It’s been four seasons since an NFC East team won a postseason game—and that was the Eagles’ “double-doink” game in Chicago. But that streak will likely be broken this year in a wide-open NFC. This division now boasts two teams with legitimate Super Bowl aspirations and two others who profile as sneaky wild-card contenders.
The Cowboys, who won the division last year, are favorites to repeat because of their talent on both sides of the ball, even after the loss of left tackle Tyron Smith to a torn hamstring. Their turnaround last season, from 6–10 to 12–5, was due to the return of quarterback Dak Prescott, who missed 11 games in 2020, but the young defense that took off under first-year coordinator Dan Quinn was just as impactful. The former Falcons head coach, who also coordinated Seattle’s Legion of Boom defense, had Dallas playing fast and causing chaos, with an NFL-best 34 takeaways last year. The key is the pass rush, spearheaded by Defensive Player of the Year candidate Micah Parsons (13 sacks as a rookie in ’21), which created opportunities for the secondary, led by third-year cornerback Trevon Diggs (11 interceptions in ’21, the most by any NFL player in 40 seasons).
Of course, a deep playoff run will require better postseason play from Prescott. His team led the NFL in scoring with 31.2 points per game, but he dealt with a series of ailments in 2021 and struggled down the stretch, including a poor performance in the Cowboys’ 23–17 home wild-card loss to the 49ers. Prescott is now just 1–3 in playoff games, and that record will be a popular talking point come January.
