Is The Recently Abysmal NFC East Starting To Show Signs Of Life??

           After an abysmal start to the season, the NFC East teams are starting to turn things around (for the most part) and show signs of life. The Giants got off the schnide in one of the uglier Monday Night Football game in years. The Redskins are starting to show that impressive run game that won them the NFC title last year as Robert Griffin III begins to trust his knee more and more. The Eagles are a different story, but the Cowboys seem to have found a rhythm and appear to be the team to beat in the division. Here is how each team stands after Week 7 in the National Football League:

1.) Dallas Cowboys (4-3, 3-0 NFC East): The Dallas Cowboys have ridden a phenomenal offense and a 3-0 record in the division to the top of the NFC East. The Cowboys rely heavily on Tony Romo and the passing game, which ranks 8^th in the league averaging 269 yards a game, but they have found a way to sprinkle enough runs in to keep defenses on their toes. Recently, the much maligned defense has seemed to take Defensive Coordinator Monte Kiffin’s teaching to heart, and appear to be meshing better. The biggest storyline for this team over the next month or so will be the health of DE DeMarcus Ware and RB DeMarco Murray, two of the team’s strongest players. With an already beaten down D-line, Ware being out is a massive blow, and Murray’s absence means more teams will look to tee off on Tony Romo.

2.) Philadelphia Eagles (3-4, 2-1 NFC East): The Eagles are quite an interesting story any which way you look at it. Rookie Head Coach Chip Kelly appears to have the offense rolling (1^st in rushing, 11^th in passing), but the team’s defense has been pitiful, giving up over 310 yards passing per game. The new issue the team has to deal with is the carousel of quarterbacks that have been rotating in and out of the line-up. With Nick Foles out with a concussion and Matt Barkley clearly not ready for the big stage, it’s back to Michael Vick in Philly. This weekend the Eagles take on the Giants in a critical NFC East matchup that from a far may not look very important, but will go a long way in determining if the Eagles can stay on the Cowboys’ heels.

3.) Washington Redskins (2-4, 0-2 NFC East): Tell me if you’ve heard this one before… A stellar offense but a porous defense; seems to be the NFC East’s bread and butter this season. Redskins fans received encouraging signs the last few weeks as it appears Robert Griffin III is beginning to trust his knee more, thus allowing a world of offensive options to be opened up for Offensive Coordinator Kyle Shanahan. TE Jordan Reed is showing signs of stardom, thus allowing the team to begin shopping Fred Davis around. Problem is, while the offense is doing its part, the defense is struggling once again. Ranked 22^nd and 29^th in opponents pass and rush yards, respectively, the Skins D doesn’t get any sort of break as it must go into Denver this week to face the best offense in the league (all this without their only legitimate starting safety, Brandon Merriweather). There are many ways to look at this team, but trying to measure the importance of RGIII’s health is unquantifiable; expect good things in the coming weeks from this team, after this Sunday of course.

4.) New York Giants (1-6, 0-2 NFC East): On Monday night, the Giants got off the schnide and took down the hapless Vikings, giving them their first win of the season. Regardless of the fact that the Vikings handed them the game, the team will take the win and run with it. The play of recent free agent signing of MLB Jon Beason appears to be panning out for the Giants, thus solidifying a position that has been a question mark for years. Combine this with the fact that Peyton Hillis appears to be running with his reckless abandon of old, and you can see a few bright spots on this team. Either way, this season is just about over if the Giants lose to Philly this weekend, and then it will be time to start ‘evaluating’ for next year.