The NFC East is always one of the most competitive divisions in football. For years, it was a given that a different team would win the division each season. While that has shifted slightly, it has also brought changes for the teams struggling to keep pace with the top of the division.
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Latest News in the NFC East
Brian Daboll is out, fired halfway through the season. Dan Quinn has taken over Defensive play-calling for Washington. Meanwhile, Dallas and Philly turn to the trade market to bolster their defenses. Have Dallas, Washington, or New York done enough to close the gap on Philly, or did the Eagles just make the moves that will keep them atop the NFC East throughout the season?
Brian Daboll Finally Fired by the Giants
The Giants hired Brian Daboll following the 2021 season, tasking him at first with fixing Daniel Jones. Handcuffing him to Jones in the early portion of his time in New York meant a consistent slide in their win-loss record. Daboll’s first season produced 9 wins, his final season produced just 2 in 10 games. Much of that time New York was the bottom dweller of the NFC East.
Producing an overall record of 20-40-1, and 1-1 in the playoffs was not good enough for the Giants to stay the course, even with a rookie Quarterback at the helm. Former Eagles quarterback Mike Kafka takes over as the Interim Head Coach. Kafka saw interest from teams looking for a Head Coach this past offseason; now he gets a 7-game audition to show the NFL what he can salvage in New York.
Kafka has steadily risen in the coaching ranks. Regarded highly for the mental aspect of his game as a player, the former journeyman quarterback has learned from some of the most respected veteran coaches in the game along the way. Including Andy Reid, whom he played for from 2010 to 2012 and coached under from 2017 to 2021. In 2013, it was Bill Belichick, 2014 it was Lovie Smith, 2015 it was Ken Whisenhunt and Marvin Lewis, and finally Pat Fitzgerald in 2016.
Kafka has now been coaching for a decade and has been involved with the NCAA or NFL as a player for another decade. He has also operated in nearly every coaching role a team has on staff: Quality Control Coach, Position Coach, Passing Game Coordinator, Offensive Coordinator, Assistant Head Coach, and now Interim Head Coach. This should, for the most part, feel like a natural progression for the team and for Kafka.
Don’t be surprised if the Giants begin playing a bit better down the stretch with Kafla taking over. However, it may be their 29th-ranked defense that needs to make changes for that to happen.
Commanders Can’t Take it Anymore
The Commanders slipped to 3-7 this weekend, a week after learning their star Quarterback dislocated his non-throwing elbow on a gruesome play. Even though Daniels has been in and out of the lineup this season, the offense has not been the bulk of the issues. They have failed to top 20 points three times this season, and while that sounds bad, look at what the defense has allowed….
Twice this season, they allowed 44 points; in two more games, the defense allowed over 30 points. The real kicker is the fact that they have only had two games all season in which they have allowed less than 24 points. They are currently allowing an average of 28 points per game, while producing 22.3. To put that into perspective, according to teamrankings.com, only four offenses have averaged over 28 points per game this season.
Only three teams have been worse: Tennessee, Dallas, and Cincinnati. And Dallas just swung a pair of trades that will change the entire scope of their defense. The bright side for the Commanders, is the NFC East as a whole has been terrible on defense. All four teams are trying to fix their defense on the fly, which means the margin for error for Washington is a bit larger than it otherwise might be making this move.
Quinn’s background is as a Defensive Coordinator, so this is not entirely a surprise, and according to Quinn’s comments via NFL.com, Joe Whitt Jr. will remain on staff and continue to have input on the defense. It was said he handled the decision well.
Quinn and Whitt Jr. have worked together for years now, and their working relationship may lead this to be a long-term situation. Most coordinators would have been handed their walking papers in this scenario. Originally joining Quinn in Atlanta in 2020, they have not parted ways since. If Washington can manage to make adjustments on defense, they could gain ground in the NFC East quick.
Dallas Doubles Down on Defense
Jerry Jones recently made comments alluding to their desire to fix the defense, and the Cowboys went and did just that. Trading away Mazi Smith and acquiring Quinnen Williams from the Jets, and Logan Wilson from the Bengals. Allowing the third most points in the league has held the Cowboys back from success despite a supremely talented offense.
Allowing 6.1 yards per play on average, 4th worst in the NFL, no single facet of the defense has been the entire culprit. This is the ranking that has come from failures at every level of this defense. Bringing in Logan Wilson could end up looking like a masterstroke for Dallas.
