A good friend of mine, who is an Eagles fan, was over for drinks this weekend, and we got into a debate about Philly versus Dallas. He pointed out a stupid fan poll, which said the Eagles were the favorites this coming season in the NFC East. I asked him what Philadelphia has done to make their roster that much better than the 9-7 team that sneaked into the back door of the playoffs last year, given the fact that they no longer have their Lord and Savior Nick Foles. He said Philly absolutely has a better roster than Dallas right now. I said I think he's crazy. As an exercise, let me know if you agree with this attempt at an unbiased assessment:
OFFENSE
QB: Philly
-Prescott has better stats and a better record, but Wentz has played extremely well when healthy. If both players are 100% healthy, Wentz might be a better QB. It's closer than my Eagles fan friend will ever admit, though.
RB: Dallas
-There's no debate here
WR: Dallas
-This one is where our debate would probably start. He thinks Alshon Jeffrey is a really good receiver. I'm not all that impressed with him. He's certainly a different type of receiver than Amari Cooper, but I don't think he's better. Cooper has better stats and more Pro Bowls than Jeffrey, in fewer years. At the #2 WR spot, DeShaun Jackson is probably better than Michael Gallup due to experience. At the #3 WR spot, Nelson Agholor and Randall Cobb may be a push.
TE: Philly
-Zach Ertz is one of the best in the business, for sure, and his backup is pretty good too.
OL: Dallas
-This is actually a pretty close one too, but I think if Frederick comes back at near 100%, Dallas' Great Wall will be back in business.
DEFENSE
DE: Dallas
-With Lawrence now signed and Quinn on board for a year, I think Dallas has this one
DT: Philly
-Fletcher Cox is really, really good and Malik Jackson was a good signing.
LB: Dallas
-I don't see any logical argument here.
CB: Dallas
-This may be where my bias is showing, but I think our lineup looks better than theirs. Both teams have good young CBs, but Dallas had one Pro Bowler and Philly had none, so we win.
S: Philly
-Malcolm Jenkins is a very good safety.
SPECIAL TEAMS
K: Dallas
-Maybe ... I don't know. Neither team had a particularly good kicker this year.
P: I have no idea
-Really ... no idea