ve undergone a full regime change but, more importantly, it’s who they brought in to change things: Dan Quinn. Familiarity with McCarthy’s thought process on offense could help the Commanders in their bouts to come against Dallas, not to mention the siphoning of Dante Fowler and Dorance Armstrong to their ranks in Washington. Toss in second-overall pick Jayden Daniels to tandem with Terry McLaurin and it does appear the Commanders have a voice in the division this year.

Nick Eatman: It does seem that way. But then again, it’s been 20 years since any NFC East club has won the division in consecutive years. So this wouldn’t be anything new. It’s not like other divisions, where one team has dominated for a long time. Based on the free-agent moves that teams made and did not make, it appears that the other NFC East teams have improved enough to close the gap. The key question is how much the Eagles have progressed in comparison to the Cowboys. You’d have to believe that both the Commanders and the Giants improved, because it’s difficult to imagine them getting any worse.

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