Wilson can serve in multiple roles for the Cowboys. According to PFF.com, in terms of grades, Wilson instantly became the top graded linebacker for the Cowboys in run defense, and in pass rush grade, while he doesn’t have the greatest pass coverage grade this season, he is by far the most accomplished coverage linebacker of the group in previous years. He has 11 interceptions and 25 pass deflections on his resume.
Upgrading from one-trick pony Mazi Smith to arguably one of the best and most rounded interior defensive linemen in the league, in Quinnen Williams, is a move that is incredibly easy to justify. Smith did not provide much, if anything, as a pass rusher, which is a large reason he was more of a rotational piece for Dallas. Not only do you bring in a player who is an immediate upgrade in an obvious one-versus-one scenario, but you bring in a player who now pushes a starter back into a rotational role on the defensive line, while doing the same thing at linebacker.
This should help the team in more ways than one. The Cowboys have the highest QB hurry and pressure rates in the league, but they have failed to convert pressures into sacks or turnovers. Producing just 20 sacks, bottom third of the league, and 7 turnovers tied for 5th least in the league. This defense has also struggled to stop the run.
All three of these factors are why you go out and make a trade for Williams and Wilson. Williams immediately became the highest graded defensive tackle Dallas had by a long shot. Kenny Clark, Solomon Thomas, and Osa Odighizuwa all rank 50th or lower out of 125 qualifying players; Williams ranks 6th. His run grade this season is over 90, but he, too, has struggled to produce sacks this season, with just one to his name. The Cowboys are leaning on the law of averages with this move. Williams has not logged fewer than 5.5 sacks since his rookie season.
Eagles Loading Up For a Repeat?
The Eagles currently stand atop their division with a 7-2 record. The problem is that the record does not tell the full story. Philadelphia has struggled to defend premier wide receivers in the passing game all season long. What was a strength last season during a Super Bowl run had devolved into a weakness after the departure of many veteran players.
With Adoree Jackson, Kelee Ringo, Mac McWilliams, and Jakorian Bennett stepping in for names like Darius Slay, James Bradberry, Isaiah Rogers, and Avonte Maddox moving on, it completes a youth movement that began last season. The only problem is that it didn’t look good to begin the season. Jackson was routinely burnt, and Ringo stepped in and looked just as bad.
The Eagles were giving up big plays left, right, and center. However, this wasn’t entirely on the secondary as the past rush simply has not been producing in 2025 either. The Eagles have historically aggressively filled holes via trade when needed. Howie Roseman stuck to his guns and made a trio of trades over the last three weeks to solidify the secondary and add an up-and-coming pass rusher, while also bringing Brandon Graham back from retirement.
These moves prove that the Eagles organization is not resting on its laurels, even with a 6- 2 record and a comfortable lead in the division heading into the trade deadline. Let’s look at the total package given up and the players acquired.
Traded Away:
WR John Metchie
2026 3rd Round Pick
2026 6th Round Pick
2027 6th Round Pick
Acquired:
LB Jaelan Phillips
CB Michael Carter II
CB Jaire Alexander
2027 7th round pick
2027 7th round pick
Ultimately, if you include the Tank Bigsby and John Metchie trades, the Eagles have seen a total of six picks and two players to other teams in exchange for five players and three draft picks. They chose to bet on veterans to fill needs rather than wait for the players the draft could bring in 2026. They also avoided giving up any premier picks in 2026. Initially, there was talk that they were willing to give up multiple first-round picks to acquire an All-Pro pass rusher like Myles Garrett.
Instead, the highest draft pick they gave up was a third-round pick, and in exchange, they got immediate production in the form of 8 pressures, 6 hurries, 2 QB hits, on top of 6 tackles, including 1 for a loss, and a fumble recovery. Talk about a debut. Immediately following the moves to address their defense, the unit goes out and holds the Green Bay offense to 7 points and wills the team to win. This is the kind of gutsy win that typically distinguishes playoff contenders from Super Bowl contenders.
Given another week to acclimate, I anticipate Carter and Alexander beginning to make an impact as well. If the Eagles’ defense can continue to have performances like this, they will be extremely hard to beat down the stretch.
Improvement is the Name of the Game
In the NFC East, you can not stay stagnant for too long or you will fall behind, and I don’t remember an in-season stretch that exemplified that more than the last couple of weeks. Five trades, and two big-time coaching changes.
Sources:
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