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The NFC East is the home to perhaps the biggest coaching hire in several seasons: John Harbaugh left the Baltimore Ravens after nearly two decades and joined the New York Giants.
Beyond that, there are many NFC East storylines. These include Jayden Daniels rebounding from an injury-plagued season, the Dallas Cowboys improving their defense, and the Philadelphia Eagles bringing in a young offensive coordinator in former NFL quarterback Sean Mannion.
Below, we’ll preview the NFC East and provide my picks for the division winner, MVP candidates, and which teams will make the postseason.
2026 NFC East Odds
Last season, the Eagles won the division at 11-6, and there wasn’t exactly any competition. The second-place team was the Cowboys at 7-9-1 despite scoring nearly 100 more points than the Eagles.
This season, I see paths for each team winning it.
The defending division winner Eagles dealt Brown to the Patriots, but they drafted his replacement in Makai Lemon. However, their team is aging, especially along the offensive line. That said, the addition of Mannion as the offensive coordinator could lead to innovative concepts we haven’t seen from the Eagles in years, given their underwhelming offenses under other offensive coordinators.
The Cowboys’ Achilles heel last season was their defense. They averaged 27.7 points per game on offense, but allowed a league-high 30.1 per outing. Now, they have a new defensive coordinator, Christian Parker, and they addressed the defense plenty in the 2026 NFL Draft by selecting safety Caleb Downs, edge rusher Malachi Lawrence, linebacker Jaishawn Barham, and more. I fully expect their offense to be one of the better units in the NFL while their defense inches back toward league average.
The Commanders only got seven games out of Daniels last year, and it was just an all-around terrible season for them. Now, they’ll head into this season with (hopefully) a full season from Daniels, draft picks including linebacker Sonny Styles and wide receiver Antonio Williams, and signings such as edge rusher Odafe Oweh, linebacker Leo Chenal, and tight end Chig Okonkwo.
As for the Giants, John Harbaugh’s addition is massive. They’ll have a future Hall of Fame coach setting the tone. I’m still looking for more out of quarterback Jaxson Dart, but his full potential and skill set are Josh Allen-esque. I’m also curious if wide receiver Malik Nabers will come back at full strength after tearing his ACL last season. While there are some question marks there, their front seven is loaded with Brian Burns, Arvell Reese, Tremaine Edmunds, Abdul Carter, DJ Reader, and more.
My pick: I’ll go with the Cowboys. I trust this offense the most, and I expect their defense to start moving in a better direction. I don’t expect it to be league–leading by any means, but even league average would be a massive upgrade. A wide receiver duo of CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens will be difficult to stop.
Best Bet: Dallas Cowboys
2026 NFC East MVP Contenders, Odds
- Dak Prescott (QB, Cowboys)
- Jalen Hurts (QB, Eagles)
- Jayden Daniels (QB, Commanders)
- Jaxson Dart (QB, Giants)
Looking over the division, the only two players outside the quarterbacks who stand out as potential MVP candidates are Lamb and Eagles running back Saquon Barkley. However, I didn’t list them because Lamb is competing with Pickens for targets and Barkley’s production will be impacted by Hurts’ rushing.
As for Prescott, he’s coming off a season with 4,552 passing yards and 30 touchdowns. The touchdowns were certainly on the lower end, but if he can get back to his 2023 form, or perhaps push to 40 and continue his passing numbers, he’ll certainly be in the conversation.
Hurts’ rushing ability will always help him be a contender for most total touchdowns by a quarterback, but losing Brown will sting even though I think Lemon was the best receiver in the draft.
As for Daniels, I’m very curious to see what version of him we get. He was fantastic as a rookie and only played seven games last season. At “full strength,” he could very well contend with the best quarterbacks statistically.
Of these options, Dart is the one I’m lowest on. Outside of Nabers, I’m not thrilled with the pass-catching options, and his overall passing upside remains a question mark for me.
As for who I’d pick to wager on, Prescott would be my pick. He’ll put up big passing yardage numbers, now he just needs the touchdowns.
Best Bet: Dak Prescott
Which 2026 NFC East Team Will Reach the Playoffs?
Final Standings Prediction
- Dallas Cowboys (10-7)
- Philadelphia Eagles (10-7)
- New York Giants (8-9)
- Washington Commanders (7-10)
I predict the Cowboys and Eagles will both make the playoffs, with the Cowboys winning the division thanks to a tiebreaker. The Cowboys do have one of the tougher schedules this season, but their offense is one I’m not sleeping on. As for the Eagles, they made the postseason last year and will have one of the league’s easier schedules. Not only that, but Mannion’s comments about the offense have made sense. He mentioned getting back to making Barkley the focal point of the offense. With a rookie starting opposite DeVonta Smith at receiver, that makes sense.
I’m looking forward to the Giants trending in the right direction while the Commanders face one of the tougher schedules in all of football.
Photo Credit: REUTERS
