It is no secret that the 2020 NFC East is the worst division in football in recent history. With the Philadelphia Eagles leading the division in Week 7 with a record of 2-4-1, the division has been nothing short of abysmal. There are two matchups within the division in Week 7, so there is a lot to dissect. However, whether they are deserving of a playoff appearance or not, one of these teams must make the playoffs.

Philadelphia Eagles (2-4-1)

With the vast majority of the Eagles’ starting offensive lineup injured, Philadelphia has had to rely on many players from their bench, including breakout WR Travis Fulgham, WR Greg Ward, and third-string TE Richard Rodgers. In fact, in Week 7, the Eagles only had two starters play on offense. 

Ultimately, the fate of the Eagles’ season relies on quarterback Carson Wentz who had a rough start to the year. It is clear that when Wentz plays well, the team acts more cohesively, as proven in their close game with the Pittsburgh Steelers and win over the San Francisco 49ers. However, the problem is that even if Wentz is able to pull it together, he has inexperienced receivers and an offensive line decimated by injuries. The combination of Wentz being pressured every play and receivers unable to get open is the root of this team’s problems. If the Eagles want to hold onto their position in the division, Carson Wentz must overcome these issues and put the team on his back like he did last week against the NY Giants. 

New York Giants (1-6)

On Thursday Night Football, the Giants took a tough loss in a division matchup against the Eagles, giving up their 21-10 lead with only six minutes remaining in the game. With star RB Saquon Barkley injured, the Giants offense lacks explosiveness and a useful weapon for sophomore QB Daniel Jones. 

Despite the Giants’ disappointing performance thus far, Senior and Giants fan Jake Dillion has decided to remain hopeful. Dillon says, “Although the Giants aren’t having a great season, there have been some flashes of good. The Giants are a very young team, with 50 players on the team being under 25 years old. Because of this, they were bound to have an ugly season but they are playing pretty good for the amount of experience they have. A lot of these guys look promising and hopefully, with time, they will turn into a playoff contender in the future.”

Washington Football Team (2-5)

With an underwhelming performance to start the season from sophomore quarterback Dwayne Haskins from The Ohio State University, backup Kyle Allen has taken over to attempt to lead the Washington Football Team to victory.

However, the running game of Washington has been solid thanks to rookie Antonio Gibson, who rushed the ball 20 times for 128 yards and a touchdown against Dallas. Despite inconsistency at the QB position, sophomore WR Terry McLaurin has been having a great season so far as well, and he is ranked number 10 among all fantasy football WRs. 

After blowing out the Cowboys 25-3, the Washington Football Team is coming off a big win. If Washington continues to play the way they did against Dallas, they could end up being a serious and unexpected threat to win the division.

Dallas Cowboys (2-5)

After a gruesome ankle injury in Week 6 to Cowboys’ starting quarterback, Dak Prescott, and then a brutal concussion injury to backup QB Andy Dalton, the Cowboys are left in the hands of rookie Ben Dinucci, a seventh-round pick out of James Madison University. Many experts viewed the Cowboys as not only a playoff team, but a potential Superbowl contender due to their stellar receiving core including WRs Amari Cooper, Michael Gallup, and rookie Ceedee Lamb. After losing to Washington 25-3 this past week, these high hopes have certainly been squandered. The Cowboys’ main struggles have been on defense, though, as they currently allow the most points to opponents, a whopping 34.7 points, the most in the NFL.

According to Senior and long-time Cowboys fan Nicole Bergman, “The Cowboys have had a rough start due to various injuries. Hopefully as the season progresses the team can overcome these injuries and start winning games.”

Despite their rankings and terrible starts to the season, it is still anybody’s race to clinch the NFC East given that the Eagles, who are currently in the first place, barely squeaked out a 22-21 win against the Giants, who are in last. Even though these four teams may be underwhelming right now, these next few weeks are integral in deciding who makes the playoffs.