I have been making my way through the NFL the past few weeks by reviewing the futures odds to win each of the eight division races this season as part of a series for Doc's Sports. My journey comes to an end this week with the preview and predictions for the division most near and dear to my heart; the NFC East.
This division has been tagged as the NFC least on more than one occasion over the past three seasons and when 10 wins is good enough to win the title that is going to happen. None the less, this division contains some of the highest profile teams in the league led by America's Team, the Dallas Cowboys.
Jerry Jones's bunch has hardly lived up to this designation with three-straight 8-8 records while losing the last game of the year with the NFC East title on the line. The prospect for a reversal of fortunes this season does not look to good with a defense that has been devastated with a major loss of key personnel through free agency and injuries. This is after this unit finished the 2013 season ranked near the bottom of the NFL in a number of major categories.
The Redskins' ride from worst-to-first-to worst the past three seasons has paved the way for Jay Gruden to take over the reins as head coach. Much of their success this season is pinned to the play of quarterback Robert Griffin III, who has been on his own personal roller-coaster ride in his first two seasons in the league.
The New York Giants added two more Super Bowl titles to their impressive team resume in the past seven seasons but they were a non-factor last year with losses in their first six games. Something tells me that this will not be the case in 2014 as New York works its way back into the mix for a division crown. For the fourth season in a row the NFC title has a good chance of coming down to the final week with Philadelphia on the road against the Giants at MetLife Stadium.
It is probably no big surprise to anyone who reads my blog on a regular basis that I am going with the Eagles has my pick to repeat as division champions. I had them going 8-8 in Chip Kelly's first year at the helm and the Birds exceeded my expectations by two games. I am upping the ante to 11 wins in 2014 against a projected win total of nine games with most major sportsbooks. I have the Eagles getting that crucial 11th win to secure the division title with a victory against the Giants in that Week 17 showdown.
The following is a link to my complete preview and predictions for the NFC East as originally posted on Doc's Sports. Be sure to check back over the next two weeks for individual previews for all four teams in the NFC East.
2014 Odds to Win NFC East with Picks and NFL Predictions
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