The NFC East may be the NFL’s most mysterious division. One year’s divisional champion can easily be the following year’s fourth-place team and vice versa. Whether a result of these four teams building their rosters to face one another or simple parity, the NFC East feels like a pick ’em division on a yearly basis. This year should be no different, especially with the number of questions swirling around all four teams and the number of changes they have already made. More changes are yet to come in this week’s draft.
The most obviously transformed team is the Philadelphia Eagles. Upon given free reign over the team’s roster this offseason, head coach Chip Kelly has made a number of surprising moves, such as trading away running back LeSean McCoy, swapping quarterback Nick Foles for Sam Bradford and letting wide receiver Jeremy Maclin walk away a free agent. The Dallas Cowboys weren’t able to retain the pricey services of running back DeMarco Murray and gambled on signing defensive end Greg Hardy, who now must serve a 10-game suspension before playing a game with his new team.
The New York Giants desperately need offensive line help this year, but they also have to improve their secondary, especially the safety position where they are currently quite barren. Washington, too, is lacking in the safety department, as well as cornerback and linebacker—or, really, the entire defense, which the team has long had to neglect thanks to a lack of draft picks after trading up for quarterback Robert Griffin III in 2013. Clearly, in an anything-is-possible division, all four teams need all the strategic advantages they can get out of their respective 2015 draft classes.
Dallas Cowboys
Courtesy of USA Today Sports; Could Todd Gurley be in play for Dallas?
While it seems like the loss of DeMarco Murray should spur the Dallas Cowboys to quickly find his replacement, the 2015 NFL draft is very deep at the running back position. They won’t have to take Todd Gurley or Melvin Gordon at 27th-overall in order to bring on a talented back. They can wait until Round 2 or even Round 3 to find the right player, such as Miami’s Duke Johnson or Indiana’s Tevin Coleman.
Instead, the first round should be all about defense for the Cowboys. A secondary populated by mostly unknown players performed far better than expected last year, as did the defense as a whole, but that doesn’t mean the Cowboys need to make do with what they have for a second straight year. Defensive line would be a good start in Round 1, not just to make up for the 10-game suspension Greg Hardy will have to serve. Losing Henry Melton in free agency might have been the most painful loss for the Cowboys up front and interior pass-rush now becomes a high priority.
The Cowboys will need to prioritize their draft wish-list smartly. They need defensive line help, but they also need assistance at both cornerback and safety. They may not be able to wait until later to grab a safety, because there just aren’t many in this year’s draft—and especially not safeties who could start as rookies. The cornerback position is deeper, but it is top-heavy. Do they gamble and leave it to Round 2 or later or take one of the better prospects in Round 1? No matter what the Cowboys choose to do, if they can come away meeting a number of their defensive needs while throwing in a high-upside running back, they’ll have the draft they need to have.
New York Giants
If the New York Giants didn’t have a major need to bring on an offensive tackle in Round 1, there would be no better choice than Alabama safety Landon Collins when they select at ninth-overall. The Giants are exceptionally weak at safety at the moment and while they seem perpetually on the verge of bringing back free agent Stevie Brown, his return may have to wait until after the Giants collect their draft haul. Right now, the Giants have only three safeties on the roster plus three other catch-all defensive backs, and head coach Tom Coughlin is thinking of converting cornerback Bennett Jackson and special-teamer Nat Berhe to safety. That’s how desperate times have gotten.
Given such a glaring need, it would not be surprising if the Giants bite the bullet and pick up Collins, saving offensive line for later. But the Giants have long been linked to Iowa offensive tackle Brandon Scherff, and for good reason—it’s time to re-up their investment in quarterback Eli Manning both literally (he’s getting a contract extension soon) and figuratively (he needs high-end, young offensive linemen to protect him and help him play better). It’s possible the Giants can find a more than adequate lineman in Round 2 instead, but it looks like Round 2 is where the safety search will begin instead.
On defense, linebacker is the position to watch for the Giants in middle rounds. They could also serve to add another tight end, but otherwise, skill positions will be left until later given that the Giants have all they need presently at both wide receiver and running back. Safety could also be a position the Giants address more than once, so great is the need.
Washington
Washington went 4-12 in 2014, thanks not just to uneven quarterback play but to a dismal defense that needs a lot of help this year. Still, it’s possible that Washington chooses to make a quarterback change when they pick fifth-overall. Washington won’t make a decision on the 2016 fifth-year option, which will pay Griffin over $16 million in guaranteed cash for that season, until after the draft. If Washington opts to draft Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota at five—given he’s there—then that will be it for Griffin just four years into his career.
But Washington would be wise to use the No. 5 pick to help their struggling defense, or to move down to the middle of the round to give them more picks with which to play. Like the Giants, safety is a huge problem for Washington. Though Brandon Merriweather is no longer there to stink up the defensive backfield, their trade to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for Dashon Goldson may not pan out any better. Landon Collins could be one option at No. 5—or even a little bit later in the round if Washington trades down.
Washington also needs to add upgrades at cornerback. This, too, could be in play in Round 1 or it could wait until Round 2. Further upgrades could come in the form of interior linebacker. Pass-rusher is not a need this year but help up front to stop the run would certainly be welcome. On offense, Washington would be smart to also bring on offensive line help in the form of a tackle. Whether their quarterback this year is Griffin, Mariota or someone else, keeping that player protected needs to be a priority.
Philadelphia Eagles
Given the offseason the Philadelphia Eagles have had already and it’s possible the team could go any number of directions, including a complicated, three-way trade that would provide the Eagles enough ammunition to move up and select Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota as high as No. 2 overall. Yes, the Eagles traded with the St. Louis Rams for quarterback Sam Bradford, but that doesn’t matter—Eagles head coach Chip Kelly does what he wants, and it’s hard to figure out the reasoning even well after the fact.
But it isn’t hard to discern some of the Eagles’ biggest draft needs, and the largest appears to be wide receiver. Philadelphia picks 20th, a perfect place to snag a player like DeVante Parker or Jaelen Strong—the latter, despite the broken bone in his wrist—has the size Kelly prefers from his receivers as well as a great deal of upside.
The Eagles are still trying to trade offensive guard Evan Mathis. There may be some progress made here, especially as we get closer to the draft. If they succeed in moving him, then the Eagles will certainly prioritize finding a new guard in the draft. On defense, safety should be in play by Rounds 3 or 4.
It’s hard to predict Kelly’s plans for this draft, given how crazy Philadelphia’s offseason has already been. The only certainty, right now, is that at some point the Eagles will draft a wide receiver. Other positions and the rounds in which they are selected are a puzzle that has only been put together in Kelly’s brain. Expect something weird to happen.
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