NFC East
Washington Redskins:
Record last season: 10-6 (Division Winner)
Playoff finish: Lost Wild Card 24-14 to Seahawks
2013 Schedule (via www.pro-football-reference.com)
Week
|
Day
|
Date
|
Opp
|
|
1
|
September
9
|
Philadelphia Eagles
|
||
2
|
September
15
|
@
|
Green Bay Packers
|
|
3
|
September
22
|
Detroit Lions
|
||
4
|
September
29
|
@
|
Oakland Raiders
|
|
5
|
Bye Week
|
|||
6
|
October
13
|
@
|
Dallas Cowboys
|
|
7
|
October
20
|
Chicago Bears
|
||
8
|
October
27
|
@
|
Denver Broncos
|
|
9
|
November
3
|
San Diego Chargers
|
||
10
|
November
7
|
@
|
Minnesota Vikings
|
|
11
|
November
17
|
@
|
Philadelphia Eagles
|
|
12
|
November
25
|
SF 49ers
|
||
13
|
December
1
|
New York Giants
|
||
14
|
December
8
|
Kansas City Chiefs
|
||
15
|
December
15
|
@
|
Atlanta Falcons
|
|
16
|
December
22
|
Dallas Cowboys
|
||
17
|
December
29
|
@
|
New York Giants
|
The Washington organization won the division for the first
time since 1999. Not coincidentally, they rode the coattails of AP Offensive
Rookie of the Year Robert Griffin III.
RG3 was as-advertised, he showed the dazzling speed and startling
accuracy that he displayed at Baylor.
Coach Mike Shanahan and his son, Offensive Coordinator Kyle Shanahan, incorporated a lot of the plays RG3 ran in college (with elements of the Pistol
and zone read option prevalent throughout the playbook). Another, less appealing thing carried over
from college—he suffered an ACL tear both collegiately and professionally. His biggest development will be to learn the
importance of preserving his body and avoiding taking big hits.
The Redskins will look to improve on their defense that
ranked 22nd in points allowed per game. Brian Orakpo’s arrival back to the lineup
from his injury will help immensely. With the
returns of Orakpo, a former Pro Bowl Outside Linebacker, and defensive end Adam
Carriker, Washington should improve on the 33 sacks that the team totaled last year
(leading to a 20th ranking in that statistic). The team was also 30th in pass
yards allowed and dead last in interceptions.
Rookie Bacarri Rambo is slated to start at Free Safety and another
rookie, David Amerson, may end up starting at corner before the season is
over. Hard-hitting safety Brandon
Meriweather looks to return from a season marred by injury. DeAngelo Hall will start the season as the
number 1 corner.
 |
| The team will try to keep RG3 upright as much as possible this season |
Being able to duplicate the success on offense will be
incredibly interesting. Due to RG3’s
health concern, Coach Shanahan has said there will be less read-option. Despite being a sixth round selection, Alfred
Morris enjoyed the most successful Redskins rookie running back season in the
franchise’s history. With less read option (an offensive play that relies on
trickery as much as skill) keep an eye on his production. Between Morris and RG3, the team led the
league in rush yards per game. The
offense will get a boost from Fred Davis’ return from his Achilles injury after
he showed a real rapport with the then-rookie quarterback. The passing game
overall will need to improve from the 213.9 yards per game they averaged last
season, as the threat of RG3 running (and the overall potency of their running
game) will dissipate.
Estimated Win Total: 10-6
Dallas Cowboys:
Record Last Season: 8-8
2013 Regular Season:
Week
|
Day
|
Date
|
Opp
|
|
1
|
September 8
|
New York Giants
|
||
2
|
September 15
|
@
|
Kansas City Chiefs
|
|
3
|
September 22
|
St. Louis Rams
|
||
4
|
September 29
|
@
|
San Diego Chargers
|
|
5
|
October 6
|
Denver Broncos
|
||
6
|
October 13
|
Washington Redskins
|
||
7
|
October 20
|
@
|
Philadelphia Eagles
|
|
8
|
October 27
|
@
|
Detroit Lions
|
|
9
|
November 3
|
Minnesota Vikings
|
||
10
|
November 10
|
@
|
New Orleans Saints
|
|
11
|
Bye Week
|
|||
12
|
November 24
|
@
|
New York Giants
|
|
13
|
November 28
|
Oakland Raiders
|
||
14
|
December 9
|
@
|
Chicago Bears
|
|
15
|
December 15
|
Green Bay Packers
|
||
16
|
December 22
|
@
|
Washington Redskins
|
|
17
|
December 29
|
Philadelphia Eagles
|
The Cowboys made a splash with their enormous contract that
they signed Tony Romo to in the offseason.
