NFL power rankings: Breaking down each division heading into 2018
By Peter Panacy
Boasting the Super Bowl-winning Philadelphia Eagles helps keep the NFC East out of our NFL power rankings divisional basement. But that’s about it.
Yes, the Eagles are probably going to be just as good in 2018 as they were last year. And that’s pretty good, especially considering quarterback Carson Wentz should return healthy from a season-ending ACL injury late last year.
There’s little reason to assume the Eagles won’t cruise to another divisional title. The rest of the division doesn’t appear to have much of a threat.
Perhaps the biggest threat will be the Dallas Cowboys, who’ll enjoy having running back Ezekiel Elliott back in the fray for a full season. But remember, this is a team that lost aging veterans Dez Bryant and Jason Witten this offseason. It was time to move on from each, but how are the replacements going to fare?
The Redskins, even after grabbing Alex Smith, appear to be doing little more than treading water. And the Giants elected not to find an heir apparent to quarterback Eli Manning, instead using their first pick in the NFL Draft on Penn State running back Saquon Barkley.
They had other needs, and the Giants could have grabbed a good running back later. Hopefully this move doesn’t come back to haunt them down the line.