The upcoming 2020 NFL season will be like one we have never seen. With the global pandemic COVID-19 shutting down most of the country, many feared that the NFL season may be in doubt. Due to COVID, there has been very little preparation for the upcoming season. With shortened OTA's and Mini camps, limited spring training, and no preseason games, rookie players and coaches have little to no time to get acclimated to the league. It is going to be extremely hard to have realistic expectations for many teams and players. However, I shall do my best to give you the ultimate 2020 NFL Division predictions. NFC East edition!
NFC East:
1st: Philadelphia Eagles(11-5)
The Philadelphia Eagles ended their season in an extremely tough loss to the Seattle Seahawks in the Wild Card round. Carson Wentz went down early in that game thanks to a cheap shot in the back of the neck by current free agent Jadeveon Clowney. And that was the final straw for any hope the Eagles had in the Postseason. For the entirety of last season the team was plagued with injuries all over the place, most notably in their receiving core. No DeSean Jackson or Alshon Jeffrey, instead Carson Wentz was working with his duel TE's Ertz and Goedert. His receivers included Greg Ward, Shelton Gibson, J.J. Arcega Whiteside and studs named Boston Scott and Miles Sanders out of the backfield. This season they finally addressed the need of a new and younger wide out, and selected Jalen Reagor with their first round pick. They also drafted an X-factor on offense, QB Jalen Hurts. They have already said they will use him in many different ways in both the passing game and in the run game. With this type of offensive talent surrounding Wentz, I think he will propel himself into the conversation of one of the best QB's in the league. On the defensive side of the ball it was really easy to point out the weak link of the team last season. The secondary was getting toasted with butter every Sunday. In 2020, that will be a different story after trading for 3 time Pro Bowler Darius Slay. The Eagles will still be led by All Pro Fletcher Cox along with Brandon Graham and Javon Hargrave on the Defensive Line. This is an Eagles team I expect to sweep all divisional games and hopefully have a deep run in the playoffs. They are a Super Bowl Contender.
2nd: Dallas Cowboys(9-7)
Dallas has a very talented roster coming into the season, there is no doubt about that. However, with such limited time to prepare for the season, new Head Coach Mike McCarthy will have to put in a lot of work to have the players master his offensive scheme. I speculate they will have another middle of the road type of season. But it could be a whole lot worse if it wasn't for the immense collection of talent on the roster. Dak Prescott will have another solid season as a top passer hoping for a big contract extension next season. I think Zeke will return to his old self and be a top 3 running back, running like a mad man behind that stacked offensive line. Amari Cooper is staying in Dallas after getting a massive contract! But, I don't think he will be able play up to that 20 Million dollar mark. With so many mouths to feed I reckon he has a very quiet top 10 wideout year. Michael Gallup, who was great down the stretch last year, will have another good season with over 1000 yards again. With their first round draft pick they selected Wide Receiver CeeDee Lamb out of Oklahoma, and I know he will end up having a great season with lots of production, most likely working in the slot. The defense took two major blows this off season, they lost their starting Corner Back in Byron Jones to the Dolphins and they just lost star DT Gerald McCoy to a ruptured right quadriceps. They will have a lot of holes to fill in the secondary, and I think that might be where they struggle the most. It's a passing league and they need guys who can hold their own, and as of right now they really don't. On a brighter note I believe Demarcus Lawrence will return to his All Pro form this season, posting over 15 sacks. This will be an extremely competitive team this season, but lack of team chemistry is going to hurt them late in games where they wont be able to seal the deal.
3rd: New York Giants(4-12)
The Giants are coming in with New Head Coach Joe Judge. Judge spent the past eight years on the coaching staff under Bill Belichick in New England. He was rather a shocking hire after all the reports insisted that Matt Rhule would be taking the job. Nonetheless, Judge has a ginormous task in front of him. Second year QB Daniel Jones should be in for a progression season. Don't get me wrong, he will still struggle a lot in major games. But I expect that he will show many more flashes of the QB that he is developing into. First Round draft pick Andrew Thomas will be expected to keep Jones upright this season. If not, Daniel Jones won't have a chance.
There 2 players on this offense which I'm extremely excited to watch perform this season, Saquon Barkley and Darius Slayton. Barkley should and most likely will have another dominant season both rushing and receiving. I'm predicting Barkley will plant his name as the best running back in the league this year. He will claim both the rushing yard and rushing touchdown crowns to go with his Offensive Player of the Year Award. Darius Slayton showed a lot of potential last season being the number one option at Wide Receiver. And with the great chemistry he and Jones have I expect him to be a top 20 wide out this year. Evan Engram, Sterling Shepard and Golden Tate are also nice pieces that round out the rest of the the receiving core. During the off season they added tackling machine Blake Martinez and star Defensive Back James Bradberry. They will really help out this 28th ranked defense from last season. Sadly, due to COVID-19, the Giants will finish with the same record as last time with little time to get acclimated to the new coach and system.
4th: Washington Football Team(4-12)
First off I want to wish Ron Rivera a quick road to recovery after the team released the news about his cancer, and thankfully they seem to have caught it early enough that he will be able to continue to coach the team. I loved the signing of Ron Rivera, he is personally one of my favorite coaches in the NFL. I think he can make a real turn around with this team, but he is going to need a year or two before that can happen. The ultimate question that everyone in the media has on their minds is, who is going to win the starting QB job? I am not very sure of this answer myself but I have to believe that they will roll with Dwayne Haskins. I think Alex Smith's return will push and motivate Haskins to be the best version of himself in camp. And even if things don't work out, Alex Smith is a great back up that can win you games. There isn't much that surrounds these two QB's however. I am extremity excited to see the production Terry McLaurin will provide to the offense this season. He will build off of the great rookie year he had last season and prove that he can be a number one Wide Receiver in this league. It would a miss if I didn't mention that Adrian Peterson is still the primary Running Back for the team. He will be a great locker room role model, while he stat packs to his Hall of Fame career. Reports have come out that many players on the defensive side of the ball are extremely excited for the arrival of Jack Del Rio's scheme. Ha Ha Clinton Dix, Ryan Kerrigan and number two overall draft pick Chase Young will be the standouts on defense. Ron Rivera has some nice pieces to work with, and will keep the team fighting throughout this rocky season.
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