Romo has a lot to prove in some people’s eyes given his lack of playoff
success and recent financial windfall.
He threw for nearly 5,000 yards while tossing 28 Touchdowns, but he’ll
need drop the 19 interceptions that help lead to his worst passer rating index
since he became the Cowboys’ full time starter. For his (and Coach Jason
Garrett’s) sake success needs to follow the confidence the franchise has shown
in him; and dispel his perceived maddening nonchalance that he can display at
inopportune times.
Bill Callahan has taken over play calling duties and an
immediate impact has already been felt.
Instead of giving Romo two plays from the sidelines and letting him
decide which to pick (a practice that necessitated a lot of verbiage before the
huddle), Callahan has been using a numbers system that corresponds with a set
of plays on the quarterback’s wrist. The result will be getting out of the
huddle more quickly and, perhaps, more plays per game. There has also been a philosophical shift to
become a more balanced play-calling team.
Last year a third of the called plays were runs, and the Cowboys have
promised to utilize their running backs more often this upcoming year (which
also may explain why they selected TE Gavin Escobar in the 2nd round
with needs on the defensive side of the ball). In the first preseason game of
the year the race to back up DeMarco Murray looked intense. Phillip Tanner (who
led the game with 59 yards), Lance Dunbar, and Joseph Randle will all be
battling to pick up the extra workload sure to come their way with increased
carries and an injury-prone player playing in front of them.
 |
| Which one of these is not like the others? |
Defensively, the Cowboys must improve on the 24th
ranked points per game performance that they put up last year. They have
play-makers at every level of the defense. DeMarcus Ware is a perennial Pro Bowl
pass rusher, Sean Lee is an incredibly talented LB, and Morris Claiborne’s ball
skills could improve on a defense that only had 7 interceptions all of last
year. The Cowboys (in a refrain that is
sung around the League by at least 15 teams every offseason) promised to be
more aggressive and increase their takeaways.
It might be more than just preseason puffery with this Dallas unit given
that they will be going with an entirely new system;switching from the 3-4 to
the 4-3 and a new defensive coordinator. Monte Kiffin’s Tampa 2 defense has
been praised for its ability to generate turnovers at every stop along the way.
Estimated Win Total: 7-9
NY Giants:
Record Last Season: 9-7
2013 Regular Season Schedule
Week
|
Day
|
Date
|
Opp
|
|
1
|
September 8
|
@
|
Dallas Cowboys
|
|
2
|
September 15
|
Denver Broncos | ||
3
|
September 22
|
@
|
Carolina Panthers | |
4
|
September 29
|
@
|
Kansas City Chiefs | |
5
|
October 6
|
Philadelphia Eagles | ||
6
|
October 10
|
@
|
Chicago Bears | |
7
|
October 21
|
Minnesota Vikings | ||
8
|
October 27
|
@
|
Philadelphia Eagles | |
9
|
Bye
Week
|
|||
10
|
November 10
|
Oakland Raiders | ||
11
|
November 17
|
Green Bay Packers | ||
12
|
November 24
|
Dallas Cowboys | ||
13
|
December 1
|
@
|
Washington Redskins | |
14
|
December 8
|
@
|
San Diego Chargers | |
15
|
December 15
|
Seattle Seahhawks | ||
16
|
December 22
|
@
|
Detroit Lions | |
17
|
December 29
|
Washington Redskins | ||
The ultimate feast or famine team is back. Coming off a
disappointing season, Eli Manning is looking to improve on a season that saw
him fail to break 4,000 yards or 60% completion rate. He’ll have to do it
without Ahmad Bradshaw, who has been replaced by former NCSU player, David
Wilson. While there has been a change in the backfield, the entire offensive
line returns after a season where they allowed the 2nd fewest sacks
in the league. Oft-injured Wide receiver (and former UNC standout) Hakeem Nicks
will need to stay healthy for an offensive unit that was ranked 6th
in points per game (26.8).
