Ranking the NFC East by position

[Gryphon]

1. Commanders- Clinton Portis is a top-5 back. He did a good job last year of showing he wasn’t just a product of the Denver system. With that said, you really don’t know what the running game will look this year with new OC Al Saunders. He did a great job in Kansas City but how quickly can the Commanders offense pick up the new scheme? If they do a good job of picking it up pretty quickly, Portis will have a monster year, if there is an adjustment period, I still expect Portis to have a great season but he might not have the best season of all the division backs.

2. Giants- Tiki Barber has been absolutely phenomenal for the Giants the last three seasons. Career year after career year. I fully expect another good season out of Tiki if for no other reason than Eli getting better. The Giants might not rely has much on the running game if Eli in fact is improving, but Tiki’s importance and influence is still going to be the key to a successful season for the Giants.

3. Cowboys- Julius Jones needs to stay healthy. It is as simple as that. He has the talent, the speed, and the quick moves to actually be a better back than either Portis or Tiki. But he needs to be able to put it together for a full season. If he doesn’t Marion Barber III will be the starting running back. He is not as fast as Jones and doesn’t have the moves, but he is a more punishing runner that doesn’t go down on the first hit, definitely a red zone back. The expectation is that the line will be good enough and strong enough to open holes and either Jones or Barber will have a good season.

4. Eagles- There is no idea how important the running back position will be for the eagles this season. It certainly wasn’t important last year as the eagles basically refused to run the ball. Westbrook was hurt and that definitely contributed to the low running numbers, but even with a healthy Westbrook by how much would the numbers have increased? The Eagles are probably going to have a hard time if Westbrook is not healthy because if/when he goes down there isn’t a lot of depth, they struggled last year without Westbrook but was that because of his absence or because the Eagles had other important injuries and distractions? The Eagles running game is not going to be impressive at all this season, and you can guarantee that if the Eagles struggle this year there will be plenty of calls from fans and media for the Eagles to run the ball more.

 

[Gryphon]

1. Eagles- McNabb is healthy again and also no longer has to fight TO so that distraction should no longer weigh heavy on him. But what could weigh heavy on him is the fact that he doesn’t have a playmaking receiver like TO and how much trust would you put on Westbrook being healthy a full year. He is the best quarterback in the division but it mostly has to do with McNabb not being too old or too young rather than actual skill.

2. Cowboys- Bledsoe has the weapons, with TO, Glenn, Witten, Fasano when a 2-te set is used, two young running backs. The concern is if he has the line. If he does, the type of year Bledsoe and the Cowboys in general could have would put Bledsoe, for this year only, above McNabb for best division quarterback. He isn’t mobile, hangs on to the ball too long, seems to slow down as the season progresses, and has a reputation for those “what the hell was that” plays. If the line plays well, he would get sacked less, and throw less, which means that he should not be completely worn out by the end of the season. As far as the dumb plays, you can only pray.

3. Commanders- The reason why I put Bledsoe above Brunell is because you can see as the season progressed that the Commanders won despite Brunell. He would make either 2-3 game changing passes or one of those scrambling first downs that would prove to be vital in a Commanders victory. Despite that, I would pick Bledsoe over Brunell because I would always be afraid when the other shoe would drop for brunell. He has plenty of weapons that should take some pressure off him and with new OC Al Saunders, Brunell will be protected within the new scheme that should maximize his effectiveness.

4. Giants- If this was which quarterback would you choose to lead your team for the nest 5 years, obviously Eli wins hands down. But for just one year, I would take the leadership and experience that the above three quarterbacks have than picking Eli. By years end the case might be different, Eli might just be the leader the Giants hope he can become and he has gained enough experience that you won’t see to many repeat performances of that horrible playoff game against the Panthers. I think Eli will have a good season and probably have better numbers than both Brunell and McNabb, but I also believe that Eli will be more prone to being forced into mistakes than the other quarterbacks, and in a division has hotly contested as this one will be every mistake can be critical.

 

[MarionBarberThe4th]

Tiki over Clitnon