Blogging The Boys
How realistic do you think it is for the Cowboys to contend in the NFC East?
At present moment, nobody seems to believe in the Cowboys, but they should. According to DraftKings sportsbook, the Cowboys are +190 to reach the playoffs, with only three other NFC teams below them. They’re also the odds-on favorite to finish third in the NFC East, well behind both the Eagles and Commanders when it comes to their odds to win the division.
That’s understandable, given how each team finished the 2024 season, but the reality is that the Cowboys are firmly in the mix for not just a playoff spot but the division itself, and for several reasons.
People have forgotten just how good the Cowboys are when Dak Prescott is under center. Specifically looking at divisional games, Prescott is 9-4 against the Eagles, 11-2 against the Commanders, and 13-2 against the Giants. Prescott’s only loss to Washington during the Mike McCarthy era was an odd regular-season finale that felt like the team went through the motions, while the quarterback hasn’t lost to the Giants since his rookie year.
The Cowboys have also never had a losing season when Prescott plays 12 or more games, and they usually make the playoffs when he does. They were swept by Philadelphia and split the series with Washington last year, but Prescott missed all four of those games.
The bottom line is that Prescott’s return is bad news for the rest of the division, whether anyone wants to admit it or not.
There are understandable trepidations about the new coaching staff, but Brian Schottenheimer was here for the three straight 12-win seasons, while Matt Eberflus has a strong track record of producing top-tier defenses. Oh, and he has Micah Parsons, which certainly helps.
The decidedly dour outlook of the Cowboys from oddsmakers right now seems to be - ahem - at odds with the actual state of the team. The Cowboys have legitimate talent, especially after trading for George Pickens, and Prescott’s return is huge.
That’s without even considering the potential pitfalls for the division’s two teams that actually did make the playoffs last year.
Amy team that wins the Super Bowl is destined for regression, and the Eagles especially so. The last time they won the Super Bowl, Philadelphia nearly missed the playoffs entirely, needing to win their final three games to sneak in as the final Wild Card team. And that was under Doug Pederson, a considerably less-caustic personality than Nick Sirianni.
Now, Sirianni is losing his offensive coordinator and replacing him with Kevin Patullo, a longtime assistant with no prior play-calling experience. Kellen Moore had served as a middle man between Sirianni and Jalen Hurts, working as a band aid to a fractured relationship. What happens now that he’s gone?
Then there’s Saquon Barkley. Last year, Barkley was the straw that stirred the drink in Philly, and the...