The defense was porous against the run, and second round
selection Johnathan Hankins should help bolster the defensive line. Jason Pierre
Paul is recovering from off season back surgery and looking to rebound from a
disappointing 2012 season. The team’s
strength during its Super Bowl run was its aggressive line play and its ability
to pressure the opposition’s quarterback. Last year they were dead last in
sacks, which put more pressure on its unspectacular secondary. Defensive Coordinator Perry Fewell will need
more success this season or he may be on his way out.
Estimated Win Total: 9-7
Philadelphia Eagles
Record Last season: 4-12
Week
|
Day
|
Date
|
Opp
|
|
1
|
September 9
|
@
|
Washington Redskins | |
2
|
September 15
|
San Diego Chargers | ||
3
|
September 19
|
Kansas City Chiefs | ||
4
|
September 29
|
@
|
Denver Broncos | |
5
|
October 6
|
@
|
New York Giants | |
6
|
October 13
|
@
|
TB Buccaneers | |
7
|
October 20
|
Dallas Cowboys | ||
8
|
October 27
|
New York Giants | ||
9
|
November 3
|
@
|
Oakland Raiders | |
10
|
November 10
|
@
|
Green Bay Packers | |
11
|
November 17
|
Washington Redskins | ||
12
|
Bye
Week
|
|||
13
|
December 1
|
Arizona Cardinals | ||
14
|
December 8
|
Detroit Lions | ||
15
|
December 15
|
@
|
Minnesota Vikings | |
16
|
December 22
|
Chicago Bears | ||
17
|
December 29
|
@
|
Dallas Cowboys | |
The Eagles started last season 3-1…and won one more for the
remaining 12 games. Their quarterback
situation is a microcosm of their up and down season. Michael Vick started 10 games and Nick Foles
started six. What’s that saying about
having two quarterbacks? Even more fascinating; with new coach Chip Kelly
incorporating elements of his Oregon offense, the Eagles have yet to name a
starter for the season. Both
quarterbacks have run the first-team offense in training camp, and Kelly has
reiterated all pre-season that it is an open competition. It will be interesting to see if this
indecisiveness at the most important position in football will hurt a team that
is already influx with the new system.
When Kelly was hired, the first prominent questions had to
do with whether he’d be able to take his up-tempo system from Oregon and
incorporated it successfully in the NFL.
It’s a system built on pace and incredible speed at the skill
positions. Theoretically the current
roster fits the scheme. DeSean Jackson, LaSean McCoy, and (until his
season-ending injury) Jeremy Maclin all seem to fit the former Ducks
program. Vick reminds me a lot of the
mobile quarterbacks that Kelly coached in Oregon; always threatening to run and
spreading the defense as thin as possible.
A couple of important differences to watch as Kelly and his system make
the leap. 1) There will be a much less drastic talent gap between teams. Oregon
was flat out more talented than most of the competition it faced. It’s true of most of the successful college
football programs. They recruit the best players possible. There is no “talent cap” only a limit to the
scholarships given. In the NFL the hard
salary cap prevents one team from stockpiling ridiculous amounts of talent. 2nd:
because NFL rosters are smaller than college football rosters having a team
with a breakneck pace is difficult and a bit risky. Still, Kelly has assured
Philly fans that he will adapt the system to the League…only time will tell.
 |
| The Musical Chairs bit at QB is a risky gambit for Kelly |
The Philly defense was 29th in points
allowed. They gave up 27 or more points
10 times last year (they lost every game).
While stars aren't everything on the defensive side of the ball, their
roster doesn't boast one Pro-Bowl or All-Pro player. I don’t know how a scheme
can save a defense without much talent, and add to that the fact that they’ll
be on the field more than ever given the pace of their offense…could make for
some disastrous results.
Estimated Win Total: 7-9
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